A/N:

Dear readers,

Happy Valentine's Day! Whether single or with someone, I wish you all the best! (And tons of chocolate~)

If you follow my other works, I'm sorry that I didn't post this past Tues/Wed. I've been sick this whole week, so I haven't been writing (sick brain no think well). I hope to post my next chapter of "To Alter Destiny" by 2/16. (I truthfully wrote this, instead of focusing on "To Alter Destiny" because it's kind of stupid to post a V-day story after V-day.)

Also...G-rating...unless stealing means I need to up the rating...please let me know...

Anyway...enjoy

Day of Confessions, February 14th. A Ylissean holiday started over three centuries ago; it started as a day where people went to the church to confess their sins. However, within the past century, a new tradition started; a young woman confesses their love to a young man with sweets. Slowly, over time, it also became a way for people to show their gratitude to friends and family. Although it is not a purely religious holiday anymore, it still has a major hold on Ylisseans, young and old.

Set between chapters 7 and 8

ooo

"It smells wonderful, Robin!" The young Pegasus Knight chirped; the smell of pastries filled the mess tent. Although it was only 5:00 A.M., the tactician had been baking since midnight. Even though it was her first Day of Confessions, at least that she could remember, and they were in the middle of a war, she had wanted to bring a little festivity to the Shepherds.

"Thanks," The platinum smiled back, although she obviously looked tired. She had just finished baking the last tray of shortbread mixed with dried fruits and nuts. The tables in front of her held steaming trays of cookies, while behind were small tarts of strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. On the same table as the tarts, there were three small cakes; a circular blueberry, a circular strawberry, and a chocolate heart. Also, since she had time, and she needed to keep the usual earlier birds out (Frederick had already come, but she was able to kick him out), she also made porridge for breakfast, with various fruits as sides. "I hope everything tastes fine."

"Of course it does!" Sumia heartedly replied. "Frederick's been teaching you for over a month! You're a master by now!" Sumia looked over the various treats, in awe at how quickly the amnesiac learned to bake. It had taken Sumia a month to get the timing down to not burn her rhubarb-fiddlehead pies, and several more to get the filling just right. She definitely felt a little jealous of the tactician's prowess, being that anyone would fall in love with a girl with no obvious faults, but quite thankfully her friend's love interest was quite different then her own. "Are you done with the ovens then?"

"Yes, although sadly, I still have need of the kitchen space." She laughed. "I have to wrap these," Pointing to the tarts, "And box…" She started motioning to the cakes, then stopped. "Oh, Gods! I forgot to buy boxes!" She looked around frantically trying to figure out what to do. She could try move everything to her room, to hide the sweets and then go to buy boxes, but that would take too long. She could leave them as is, being that most of the Shepherds wouldn't care, but the cakes, the cakes needed boxes, and that was what she forgot to buy! She could-

"Robin!" The tactician jumped. She turned to Sumia, seeing the Pegasus Knight rolling out pie dough on a separate table. "I'll be in here for at least an hour. I can watch your sweets."

"Oh, Sumia! You're a saint!" She hugged the girl, then just before disappearing out of the mess tent she added, "When Frederick comes, tell him breakfast is over there," Pointing to the huge pots on the stove and fruits on the cutting table. With that, Robin dashed out, heading towards her own tent (for money), then off to the market.

The naturally gray haired girl giggled, then continued working.

ooo

By 5:30, the pie was in the oven. Sumia sighed happily, even though there was a mess around her. Twenty-three minutes exactly; that's how long it would take for the pie to bake. Due to the exact timing needed, Sumia, with a little help from the tactician, found a system to mentally keep track. Knowing she had a little time, she started to clean.

Halfway through the cleaning (5:34; nineteen minutes until perfection), Frederick came in asking about breakfast. The Pegasus Knight pointed to the food near the stove, and Frederick nodded his thanks. Looking over the pastries as he passed, Sumia heard him chuckle, "Ah, youth." Then he moved the breakfast from the kitchen area to the serving station, taking several trips to finish. Sumia had to stop herself from laughing, especially since she thought the knight was still young enough, and well, he would be in for a surprise later that day.

