Severa went to sleep—wait, she never got to sleep this easily, in the back of her head she remembered that there was some element in her life that, for better or worse, kept her attuned to the real world's goings on for a while before—after a check list—she allowed her guard and eyes to shut.
The visage of a certain pale young woman appeared in her foggy mind and she threw the covers back off, and walked across the camp, stopping in the middle, when she heard the low growl of a Risen somewhere in the trees ahead of her.
"Hey, we're under attack!" she yelled, and charged in, to find Noire shooting at five Risen, one was the leader, with a hand ax, and the other four were swordsmen. Severa sneaked through the bushes until she was behind the chief, and, in her pajamas and with a stick, felled him in one stab, but his cry of agony was enough to alarm the other monsters, who rushed towards her at an alarming pace.
Several arrows flew through the night air, they were the only things in the air, well, that, and the sound of the bowstring as it released it's energy with the arrows. Severa tried to think of something snarky to say, anything at all, for when the last monster fell, but for some reason some—say she was tired—she ended up nodding approvingly, and her comment wasn't as cold and distant as usual.
"I was wondering if you wanted to take out the other ones," she could even see how that would be...friendly banter, dare she think it, "what were you thinking, anyway, getting yourself in danger like-"
Somehow she found herself two steps away from Noire just as a shiny ax rose in the moonlight, and after she collided with the lighter girl, she felt her leg exposed to the cool air, and slowly a warm moisture covered the area, she knew that warmth meant a wound, but as angry as she was, she had to admit, there was absolutely no way out of this mess. The armor was too heavy to damage with anything they had, and the slow footsteps only allowed that much longer in agony. She must have made the mistake of falling on the arrows that flew from Noire's bag.
"Severa, you're all over my arrows!" Noire shrieked.
"Don't worry, I don't think I'll ever make that mistake again," Severa said, somewhat sarcastically, somewhat jokingly, "not for the rest of my short life. Sorry if I snapped any of them"
"Severa!" Severa grunted as pressure was applied to her shoulder, and she realized she passed through a thorn bush on the way to the chief she'd stabbed, thus more pain. Small tiny nicks in the skin, the pain was sharp, and the pressure made her know it was there, but even if it hurt more, it was kind of a good thing, it was less daunting than feeling the arrows under her, they spoke death, this spoke only of an annoying scratch, it was refined and civilized, or maybe it was weak.
Weak things made people weak, at least, from what she saw, she could hardly focus on anything but becoming stronger, worthy of being her mother's daughter, cute things and weak things were too time consuming for her. Life as her mother enjoyed it now, as her mother surely enjoyed it back in the world that was destroyed, was too time consuming.
"Noire." Severa looked up at the ax, so many thoughts in so few seconds, was that what it meant for life to flash before one's eyes? That they'd see everything they never were in all the years they breathed? It came to mind that she never really enjoyed anything, because no one ever appreciated her, in a way, that would never matter, which was perhaps the thing that terrified her most, this changes nothing, she changed nothing, only prevented Risen from doing anything, everything she did that had any impact were not done as a person, but as a unit, so as she breathed out that word she held onto the hand she didn't look at, because looking would have a bad influence on the one she would die in front of.
"This is so stupid...what a stupid way to go out, but I guess I'd say that anyway. Noire...I...this is even more stupid, but I'm glad we met, anyway." she scowled at the ax wielder, his blade now gaining momentum, then there was the most horrible sound of something being torn, it immediately followed a shattering sound, like armor being pierced by a spear, and the world gathered darkness, slowly moving to the center of her vision until all was darkness.
Noire had never been very strong, she looked at the relaxed face, a face that most often scrunched itself up. She had always been strong, stronger than anyone knew, it was just because people compared her so often that they overlooked the fact that Cordelia performed most feats of daring early on in the war, and so they couldn't appreciate Severa's efforts for what they were.
Now Noire felt anger, Severa was almost always serious because she wanted to be better than someone she would never compete with, always so...distant, because she would always want to beat Cordelia in a match across time.
"Severa, I—I don't know...what I'm going to do." she rested her head on the cot, holding the left arm of her friend, her closest friend, the one who understood her best, which was saying something since she was pretty skittish at times.
Suddenly the fold of the tent flew open, and she felt the gaze of her mother. She turned to see an expressionless face, which almost immediately receded into the midnight shadows. The gaze wasn't harsh and no words were exchanged, maybe Tharja was simply concerned for her, or intrigued, at least.
Cordelia watched the brief moment that transpired, while she was visibly struggling to stay awake on the other side of the cot. It was strange that Cordelia had already grown close to Severa, she seemed rattled even though Severa technically wasn't born yet.
"Isn't it weird, she's about my age, but she's my daughter, from another time...I still find it difficult to wrap my head around at times." Noire was startled by the unsettled tone in Cordelia's voice, but she nodded. All this was weird, and she certainly hadn't known what to expect when they arrived, but now that she found it, she would keep it safe.
