Know it all
Cordelia gave a soft sigh as she zoned out, staring longingly at the back of his head. Oh, what she wouldn't give to be there sitting him, laughing at something he said...
"Cordelia!" Professor Frederick snapped. She bolted in her seat, eyes wide. "Y-yes sir." She stammered.
"Since you seem so intent on not paying attention... you can give our new student the tour of the facilities."
She blinked. There was a new student?
Her gaze fell on the girl standing in the front of the room. A long black cloak, blonde hair, and a book tucked under her shoulder. The girl smiled at her, and mouthed a quick hello.
"That shall be all for now." Frederick went on to say. "I expect the rest of you to spend your break studying."
No one did, of course. The instant he stepped outside the room, the class circled around in their usual groups. Chrom, Vaike, Stahl, the exchange student who was living with Stahl, continued their conversation uninterupted, although Vaike did make a point to sit on the desk itself. Henry, as usual, was sitting in the back, giggling at something or other that no one else would find funny.
Instead of speaking with her friends, Cordelia thought it best to be polite.
"Hello!" She said. "My name is Cordelia. I suppose I'm going to be your guide today."
She laughed. "Nice to meet you too." She said. Despite the dark clothes, the girl overall seemed to be rather pleasant. "I'm Robin." Noting Cordelia opening her mouth, she quickly starting talking again. "And please no... I hear that joke all the time. I'm sick of it."
"Actually, I was going to ask what you were reading." Cordelia said, a smile tugging at her lips. "It's not a batman comic, is it?"
"Oh, haha. Very funny." Robin said. "Actually... it's Sun Tzu."
"Sun tsuzzit?"
"Sun Tzu." Robin said patiently. "You know... the Art of War?"
Cordelia looked at her in confusion. "Why are you reading that?"
"Because it's fun." Robin said. "Besides, I want to be a military adviser."
"Oh, really?" Cordelia said, not sure what else to say. "That's... interesting."
She laughed again. "You don't have to look so surprised." She said. "I've been studying to be a tactician all my life..."
Cordelia gestured for her to move towards the door, and she nodded. They tried to continue their conversation while they were moving, when...
"Hey."
Cordelia stopped. That was Chrom's voice. Did he really... did he actually just...
"Hi!" Robin chirped, as she whirled around to face the group of boys. "Nice to meet you... I'm new. I mean, my name is Robin, but I'm new... And you are?"
"I'm Chrom." Chrom said, as he stood up and, to Cordelia's displeasure, took her hand. "This is Vaike... Stahl... and Lon 'Qu."
"Lon 'Qu?" She repeated curiously, as she turned to face him. "You're from Valm?"
He gave a curt nod. He was so shy, Cordelia thought. You couldn't even speak to him without him shirking away.
"I studied there for a while." Robin said. "It was really quite charming. And there are lots of really talented swordsmen there. I learned a lot."
He still didn't speak. Instead, he looked away from them.
"He's not very talkative." Chrom explained to Robin. "Even with us..."
"Oh, can he not speak this language?" Robin asked, clearly concerned. She turned back to him and uttered something in a language Cordelia thought to be Valmese. He still didn't respond.
"Uh, he can." Chrom said. "He just doesn't like to talk."
"Oh." Robin said. "I'm... sorry."
This was absolutely ridiculous. He was RIGHT THERE and she couldn't bring up anything she could say to him... Before she could work out this little dilemma... she had missed her chance.
"I probably do need to take that tour now." Robin was saying. "That guy Frederick doesn't mess around, does he...? It was nice meeting you Chrom! Buh-bye."
Robin, to Cordelia's surprise, grabbed her by the arm and dragged her away to the door.
"What was with you?" She demanded, the instant they stepped outside. "You were like a zombie."
"What?" Cordelia asked. "I was not!"
"Yes, you were." Robin said. "You had this blank, dead look in your eyes..."
She raised her arms, and began shambling forward."Chroooooommmm..." She moaned.
"Cut it out!" Cordelia cried, waving her arms. "Please!"
She started to shamble towards her. "Chroooooooooommmmm..."
"Stop it!"
"Chroooommmm... I love you..."