When she finished cleaning (5:38, fifteen minutes until perfection), she started to daydream. About pies, a certain blue-haired prince, stories of heroes and princesses, witches, Pegasi, break…Oh Gods! She forgot to feed her Pegasus yesterday night! It was the second night in a row to boot! She looked at Robin's sweets, then her own pies in the oven, then outside, then back at the pies. Fourteen more minutes, she had time to at least feed her! And no one would come in, especially if she wrote a note to keep everyone out! So, she did just that; scribbled a note, hanging it on the entrance of the kitchen. Sumia then zoomed out to the stables. Sadly, she forgot to write a note where the kitchen connected to the dining area…

ooo

At 5:43 (ten minutes until perfection), Gaius's stuck his head into the back of the kitchen area. He wasn't an earlier bird, being that he preferred the night life compared to the dreary "fun" done in the day light hours, but on Day of Confessions, every place, be it capital or small town, sold treats at discounted prices, since there is always a few young maidens who forget about the sacred day, or their sweets turned out horribly wrong. Gaius wasn't a maiden, or even a girl for that matter, but when sweets…no, CHEAP sweets, were on the line, he would wake up any time of day, just to get one extra sugary sweet morsel…

Still, he was hungry now, and had wiped out the last stash of his hearty sweets, so he decided to try the kitchen, to see if something delectable was there. He still had a lot of candy, but that wasn't filling. And yes, there was porridge and fruit, but he needed something portable. Porridge, even with globs of honey, was the farthest thing from transportable, and the fruit was pre-sliced or berries, which wasn't very portable either. In the end, this left the kitchen.

And oh Naga's sweet heaven, did the kitchen provide! What divine holy goddess (or god, he really didn't care) provided such sustenance, he had no idea, but those cakes, tarts, and cookies, oh how dazzling they looked to a starving sugar dependent. As he was about to reach for a tart, he stopped. Would it really be okay to take these? He was a thief, yes, but he was now technically in the Shepherds, and stealing pastries by some unknown entity probably wasn't very…nice. Still, it wasn't very smart to leave these darling little jewels out in the open, so taking one or two wouldn't hurt, right?

With that decided, he went for a tart, one with raspberries, since they were usually the best. It was slightly tart, and not as sweet as he preferred, but the crust was perfect and the taste, divine! Next, a cookie. Crumbly, buttery, richness! The nuts added texture and the fruit a light sweetness that didn't overpower the cookie. Oh, gods, he wanted another!

"Gaius!" That snapped him out of his thoughts. He turned to see the princess standing in the entry way, crumbs on his face, hands on another cookie. "What's taking you so- …Oh my gosh! Did you make all this!" She came in seeing all the sweets. He shook his head after putting the shortbread in his mouth. Princess wanted to join him on his excursion to town, being that she forgot to buy something for her brother and a few other Shepherds that she was close with. "Who made it?" He shrugged, staring at the cakes, but not having the nerve to touch them; a missing cake was harder to hide then some cookies and tarts. She looked at him, finally noticing the crumbs. "Ah! Your-" Before she could finish her train of thought, Gaius shoved a cookie into Lissa's mouth. "Oh, gods…so…good…" She reached for a strawberry tart, putting that in her mouth as well, excursion to town forgotten.

Slowly over the next six minutes, more and more Shepherds came in. Some just hungry for breakfast, being porridge wasn't enough; others coming in after a morning spar; while some came in just because they heard a ruckus in the kitchen. Slowly, bit by bit, the pastries were devoured. Even the cakes, which Gaius had no nerve of touching by himself, were sliced and shared. All reasoning forgotten…

ooo

She made it! With two minutes to spare! Sumia opened the tent, and all she could do was stare in horror. Half the Shepherds group was in the tent, eating all of Robin's pastries. Most of the cookies were gone, and more than half the tarts. Both circular cakes were eaten or portioned out, and the chocolate heart was just being cut into.