"The healers said she'd make it, right?" Noire hoped her whisper was loud enough, but from the pause she didn't know what to think.
"They said...her chances were good."
"How...did you show up?"
"Severa woke the camp...to be honest, I wondered if it was my ears playing tricks on me, but...I'm glad I got up when I did, it was so quiet, though, I guess you two took out the Risen pretty quickly, huh?"
"Who was that guy with an ax?"
"He was a Valmese knight...I don't know what he was doing, maybe he was hiding from them...or summoned them."
The hour passed with amazing speed as Noire returned to find Cordelia asleep on a chair that Maribelle insisted she use, saying that Chrom wouldn't mind, which was a good indication of where she got it from. Noire set the basket in her hand down by Severa's bed, and lifted Severa's arm, and rested her head under it, looking up at the relaxed face, listening to the soft breathing, almost lulled to sleep, if it hadn't been for the arm moving, prompting her to open her eyes to see a sliver of eyes between eyelids ajar, and the most beautiful smile she ever saw, soon replaced by an embarrassed cringe.
"I...I thought I was done back there-" Severa needed to deflect the attention, and that was the first thing to come to mind.
"Me too." Noire whispered, some heavy emotion seemingly clog her throat, and Severa mentally kicked herself for hiding behind a spiked wall she pulled up while Noire was obviously trying to hold onto her, she had forgotten how important she was to one person from her time, one person who was important to her, too.
"I shouldn't have said all of that." Severa said, half closing her eyes.
"No, you're right...if you...you ha-had been-" Severa felt like Noire had shot her heart with an arrow, and that her heart was deeper than the deepest ocean's lowest point, and that there as something at the bottom of the ocean that had been bruised, "ah-I don't know what I would have done!"
Severa tried to not clutch at her chest as Noire's pain wracked eyes pleaded at her...for something, Severa felt like they were pleading her to say something, anything to make the pain go away...but maybe they were pleading for her state and not her action, Severa realized that Noire didn't really have many friends, and that Noire mostly spent the day alone. What had Noire said? That she's weak because she subconsciously wants to lean on her. Now she was to weak for even an exhausted Tiki to lean on, and that dragon could lean on nothing and still stay upright throughout a two day nap.
"Hey, I'm right here, you know." Severa whispered, somewhat alarmed by the hand that unbidden set itself on Noire's shoulder, "I'm just resting."
"Severa...you idiot!" Noire held her hands over her eyes as she cried, and Severa absentmindedly ran her hand over Noire's head.
"So, I'm an idiot, then." Severa remarked.
"You could have died, don't tell me you're just resting! You had several cracked ribs and a sprained ankle, and you almost died!"
"I think we've firmly established that point."
"Stop that!" Noire demanded, standing up, "Stop acting like you're okay, stop being so, so...strong, it hurts!"
"Well, excuse me, you're the one-" Severa realized she was poised to hurl an insult, but it wasn't true, Noire wasn't weak, not for herself, her weakness only made her strong...saying Noire was weak was just a cover that didn't make sense alone, unless she was pointing out flaws, that excuse was already dead, so instead she did what Noire had been doing all the time they've known each other, she decided to open up a little, "who I want to protect."
"Huh?" Noire...how dare she blush worse than Severa was? She had to have seen it coming, "B-but I thought you'd say stuff about how you wanted people to acknowledge you for who you are."
"Other people...Noire," Severa wondered if these blankets had been heated, it was awfully warm, "you know, I tried that once, and then I met someone who couldn't be like me, who couldn't compete with a person they'd never met...I met someone who needed someone like I needed, so I became that person...and so did...so did she, and then...that excuse I used became...a step, if I impressed other people, I-I-I'd finally...be good enough for you."
Noire stared at her, processing this new information and Severa sighed, "Severa?"
"Look, I understand, you and Owain, right? Making cakes and stuff for him...he talks about it to no end, but I'm fine with that...as long as you're happy, I'm happy...I'm happy for you." Severa leaned back and watched Noire stare off to the side, "Look, it's an easy choice, I'll still...let you lean on me, I'm sure Owain will eventually take on that role, but I'll hold onto that as long as I can, and you obviously like him, or else you wouldn't spend your days in the kitchen...I just hope he properly understands and appreciates you...I know not everything can be perfect, but...I-if you're happy, then I am...this is the only thing I can't fight for, I know when I'm beat, I don't stand a chance, he's strong and always so insufferably happy, and most people find his humor contagious."
