Title: Faithless
Fandom: Fire Emblem: Awakening
Rating: K+, for small suggestive themes
Word count: 1,273
Summary: "And we were the unfaithful ones."
A/N: Don't discuss Chrom cheating on someone or else you will get terrible fanfic ideas. But yeah, I feel like if he slept with anyone, he would feel guilty. I chose Robin just because I wanted an excuse to write Frederick/Robin as well. Plus, Chrom/Robin is a popular pairing too? I don't really know my logic…
Uh, some 5 AM writing really! I didn't really know how to end it, so maybe I'll make this into a twoshot. Who knows, maybe you can give me some feedback. Should it have a happy ending or a bittersweet one? I'm actually terrible at endings.
Um, enjoy!
It happened in a blur.
He wasn't sure where he was at first. He remembered patrolling, wandering around camp to clear his mind of recent events, when he stumbled upon his tactician. In the beginning, he had thought he loved her. She had loved another though and he placed his feelings aside, valuing her friendship over a one–sided crush that wouldn't have gone anywhere.
He had thought their simple talk would be the same as ever, just the same light–hearted tone ;laced in with their conversations.
One thing had led to another. Something had happened – maybe a confession gone wrong – and in a heat of passion, their lips and bodies met. Now he was lying in bed with her, bare from the waist down. The blanket covered her, but he was sure that she was the same.
He sat up, holding his head in his hands. He had lain with another woman, one that wasn't his wife. How could he? He was so disgusted with himself. A groan leaves his lips as he runs his fingers through his hair.
"Chrom."
The voice alerts him and he turns around. He must have woken the woman up. The look on his face answered his question though – she felt guilty as well.
She had lain with a man that wasn't her husband.
She opened her mouth to say something, probably an apology, but he holds his hand up. "I think," He slowly says, "I should leave."
All she can do is nod her head as he collects his clothing, throwing them on his body – his disgusting body – before stumbling out of the tent. She watches him, slowly bringing a hand to her mouth to stop the sob that wanted to escape.
She wasn't sure why she was crying. Was it because she betrayed her husband, or was it because she didn't stop him from leaving?
Olivia had noticed his distance throughout the day.
It's like he was just stumbling through the day silently. He barely talked to anyone – not even Robin or Frederick. Even her words of encouragement when he did great in a battle were met with only a dazed nod as he walked away from her, looking back with a sadden look on his face.
It scared her. It scared her so much.
When she found him on a small hill, it was late at night and she, barefooted, made her way towards him. He heard her clearly, but he couldn't face her when she touched his shoulder.
Her touch was gentle and loving. Just like her.
How could he betray her like that?
"Chrom," her voice is filled with concern and calmness. She knows him well, and seeing him like this breaks her so much. When he doesn't look at her, she forces herself to turn him around so their eyes could meet.
His cerulean eyes glance downwards and she reaches up to touch his face with care, making him look at her. Her hands are soft and warm against his cheeks, and she uses her fingers to rub them gently.
"Something happened."
That's all he says. There are tears in her eyes and it clicks in her head. The way he looked at Robin – with guilt and regret – and the way he looked at her – a silent beg of forgiveness – started to make sense.
She's hurt. It's not lie, but she knows he's hurting as well. She doesn't want to hate him. She knows he's filled with regret and anger at himself. The way he looks at her, with tear filled eyes and a look of pain, she can't bring herself to hate him.
It would only cause more pain for him.
All she can do is pull him close as he starts to cry slowly. He hates crying, he really hates it. But Olivia rubs his back gently, humming softly.
"Let it out, my lord," she says softly as she continues to hold him right there.
And he does.
She says nothing as he cries, begging her to forgive him and to stay with her. She buries her face against his shoulder, crying with him. He was the unfaithful one, after accepting her promise and words. She vowed to be with him throughout everything. She would feel his happiness, his anger and now his sadness.
It was her duty as his wife.
"My relationship with Chrom is completely professional."
That was the truth.
"I have no romantic feelings towards him."
It wasn't a lie.
"I don't plan on doing anything with him, Lucina. You need to trust me."
She wasn't lying when she said that.
She hates Chrom for making her love him like that. She hates Olivia for being the one to capture his heart without any regrets. She hates Lucina and Inigo for being born.
Above all, she hates herself.
How could she? She was caught in some dumb love square that's so bad it could only exist in Sumia's novels. She knew her love for Chrom wasn't the type of love she held for Frederick.
For Chrom, it was a spur of the moment. It wasn't even a romantic interest. Maybe it the beginning it was but she was in love with someone different. She had no idea what came over her during their meeting, or what came over him. Perhaps their one–sided romance for each other finally caught up with them.
They were both to blame for this. And yet, they couldn't hate each other for it. It was just a big mistake.
She knows he feels awful. He loves Olivia with all of his heart. He's so committed to her that even the thought of looking at another woman the same way he looks at his wife makes his stomach turn inside out.
The sound of someone's footsteps alerts her and she slowly looks behind her.
Her gaze met with Frederick's, and it's like he knows what happened. He probably does; Frederick reads her easily. The look she gives him says it all; she's filled with so much guilt it's almost making her want to vomit.
She's expecting him to say something. Her body stiffens when he makes his way over to her, leaning down to press his forehead against her's. It's enough to make her break down right there.
"I'm so sorry," she manages to get out. "I'm so sorry." She repeats it over and over, until her voice cracks and she starts to cry.
She betrayed him. She was the unfaithful one, after accepting his promise and words. He vowed to protect her as knight and husband. He promised to give her love and comfort for the rest of his life, until the day they both died.
But to him, he was the one that failed her. To him, he didn't love her enough, or he didn't know how to show her love. He couldn't protect her from herself, her own feelings.
He couldn't protect her from his lord. That's what pained him the most.
He was hurting. But she was hurting as well. All of them were. He couldn't hate her or Chrom, because he knew that they felt regret for their actions. He loves his wife and lord so much that he couldn't even think about hating them anyway.
All he could do was hold her, rub her back and let her cry it out. He does not shed any tears; he has learned over the years to stop any tears that might shed. All he could do was stay with her and not abandon her. He vowed to protect and love her.
It's his duty as her husband.