"Sumia," She turned, her shocked face staring at Chrom, who came in for breakfast after a morning spar with Sully and Vaike. "Were you the one who made everything?" She ignored him. She totally, outright, ignored her love, for the first time in her life. Robin had put her in charge of this one small task, and gods above she would at least save that one cake. She started running, and wouldn't you know it…she tripped. Not on nothing, mind you, but on sparring equipment (namely an axe) that had been not so nicely propped up. Chrom caught her. "Are you alright, Sumia? You seem flustered." She looked at him only for an instant before returning her thoughts to the cake. It was too late…

ooo

Frederick finally finished his second round of patrol. The first was done after waking, and the second following some early morning camp maintenance. Now it was time for breakfast, before practice and sparring. He went to the mess tent. It was empty. He knew most of the camp weren't "early birds," but he knew Stahl was usually first for breakfast, Gaius and a few others were going early to town for some shopping, and he had been told by milord that he and his other sparring partners were going to breakfast after cleaning the sparring grounds. So, with this knowledge, a completely empty mess tent was…unusual, to say the least.

The knight walked further into the tent, and started hearing noises coming from the cooking area, so he followed them. What he saw could easily be called normal, being that the Shepherds that were currently awake were making the amount of noise that they usually would at this time. However, it was odd that they were all in the kitchen, instead of the eating area. He looked around, taking in the chaos known as the Shepherds. The first thing he noticed was Sumia crying in Chrom's arms, which had become a little scene of its own; a small group huddled around the Pegasus Knight. Second was the smell coming from the ovens, indicating Sumia's pie was finished. Although, most likely a little more charred than needed. Finally was the remaining Shepherds munching on…pastries? He looked at the empty plates and cookie sheets. Oh, gods…He knew the Shepherds could be a little daft and oblivious, but they wouldn't be inconsiderate would they? He scanned the room one last time, taking note that the tactician was nowhere to be seen.

"What is going on here?" His voice boomed into the tent. All attention immediately turned to him.

"We're just eating some snacks nicely laid out here." Gaius replied with a wink. "Maybe you should have some, might lighten your mood." Other Shepherds nodded, although there was very little vocal agreement, especially since the lieutenant currently had such a chilling demeanor.

He walked to Gaius, a smile on his face. The thief relaxed for but a moment, soon realizing the knight was actually quite furious, for whatever reason. The ginger inched back a little, until Frederick passed him, going to the oven behind to pull out a slightly burnt pie. All was silent. After he finished placing the pie on a cooling rack, the lieutenant turned to face the room again. "May I ask, who gave you permission to touch the sweets?" No reply. He scanned the room once, taking in the crowd; he would choose the most obedient and easy to break. "Cordelia?" The red-head was trying to comfort the crying Sumia.

"S-sir?" She straightened, but it was odd to hear the confident Pegasus Knight stutter.

"I repeat my question. Who gave you permission to touch the sweets?"

"No one, sir. People were already eating by the time I came in."

"Stahl?" The knight turned to the green-haired youth. "Same question."

"It was the same for me, sir." The young Cavalier stood at attention.

"Did anyone here receive permission to eat these?"

"We're sorry, Frederick." The knight turned to Lissa; she did look regretful. He scanned the room; everyone else appeared so as well.

"I appreciate your remorse, milady, but I'm not the one you should apologize to."

"Well, we'll apologize when the person gets here." Although guilt was still on her face, it seemed as if she was getting a little irritated at her protector.

The brunette looked where the cakes last rested; besides a slice or two of the once chocolate heart, the two circular cakes were gone. "I'm not sure apologies will really correct this situation, milady."

"Frederick, I think you're getting a little carried away here." Chrom was walking over, leaving Cordelia to comfort Sumia. "I'm sure whoever made these will be understanding."

"I agree, Freddy-" Gaius paused, before continuing, realizing it was best not to egg the knight on. "Frederick. Anyway, if you know who made the stuff, why don't you spill?"

"If you really must know-"

"Sumia!" Everyone turned. The voice recognizable to all the Shepherds. "I'm sorry I took so long! I also bought a pie box…" The tactician opened the tent flap, seeing more than half the Shepherds inside. Her eyes quickly analyzed the situation; a crying Sumia, crumbed fingers and lips, worried looking faces, missing pastries, and her cakes almost completely devoured. Dropping the boxes she was holding, Robin's face lost her smile instantly. Various emotions flashed across her face; confusion, rage, sorrow, hurt. She slapped herself, confusing the on-lookers, and looked at the situation once more. Realizing she wasn't dreaming, she finally put on a fake smile, looking at each face. When she saw his though, the tears started flowing. She ran; the flap falling back in place.

