Disclaimer: I don't own FE

First Day

Matthew sat in a chair and waited in a room in Castle Ostia, by himself. He was waiting for something, something he'd wanted his whole life.

To be a spy.

Whether it was as glamorous as people said or not, he didn't care. Serving his country and being a man in the shadows, that was what he wanted. Be it watching Bern carefully or learning Etruria's motives, Matthew was ready.

Or he thought he was ready. And maybe he was.

But what he wasn't ready for was the woman to walk through the door he was facing. To his credit, he didn't appear startled at all, even if he was.

What he had more trouble hiding, was what he thought of the woman sitting down in front of him.

She was gorgeous.

She had hair a shade of red Matthew couldn't completely describe, only that it was a combination of red and purple. The woman stood shorter than Matthew, a good six inches at least. A pale green cloak of sorts covered her shoulders, but only reached down to her thighs. It was tied around her neck in a tight knot. She wore a purple shirt with short sleeves that exposed some of her cleavage.

Thankfully, Matthew had spent long hours practicing to keep a stoic expression. He might not know everything that being a spy entailed, but Matthew knew the value of a poker face.

"You're Matthew, correct?" asked the woman, her voice soft but conveying a feeling of danger.

"Uh…yes," Matthew said, immediately inwardly cursing his hesitation. Idiot!

"My name is Leila," she said. "Do you know who I am?"

"No," Matthew said honestly. His current guess was that she was a spy of some sort, but he didn't want to be wrong.

"Take a guess," said Leila, a slight smile on her face.

"You're a spy in service to House Ostia," said Matthew.

"Correct," Leila said, her smile widening, albeit only slightly. "What else?"

Matthew's thoughts began to move at a mile per second. He had to be right, but couldn't take too long. This was his life's dream that was potentially on the line!

"You're probably here to evaluate me?" Matthew guessed.

Leila nodded and Matthew inaudibly let out the air he had been holding.

"Ergo, what does that mean?" Leila asked, leaning forward with her elbows on her thighs.

"You must be very good if Marquess Uther lets you evaluate potential spies," Matthew said.

Leila smiled, "Correct. I suppose you could say that I'm the one who decides whether you become a spy or not."

"Have I passed?" Matthew asked, a grin on his face.

Leila chuckled, "Well, my initial impression is yes. I like you, Matthew. But before I can decide, I need to see how good you are."

"At what?"

"A knife," Leila said, standing up. "Follow me."

Leila opened the door she had entered through and Matthew followed her. The spy led him down numerous hallways and corridors until they reached a room.

When Leila opened the door she entered, Matthew trailing slightly behind her. The room was large, several times the size of the one he had been in just a few minutes ago.

But what was most striking about the room was the multitude of weapons that lined the walls. Every single space on the wall was covered by knives, swords, cleavers, everything.

"This is our training room. If you become a spy, you'll learn to use them all. After all, a spy is flexible. You may not always have your favorite knife or sword with you," Leila said.

"But for this," Leila began as she walked over to one of the walls, "we'll use a spy's best friend."

Leila tossed Matthew a thin knife, a stiletto. It was light, perfect for quick strikes.

Leila had her own. "They're blunt," she explained. "So we don't kill each other."

Matthew nodded, "And now what?"

"Attack me," Leila grinned.

Matthew blinked, and then nodded. He took a stance that he was familiar with. As a kid, he'd had his share of fights. And as an adult, he'd had his share of knife fights.

Only this time his opponent was better than him. Probably a lot better.

Matthew began to walk slowly towards her, keeping his stance up. Leila assumed her own stance and waited for Matthew to approach her.

Suddenly, Matthew thrust his stiletto forward. He aimed for Leila's midsection.

But Leila casually knocked his knife aside, causing him to stumble. Matthew spun on the spot, reaffirming his stance.

He tried again, this time aiming higher. Leila blocked his attack again, but Matthew was ready for it. When she blocked his attack, he veered off to the side at the last second, hoping for a hit to the shoulder.

Leila stepped backward, Matthew's attack hitting air.

She's playing with me! Matthew realized.

With the thought in mind, Matthew threw away all sense of caution. He attacked Leila like a whirlwind, stabbing where ever he could, trying at all costs to score a hit on her.

Leila blocked all his attacks, but they were no longer with ease. Her lax expression had disappeared long ago and reformed into one of concentration.

Matthew was only human though. And all his spinning, slicing and stabbing had begun to tire him out after a short while. And that was how he managed to accidentally trip himself.

On the positive side, Leila wasn't expecting it. Matthew collided with her and the two of the hit the floor, Matthew on top of her.

They lay like that for several seconds before Matthew realized the implications of the position they were in. He jumped off her and said, "Sorry!"

Leila merely chuckled, a faint blush on her face, "Don't worry about it. I wasn't expecting it, you surprised me."

"Did I…pass?" Matthew asked, his hopes dwindling.

Leila smiled, "You're not the best, but by the time I'm done training you, you'll be very good. Congratulations, you're now a part of Ostia's Spy Network."

Matthew's eyes widened. A huge smiled unfurled on his face.

Leila chuckled, "Now grab that knife." She pointed to Matthew's that he somehow had dropped. "I've got to teach you the basics before we do anything else. That style you used needs work. Lots of work."

Author Note: I was bored, so I wrote this. Though I may do more of these snapshots of Matthew during his training.

I guess calling this a romance is a stretch. Whatever, like I said, this may become a collection of oneshots. But I'm putting it as complete for now.