"What?" Cordelia repeated, her eyes wide. "I didn't say that out loud, did I?"
"So I was right!" Robin declared. "I knew it."
Oh, for heaven's sakes... this would not be a fun conversaion.
...
"Yeah, he does seem pretty cool." Robin said amicably, as they leaned over the side of the Asheryune belltower. "Wow... the view here is amazing."
"Just don't come here near the turn of the hour." Cordelia warned. "The noise is absolutely unbearable."
"Stop trying to change the subject!" Robin said. "I want to talk about Chrom!"
She sighed. "Of course you do."
She looked forlornly across the school grounds, were a couple stood holding hands. "I've loved Chrom for as long as I can remember." She said. "There's just something about him... you've seen how he is. He's so warm and friendly..." She sighed. "Someone you can rely on. You know?"
"He's a good guy." Robin said. "I can tell."
"And yet..." She gripped the side of the bar. "I can't even talk to him..."
Robin looked her over. "Well, we'll just have to fix that, won't we?" She said.
She looked confused. "We?"
"Yeah." She said. She gave her a thumbs up. "Military school was absolutely filled to the most manly men imaginable. I know a thing or two about getting their attention."
...
Later that night, they had found themselves at Robin's mansion. Or perhaps... Castle would be a better way to describe it.
"The most important thing..." Robin began, ruler in hand, as she walked in circles around Cordelia. "Is to be yourself."
"But I'm worthless-"
Robin smacked her on the back of the head with the ruler. "That's exactly the kind of thinking that got you into this mess." She scolded. "I mean, think about it. If you could just talk with Chrom, you'll be that much closer to making out on a beach somewhere."
She scrunched up her nose. "What do you mean..."
"It's not that hard to talk to people you like." Robin said. "You just have to find something to talk about."
"I see." Cordelia said. "So you're saying I should just tell him how I feel?"
Another smack on the head. "No!" Robin said. "That would be a terrible thing to do. You have to be interesting. You can't just walk up and tell someone... 'hey, put a ring on me!'
"I would never tell him to do that!" Cordelia replied, scandalized.
"Well, that's what it sounds like!" Robin said. "You have to get rid of this mindset that there's a prize to be won, here. You're just having fun. There's no real pressure."
...
Robin was a bit of a social butterfly, Cordelia thought. She was already a good friend, but she absolutely did not sit still at all.
"Excuse me." A rough voice said behind her, and Cordelia instantly moved out of the way. A hand reached for an apple. "Hey... Are you Cordelia?"
She turned around. "Yes?" She asked.
"I was just wondering." He turned away. Short blue hair that for some reason was billowing all over his face. And... was that a mask?
Cordelia curiously looked at him for a bit longer than she should have, but she managed to find the resolve to forget about it and move on.
"Hey, Cordelia!" Robin called, waving from her table. "Over here?"
She hesistated. Normally, she would never have hesitated, but at the moment, Robin was sitting with a very suspicious someone.
"You know each other, right?" Robin asked, as Cordelia sat down next to her. "Cordelia, this is Lissa. Chrom's little sister."
"Robin, I'm sure I've known her longer than you." Cordelia said. "Or at least... I know who she is..."
"That makes a world of difference, doesn't it?" Robin asked cheerfully, as she bit down into an apple.
"Did he say something to you?" Lissa asked her.
"Who, say what now?" Cordelia asked. "Chrom?"
"No not him... the boy with the mask." Lissa said impatiently. "Marth."
"Marth?" Cordelia repeated. "The Hero King?"
"Well, that's what he calls himself." Maribelle, Lissa's best friend, said, as haughtily as ever. "He's trouble, Lissa. Forget about him."
"But he's so dreamy!" Lissa protested, as they looked between the other three, looking for reassurance. "Isn't he?"
"He seemed kind of rude, to be honest." Cordelia admitted.
"What did he say to you?" Robin asked curiously.
"Asked what my name was."
"Uggggh." Lissa groaned, slinking in her chair. "You're not serious, are you?"
"He wasn't interested." Cordelia clarified. "It was pretty weird, actually."
"He is not weird!" Lissa protested. "He's just misunderstood! Henry is weird!"
...