The occupants stood in place, frozen in time, seconds passing like minutes. "Robin!" Sumia broke the silence, dashing out after her friend. She almost tripped several times, but remained on her feet. Chrom soon followed, not really understanding the situation, but knowing he needed to do something for the person he considered his best friend. Frederick then started to leave as well.

"Wait, what?" The brunette turned, seeing Vaike confused. He looked over the faces. Some were as confused as the blonde, others were slowly piecing everything together.

"Vaike?" The man jumped, alarmed at being called by the still irate lieutenant. "What is today?" His cold smile returned to his face.

"D-day of Confessions, yah?"

"Correct. And what do young women do on this holiday?"

"Bake or make sweets to give to guys they like."

Most of the people in the room had everything pieced together, but one or two like Vaike still hadn't comprehended the situation. "Correct." It came out a bit like a growl, although it was unintended, but the man was wasting his time. "Now tell me, what did everyone here just eat, and what is Robin?"

"We ate some pastries and cake, while Robin is a…oh…" The last few pieces clicked in the muscle-head.

"Now, while we try to sort out this situation with our beloved tactician, I want this place cleaned, top-to-bottom, and the remaining treats nicely kept to the side. When that is done, stay here until I come back. If ANY of you leave, your punishment will be much more severe than what I have planned." With that the lieutenant left.

They Shepherds stood there in silence for a few awkward minutes.

"…Crap." Gaius's statement reflected what everyone else was thinking.

ooo

It was mid-morning by the time everything was "settled." Robin had hid in her tent. Sumia, reaching the place first, told her side of the story, asking her friend for forgiveness, which was quickly given by the self-blaming tactician. The Pegasus Knight then did her best to try comfort the girl. Chrom and Frederick also offered their apologies, which she accepted, although she didn't look at either of them. Frederick consulted briefly to Robin, to deal with loose ends. Then the two men returned, leaving the women to talk. As expected (most likely thanks to Cordelia), the kitchen space was spotless, while the remaining treats were neatly placed to the side. The Shepherds in the area all had forlorn looks.

"Well, for all of you here," The lieutenant stood in front of them, while Chrom stood at his side. "I believe you all owe Robin an apology, once she is coaxed to leave her tent, but for now, let us decide your punishment."

"W-well, we'll all give her something on Day of Remembrance!"

"Yes, that is a given, milady, but I believe you all understand what you did today, correct?"

"We ate her gifts without asking."

"Correct, Stahl; however, if it was as simple as that, I doubt we would be in this predicament. No, other than literally eating her trust, you also broke her heart, which was going to be given to a lucky, although now I suppose he is an unlucky, bachelor. Now, for your punishments; everyone here is barred from leaving camp, except for such things as hunting and restocking supplies, for a week. Second, your work duties will increase for the next week. I will give you your updated schedules tomorrow. Finally, everyone here shall do laps around the camp until noon. Running, or at the least, jogging. No exceptions." He looked at Lissa who was about to protest. "Now then, start." Blank faces looked back at him again. "Do you all wish to waste your lunch hour, and run till one?" A flurry of color whisked around the leaders, to leave the tent as soon as possible.

Chrom sighed, how did his Shepherds become thieves, especially to their friend and ally? In a dazed state, he sat down. The cobalt only looked up when he heard the clanking of metal. The lieutenant was standing next to the table of sweets, eating the chocolate cake. He then started scribbling on a paper next to him. The knight mumbled something, took another bite, then continued writing.

"Frederick, what are you doing?" The lord made his wait to his second-in-command.

"Trying to analyze the ingredients to recreate this cake." He mumbled a few more incoherent words, and scribbled a bit more onto the sheet. Chrom looked over the knight's shoulder, seeing a list of goods. Several were scratched out, such as fresh strawberries, which was replaced by strawberry jam, and cocoa powder, which had no replacement. Frederick took another bite, thought about the list in front of him, scanned the kitchen, checking off the ingredients they already had, then reorganized the list for items he needed.

