Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem

"Mommy, Mommy!" the blond little boy called as he ran up to a tall figure. "Look what Velouria gave me!" He proudly thrust out a shiny green gemstone covered in fur, his eyes gleaming.

The regal blond woman turned around from her conversation with a scraggly blue-haired man to look at her son. "Aw, that looks hella cool!" Scarlet exclaimed. She heard Yukimura clear his throat from behind her. "Um, I mean, what an elegant gemstone," she said nervously. "What is it - an emerald?"

"I dunno, but it looks cool." He craned his neck to look at her. "Here, it's for you," he said sweetly, grinning with his two front teeth missing.

Scarlet knelt down and patted her son on the head. "Shiro, that's very kind of you. Your father would be very proud." Realizing that there were diplomats standing awkwardly behind her, she turned around and gave Yukimura a polite smile. "Pardon me, I need to go tend to my son's needs." Grasping the tiny child's hand, she led him out of the throne room.

"Why are you leaving? Don't you like it there?" Shiro inquired, his head cocked to the side. His hair had been messed up again, right after the servants had spent such a long time tidying it up.

"What? The throne room?" Scarlet replied. "I can't stand it in there. The sun's always getting in my eyes, and I swear I can see the dust floating around in the sunbeams. Not to mention everyone's always underneath me since the throne is above the ground…" Her eyes drifted down to the floor as she trailed off. The freckled woman bit her lip. If only he could've been here to sit there instead. "Anyway, why do you ask?" she said lightheartedly, trying to hide her grief.

"Well…" he frowned slightly to himself. "You're always there. I always want to play with you, but the maids always stop me and make up some dumb thing so I can't. 'Oh, she's busy. She can't play with you right now.'" He scrunched up his face until he looked like he was crying. "I hate that! I always watch Shigure run home to Auntie Azura and Kana runs to Auntie Corrin, but I never have anyone to run to." He wiped at his eyes. "Or when Kiragi goes and hugs Uncle Takumi. I don't have a daddy to hug." He sniffled slightly, trying not to bawl too loudly.

Scarlet got back down to his height again and embraced her only son. Her shoulder-length hair ruffled in the breeze slightly. She didn't want to grow it out, but the Sun Tiara wouldn't look right with short hair. So she was pretty much pressured by the royal family and retainers to grow her hair out, despite her protests. "Your daddy may not be here to hug you, but that doesn't mean he isn't watching," she murmured quietly. She ran her hand through his hair, not a shade off from hers. "Even though your daddy's not here anymore, that doesn't mean that he doesn't love you any less. I remember," she started to crack a grin on her face, "when you were born, he wouldn't stop worrying. He'd worry if you would be fit to lead Hoshido someday; he worried if you'd grow up healthy; he worried if you'd grow up happy; and he definitely worried about whether you'd be okay, being born in a war." She grinned at him. "Even though you look just like your father, you don't act anything like him. You don't worry as much and you slack off a bit more." She sighed and straightened up. Turning around, she put her hands on her hips and looked out at the grandiose hallway. "I wish you had gotten my freckles," she said wistfully.

"Can I go out and play with Selkie?" Shiro asked, his head cocked to the side.

Scarlet ruffled the boy's hair. "Sure. Go out and get 'em, Tiger!" She walked down the hallway slowly as she listened to her son's footsteps pounding on the stone floor. Going inside her room, she laid down on her bed. Part of her worried about her meeting later on, but she pushed it away. Aw, fuck Yukimura and all those other royal pricks. I just want to sleep. She felt her mind disappear as she started to drift into unconsciousness.

"Hey, what the hell?!" Scarlet shouted in irritation as Ryoma sheathed his sword, Raijinto. "I thought we were supposed to be practicing," she growled in annoyance.

"Hey, Scarlet," Ryoma said quietly, looking down at the ground. "We're going to the Bottomless Canyon soon. Aren't you worried Corrin is lying to us or trying to mislead us? I mean, you don't know her very well. I don't have an issue trusting my sister, but I'm just wondering why you haven't brought up any issues with the gibberish she's been spouting."

Scarlet dropped her axe on the ground and sat on a rock. "Oh, that. I mean, if you trust Corrin then I will too. I know that some of the stuff she says sounds kinda crazy, but you're a good leader, Ryoma. And if you trust her, so will I."

"Scarlet…"

"I mean, you're really special," the freckled woman interjected. "You've got good leadership skills, good intuition, not to mention you're great on the battlefield. Her brown eyes shone brightly with unmatched enthusiasm.

"You're special too," Ryoma replied, coughing nervously. His face was starting to turn a light shade of red. "You're always up for a challenge, no matter how difficult. You're brave and strong." He looked away from her. "Time and time again you've shown me that you don't need royal blood to be a brave warrior. It makes me wonder what it would be like if you were a part of the Hoshidan Royal Family."

Scarlet laughed. "Me? Of Royal lineage? Don't make me laugh! I'm just a knight from Cheve who decided to make a difference." She scratched her freckled cheek. Her short blond hair barely ruffled in the wind as it blew by.

"I mean, it might be a good idea," Ryoma said awkwardly. He looked down at his trusty blade, trying to ease his anxiety. "Maybe you should consider being a part of the Royal Family."

"Ryoma…what are you suggesting?"

