Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem, nor any company involved in any way with the process of making or manufacturing the game. What follows might be a bit explicit, you are forewarned, and therefore, forearmed.

*** Indicates a change of perspective

Destiny's Call

There was something honest about a beaten dirt track, something that was reassuring in the way no other path could be. Paved roads were pretentious; they commanded attention, demanding to be followed, pushing aside resistance to march against nature. A beaten path though, it was natural, a result of slow buildup over time as travelers carved a way, not through the environment, but around it, being a part of it.

He walked slowly down the dirt path, red cape flowing behind him softly. He was lost in thought, and not really paying attention to where he was going. The Gallian forest unfolded around him, enfolding him in soft, dappled sunlight. His thoughts wandered, here he could find peace, peace that nowhere else could offer. The peace of solitude, nature, and new discoveries often hidden below old sights.

He couldn't have said when it was exactly that the scenery changed; he hadn't been paying enough attention. Yet suddenly he realized that he was no long in the forest, and no longer in Gallia at all. Even though he had walked that path a hundred times, knew as well as anywhere he had ever been, he was lost, in some strange, new place.

He tensed ever so slightly, disoriented by what he saw; around him was nothing but velvety blackness. His eyes searched the darkness, flicking back and forth as he slowly drew free his blade. The orange metal glowed with a strange inner light the likes of which he had never seen before. He startled, the sword's glow expanding and revealing the form of a large bed, like him, suspended in the darkness. There was the sound of a soft step behind him, and he whirled quickly, sword rising to the ready.

***

She gazed out over the empty plains, the sinking sun setting fire to the grasses rolling in the wind. She loved the plains, the silence and peace of the endlessly unfolding grassland stretching towards the horizons. She stayed in Ostia for her husband, but she needed this, this periodic escape to the endless open spaces of the Saecean plains.

Her eyes closed slowly, and she lifted her arms slightly, a soft smile crossing her face as she felt the gentle wind caress her skin and flutter playfully through her hair.

She couldn't have said what exactly happened next. One moment she was reveling in the breeze, the next she felt nothing, as though the wind had been instantly cut off. Her eyes snapped open, darting through the enveloping dark as her hand stole instinctively to the sword belted at her waist. An odd, soft orange light began to glow in the darkness, and she perceived a figure back-lit by the odd light. She drew her blade slowly, hesitating only slightly when she saw that it glowed with a soft white light. Stealthily, she stepped forwards towards the figure, the intermingling orange and white lights revealing details slowly.

He whirled, the odd, orange colored metal of the blade he held glowing much as hers did. He brought the sword up to a high guard position, surprising her; normally it was easy for her to sneak up on someone.

***

His blade's tip wavered, and then slowly lowered, and he exhaled softly. He gently pushed his blade into the odd, black ground below them, and lifted his hand from it. She was beautiful, flawless, the very picture of what a woman should be. She had green hair twisted into a braid over her shoulder, and his eyes flowed easily over the beautiful lines of her form, his voice subdued. "Yune, is that you?"

***

"By Hanon…" She whispered, her sword lowering as the man only a few feet away from her thrust his sword into the ground. He was taller than her husband, but reminded her of him strongly. His hair was blue, and a red cape swung from broad shoulders. He had strong, defined muscles that moved well under his clothing. She reciprocated his gesture, pushing her sword into the ground as well.

She knew she shouldn't feel this, shouldn't feel this way about someone she had never seen before, someone she didn't even know. Yet, there was something about him, something that pulled her towards him irresistibly. Unconsciously she stepped forward, one hand tugging out her braid. "Yune, who is that?"

***

He swallowed reflexively, wetting his lips as she undid her braid, shaking out a cascade of silken green hair. His thoughts flashed to his wife, so like this woman, long lithe lines and lean strength, possessing a steady grace and economy of movement only a true warrior could hold. "She's, a, a goddess." He wet his lips again nervously, blushing madly; any thought of his wife was banished as she smiled brilliantly.

"A goddess? I like that."

He sucked in a deep breath. "Who are you?" He stepped forward, closing the distance between them, reaching out one hand to stroke the side of her face, shivering at the softness of her skin.

She gasped softly, leaning into his touch. "Yune would be best I think." Her arms slid around his waist, pulling them together.

"Would that make me Hanon? She laughed, a soft, throaty sound that sent a thrill down his spine as his free arm encircled her, his hand burying itself in her hair. "Yune, I-"

She pressed her lips against his gently, cutting off his words. This close to him she could smell the earthy loam of rain washed forest on his skin. "I know Hanon, I am as well. But-"

This time he cut her off, the enticing spicy scent of sun-baked grass caressing him as he kissed her again, more urgently. "Tonight, just for tonight."

She smiled, making his heart race, and replied softly. "If it is all we can have, one night."

"No regrets."

They kissed again, more passionately, arms tightening against each other. They both knew somehow, somewhere deep within themselves, knew that this was a once in a lifetime night, that they had been brought here by something larger than themselves, something they were helpless to resist.

He pulled away from her, heart racing, breathing heavily. He loosened his cape, pulling his shirt up and over his head, tossing it aside without a second thought before pulling her back against him. She kissed him hard, her hands exploring the hard planes of his chest.

He groaned at the feeling, her smooth skin moving like fire over him. His arms moved up her back, undoing the ties of her loose garments, and sliding it off her.

She giggled as he stooped and lifted her, cradling her body close to his with one arm behind her back, and the other under her knees. She cuddled closer, enjoying the warmth of his skin as he placed her gently on the silken covers of the bed.

He stepped back for a moment, his heart hammering with anticipation as his eyes roamed over her naked body. Grinning, he slid off his trousers, and climbed up onto the bed, gathering her perfect curves to him again.

Both groaned when their skin met, lost in a maelstrom of need, their bodies moved together in perfect, timeless rhythm, each crying out in ecstasy as they melted into the other. The pair fit together perfectly, as though the gods had made them specifically for the other. They made love, fast and fierce, slow and tender, every way they knew how, each knowing that they would never see the other again, and despite the impossibility of such, this only fired their hearts more.

And yet nothing can last forever, for the magical, wondrous night flew by, and each would wake with only memories of the other. He, cradled within the gnarled roots of an old oak, the spicy, enticing scent of the plains still in his nostrils. She, embraced by the golden waves of grass, the last fading hints of dappled forest clearings playing at her senses. Each had only memories, memories and the warm afterglow of a fiery love and satisfaction only two lovers destined for the other could find.