"Why are you going through so much trouble for Robin?"

Frederick looked up thoughtfully, swallowing the bite he had. "I appreciate our tactician. With everything she has done for the Shepherds, when she had no real obligation, I cannot help but respect her for it. Many of the duties she does for our army isn't a requirement for her job, yet she works tirelessly for everyone's well-being. Also, I suppose I've always found it admirable for any woman who had enough courage to give a gift on Day of Confessions." Chrom hummed in response, nodding. "As well, I still feel it is our fault for her not being able to deliver, being it was the Shepherds who ate her cake, so even though I'm not at fault, I wish to atone for the majority of the soldiers." The knight finished off the slice, and washed the dish and utensil. He looked at the remaining sweets, figuring out how to divvy it to the remaining Shepherds, per Robin's request. "Milord?"

"Yes?" Chrom looked up, toying with the idea of finishing off the last slice of chocolate cake. He had gotten a bite of the blueberry (from a pouting Lissa), and this chocolate one looked very…tempting.

"Not to be rude, milord, but what are you still doing here?"

"Helping…you…?" In reality, Chrom had no idea, but the tone the elder man had was making him nervous.

"No. Exceptions."

ooo

When Robin and Sumia came out of hiding, the camp was empty. Through the grapevine (a grumbling Maribelle), they had learned those who pirated the tactician's gifts were sleeping off their punishment. Although Robin thought it extreme, but very Frederick, it was in the past, so she couldn't do much. So now, the two sat alone eating dinner. Although early, since they skipped lunch, both were starving.

"You should give your pie to him, Sumia."

The Pegasus Knight shook her head. "If you don't give anything, neither will I."

"But, you made it. What else will you do with it?"

"Well…We can eat it." She smiled, but slowly, her eyes saddened. "Anyway, it's burnt. I can't give it to him."

"The man won't care, Sumia. You've seen him eat oranges with the peel still on. He has no taste buds."

Sumia laughed. "Still, I'll only give it to him if you give something to…" She looked around, surprised to see the man in question leaving the cooking area with a…box? "…Your interest."

The platinum poked at her bear, putting a small bite into her mouth before replying. "Still, I have nothing to give him."

"You're mistaken, Robin." Robin looked up, seeing Frederick. "Good afternoon." He bowed slightly; the two girls smiled in kind.

"Will you join us, Frederick?" Sumia asked, motioning to the seat across from Robin.

"Sadly, it's still a little too early for me to eat." The knight shook his head with a slight smile, but took the seat offered. "But, to my previous point," He laid the box down in front of Robin. "You now have something to give your beau."

The girls looked at the Great Knight, then down to the box.

"Open it!" Sumia squealed.

Robin's fingers slowly opened the lid, revealing an identical, heart-shaped replica to her own cake. "How did you…?" The tactician was speechless.

"I must ask for forgiveness here, I ate one of the last pieces, trying to analyze the composition of the cake. By doing that, I made what you have now. However, in all honesty, I couldn't replicate the inside, only the decorations. Since I couldn't find some of the ingredients, being that most places were sold out, I had to switch to a chocolate frosted strawberry shortcake, versus your chocolate gateau with strawberries."

Robin looked at him, a deep blush on her face. "Th-thank you, Frederick, but you didn't have to go through all this trouble."

"No trouble at all, Robin. Anyway, it's the least the Shepherds can do for what they did to you."

"Still, I can't give this to anyone. You made it, not me."

"I'm sure whoever receives it won't care how the cake was procured. Now, if you'll excuse me. I have a few more things I need to take care of." With that, he stood up, bowed, then walked to the exit.

"Wait…" But he was gone.