"Severa." Noire took one step and pressed the basket at her foot into the nightstand, knocking it onto here knee, the brief seconds it took for this startled her and fell over Severa, catching her weight on her hands, somewhere near Severa's good shoulder, their faces a finger's length apart, not aligned, but Noire imagined if she fell a little more to the left, that would have been different. She remained there for sometime, locked in indecision, and cleared her throat, "That isn't why, actually...he's just trying them out, I've been working on something...special, but I keep freezing up, like now, and just work on a cake instead, something larger that takes up more...focus, because cookies are too simple, too...easy, and I would probably faint if I didn't have something to do while waiting for them to be done."
"Cookies...wait, what do you mean you keep freezing up like now?" Severa noticed Noire face burn even deeper red than she was after she fell just then.
"I-I-oh, I didn't...mean to let that slip out!" Noire swallowed and looked Severa in the eye, "I mean...I don't know if I should kiss you or pretend I didn't fall."
"Uh...which one did you decide on?" Severa inquired, watching Noire intently.
"I don't know...this was so unexpected, I don't know what to do...I don't want to back away, because I've spent so long trying to become closer to you, but...this isn't how I saw...this happening." Noire furrowed her brows as a smirk graced Severa's lips.
"So you've been thinking about this a lot lately, then." she concluded, but when Noire winced Severa tried to remove the uncomfortable spotlight she threw Noire in, "I was afraid I was the only one."
"R-really...me?" Noire asked, unsure hat words would fit between those two, so left it at that.
"You...you...you...I...I like you too much to stop trying to be stronger, you're the only one I can tolerate interruptions from...because, by some strange twist of fate, I have this much logic, if I train to protect you, but spend no time around you...I might not be able to come through, when you need me, so I'll at least...well, I would at least be your friend."
"Would? But you are, Severa, you're my best friend."
"Would...I meant that at the time, those were acceptable...terms, now 'friend' doesn't fit what I want...don't get me wrong, we'll still be close...but I just want to throw in another word into the...mix...I'm in love with the most ridiculously wonderful person...and I plan on kissing you sometime within the next twenty seconds."
"Wait...before you do...I love you, Severa."
"I never thought I'd be able to hear that...I love you, too, Noire."
Severa held onto Noire, who was more or less in a constant battle with gravity and holding herself up uncomfortably, and ended up dragging her feet closer to the rest of her so she could be less uncomfortable...but it didn't help her forget that Cordelia was here. She peeked through the corner of her eye and saw that Cordelia seemed still enough, but there was a slightly uncomfortable tension in her face, coupled with a mild redness, like she walked in on two people kissing...if only she had the luxury of backing away quietly.
Severa smiled up at Noire as she backed away, trying to walk without tripping over the nightstand and basket, then crouched down to pick up the basket, "So, I made a little snack for us." she saw from the expression Severa wore that she noticed Cordelia was trying to sleep through the scene, but when she followed Severa's gaze she found all their friends from the future, Robin, and Chrom, all of them standing around awkwardly. Lucina let go of the balloon she'd been carrying to clear her throat.
"Uh, hey...we, uh...hope you're feeling better?" she remarked, smiling awkwardly, "Uh...anyway, we just got back from a village nearby...and, uh, picked up a balloon for you."
"Yeah, we thought you might...um," Morgan wondered what hole she just fell into, and leapt up to pull the balloon back down, "you might like it?"
Cordelia cleared her throat and pranced over to the others, "Hey, why don't we leave them to their snack?"
"Good idea!" Chrom nodded, and the others voiced their agreement.
"Uh, wait!" Severa said, gesturing with her fingers for them to come closer, "I...uh, appreciate the gesture...it's a nice...balloon. Well, you must be tired from that trip to town, so go get some rest!"
Noire waited until the group quickly vanished before laughing, as she stuck the balloon string under the mattress. Severa laughed with her as Noire struggled to pour two glasses of lemonade without spilling it.
"Wow, that's weird...I guess that was kind of our fault, though." Noire giggled.
"Saves me the trouble of making sure everyone knows not to flirt with you, though." Severa chuckled.
"Yeah...you're pretty when you smile. I mean, not that you're not always-"
"Do it more often? I can do that...if you're around, I'm happy." Severa said, letting Noire help her sit up, "This changes everything."
Author's Notes: To my brother, I know this probably isn't how you thought it'd turn out...but hopefully this is good enough. I presume the lemonade and cookies were supposed to be more featured than this? Get back to me IRL when you read this.
To my readers, (including my brother if his attention span allows it ;-}) yeah, this was my bro's doing, but it's cool...I've got this a hundred percent under control...except the part where I lose all control! Who ships next? I can just make a bunch of shipper stuff. I will do a bunch of shipper stuff, in fact, if you guys wait around without giving me any input (PMs and reviews count! Or track me down to one of the forums I'm on!) then I...will do the default pairing of...Lucina/Unspecified!Morgan! Yah, I just made up "Unspecified!Morgan", just for the sole purpose of leaving the pairing to you. I like to think that I'm a very nice person for that.