"I'm suggesting, Scarlet," he tightened his grip on the sword, "that you marry me," he finished. At that point, his face was brighter than his armor.

"I… Um…" Her face, so normally excited and in-control, looked flustered and bewildered.

Ryoma struggled with something for a moment, before bringing a shiny object into view. "Here. A ring to show my devotion to you and only you." He stepped forward until he was right next to Scarlet. The stream gurgled quietly right behind them. Somewhere in the trees, a bird called out joyfully, its song sweeping out over the sky.

He tried to put the ring on her, but it slipped out of his armored fingers and fell right into the stream with a resounding "plip!".

"Dammit!" Scarlet cried out, pounding her fists on the rock. She sighed after her moment of anger subsided. "Oh well. I'm not the type for a ring anyway." She smiled softly to herself, looking a tad more solemn than usual. She leaned against Ryoma. "So I guess I'll be Queen of Hoshido," she murmured. Scarlet looked down at her armored hands, imagining them bare, only covered by silken sleeves. I'll be sitting around, never to see the battlefield again. A small part of her rationalized that she would be much safer this way, but the overwhelming majority of her emotions was disappointment. So what's my future going to be like now? Stay at Castle Shirasagi and participate in politics? What will Ryoma be doing? Her brown eyes widened as a revelation occurred to her. We'll probably have kids one day, she mused to herself. She pondered whether it was an issue or not, but surprisingly didn't feel as much opposition to it as she had always considered she would.

"Just stay with me," Ryoma murmured as he put his arm around her. Scarlet smiled softly to herself as she leaned toward him.

"Is it supposed to feel this warm?" she mused out loud.

Ryoma didn't hear her, as he didn't reply. His warm eyes were fixed out on the distant sky as the sun dared start to peek its rays over the towering pine trees. Birdsong rang out, and his hair fluttered softly in the wind. It was much longer than his wife's, much to her amusement. He leaned his head close to her, knowing that it was going to be a long day once the sun rose higher. But for now, he just wanted to be with the woman he loved.

Scarlet remained unusually silent as she sat up. Rubbing sleep from her eyes, she also felt a strange wetness stain her hands. Ignoring the meaning behind those stains, she looked over at the window. The sun was setting, casting a ruby glow over the royal courtyard. Far below, she could see the normally sour Selena cracking a rare smile as Caeldori came running to her mother. Scarlet smiled at the sight. If Ryoma hadn't sacrificed himself, we wouldn't be allies with Nohr. Without Corrin, without Ryoma, without anyone…

She straightened up as she heard the door to her room squeak open. "Yes, what is it?" she asked stiffly, her eyes still looking out the window, but not yet really there.

It was silent for several moments. Finally, a few quiet footsteps were heard shuffling towards her. "Um… Mommy, can you read me a story?"

Scarlet turned her head to look at Shiro standing in the doorway. She smiled softly. In that moment, she looked just like the late Queen Mikoto. "Of course," she said softly as Shiro climbed into her giant bed. Scarlet stared at the covers thoughtfully, her mind lost in thoughts. What story should I tell? She sighed softly to herself as one came to mind. "Okay, here's one," she said quietly as she tucked her son in. "Well, a very long time ago, there was this old and wise dragon. He granted humans this great kingdom and even his blood so some of the lucky ones could share his power. However, one day he started to go crazy after all the years he'd lived. And instead of helping him, the humans turned against the wise, old dragon and treated him with derision." Her gaze took a sad turn as she started to wind through the old tale she had found out from Azura.

"The wise, old dragon started to turn bitter and soon succumbed to madness. He wanted to destroy all that the humans had built. However, a small, good part of him still remained." She smiled. "The dragon's heart separated itself from the dragon and took on a human form. And one day, the dragon's heart fell in love with a human. That human bore him a child. She was an interesting child, to say the least. Fearing for the human's safety, the heart of the dragon convinced her to leave with the child. She left for a foreign country with the child wrapped tightly in her arms. Then one day, many years later, that same human sacrificed her life for that child."

"You mean like how Daddy sacrificed his life for me!" Shiro exclaimed, his eyes gleaming.

Scarlet nodded in acknowledgment, but only went on with the story. "The child was very upset by her mother's death and vowed to avenge her. She gathered many friends and comrades in arms and waged a fierce battle against the evil dragon. At that point, the dragon had gone mad and needed to be put out of his misery. In the end, the girl, using the legendary blade Yato, slayed the dragon and peace finally returned to the world. Now, whenever you see the cherry blossoms flutter in the wind, you should be thankful that it ended up this way." She trailed off as she noticed Shiro had fallen asleep. She ruffled his hair. "Goodnight, my little prince," she whispered softly as she stood up from the bed. She had a council meeting to prepare for.

Scarlet looked out at the statue of Mikoto in the garden. Putting her hand on the glass, she threw the statue a sad smile. I hope I made your son happy; in life and in death.

Yoo, I don't know, I'm not really back per say...? I just felt like writing some Scarlet/Ryoma after playing through Revelations again. Though to be honest, I've been playing through Awakening again and I just realized that Fates just doesn't make me feel the same way as Awakening. Awakening still gives me this, just, feeling of awe, you know?

Anyway, it took me forever to finish this, so writer's block isn't going away anytime soon. New high school's fun so far, etc. etc. Just don't have much to say (probably since it's almost 11 pm right now). Anyway, hope y'all enjoyed~