"Now you have something to give him!" Sumia nudged Robin, giggling. The Pegasus Knight HAD to see Frederick's reaction when Robin gives his cake to him as her present for Day of Confessions.

ooo

Robin crouched outside Chrom's tent, waiting for Sumia to exit. After about thirty minutes, Sumia came out bouncing. "He! Ate! It! All!" Although Robin laughed, following Sumia's lead, she did her best to lower her voice. It was still early evening, but most of the camp was already asleep. Robin led the Pegasus Knight to her tent, promising that she would deliver the cake to Frederick. With that, Sumia said her good night, entering the tent. Waiting till her friend's footfalls disappeared, she peeked out. Seeing no one there, she went off to make sure she had a prime seat for the upcoming event.

ooo

Although Chrom had finished all of Sumia's pie, he was still hungry. Well, not hungry, he just wanted something savory. Nothing against Sumia's delicious rhubarb-fiddlehead pie, but that is not dinner.

Being that more than half the camp was exhausted, himself included, if the Plegians attacked now, the Shepherds would probably be done for. The cobalt couldn't believe how true to his word the brunette was. Before he went out to town, he had made sure two non-offenders, Panne and Lon`qu, kept watch to make sure every thief completed their punishment. He was in pain, but Lissa was the worst off, with Gaius coming in at a close second. Both couldn't even get back to their own tent without help from the others; Maribelle was in a real tizzy over her darling's pain.

Following the light to the mess tent, Chrom almost didn't see the Pegasus Knight crouched on the ground. "Sumia?" She put a finger on her lip, shushing him. "What-?" She shushed him again, then peered around the corner. The cobalt copied her. Far off in the distance, he saw a figure approaching. As it got closer, the tactician's garb came into focus. He kneeled next to his…friend? Is that what they were still, or was it…No! That wasn't the point right now! He peered around again. Robin was closer, but still far enough away. "Is she going to confess?"

Sumia only nodded in response, her hair tickling his nose. He knew that Frederick was going to re-make the chocolate heart, but he never talked to him again, since like many of the others, he crashed after the running.

Really, who would she be giving the cake to? Not many main Shepherds had their tents set around here. There were the weaponry, the armory, the supply, Frederick's (since he felt someone always needed to have ears on their inventory), the footmen, the…"Oh, gods…" He mumbled. "You're joking, right?" Sumia looked up at him, realizing he understood. She shook her head. Gods, this was like a cheesy romance novel. He peered out again; Robin stood right outside Frederick's tent, light leaking from underneath. No matter how tacky this "drama" was, the lord couldn't turn away.

The platinum took a few breathes, then knocked on the plank of wood hanging outside of Frederick's tent. (Robin was ingenious enough to realize knocking on tent flaps didn't catch people's attentions very well, so she enforced a rule that every tent had to have a wooden knocker. Silly, yes, but very convenient.) "May I ask who is there?"

"Robin."

Frederick soon came to the entrance. He had removed all his armor for the day. Candlelight spilled out through the opening, illuminating Robin a bit more. Looking at the two, Chrom never realized how much the knight loomed over their petite tactician. Yet, strangely, he could see it, the two together.

"Good evening. What do I owe the honor of this visit?" He looked at her hands, seeing the box. "I'm not taking the cake back if that is what you're here for." She shook her head. Although it was difficult to tell, Chrom could see a slight blush on her ears. "Well?" Frederick looked at Robin, a bit disgruntled, being that Robin, the straight-forward Robin, was dawdling. "It's almost ten." Implying he would be sleeping soon.

"I…" She looked up, finally catching his eyes. "I want to give this to you. I fell in love with you the first night we met. I don't expect a response, but I want you to know, that…the kindness you showed me today, gave me the courage to finally say this." She gave him the box, said her good night, then disappeared to her own tent.

As the two observers looked on, they watched as the last of tonight's drama unfolded.

Frederick stood there, the box in his right hand, while the left covered his face. Although his face was straight, it was a deep crimson. "I'm too old for this…" He mumbled, but as he returned inside, he stopped. Looking down at the gift, they could see a profile of his face, a slight smile gracing it.

A/N:

If anyone cares…yes, I know, the fruits mentioned aren't in season in winter. Do I care, not really. Let's say it's magic, or something. Magic solves everything!

BTW…at the beginning, Frederick likes Robin (not loves), and by the end, he still might not be in love, but he is definitely more fond/attracted to her.

Please note, on 3/14, I hope to bring out another seasonal story, my rift on White Day (Day of Remembrance).