Hello everyone! I wrote this a little while ago, but I didn't have time to type it up until now. Looking back on this I can't help but wonder what exactly my inspiration was…

Oscar: Cotton candy?

FireEdge: It's certainly sugary enough… Anyway, hope you enjoy it anyway! After all, you never can have enough RanulfLethe!

Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem.

Bandages

Lethe lifted the tent flap and stepped inside. It was dark, save for the sputtering flame of a single lamp. However, her feline eyes adjusted immediately and she walked towards a cot at the far end. Her soft footfalls made no sound, but she knew that her presence had been detected. Ranulf shifted and his ears pricked up when she stopped beside his bed.

"Ah, Lethe. Paying this poor, old cat a visit?" he drawled as he managed to push himself up into a sitting position. The blue-haired laguz cringed slightly as he moved and Lethe's eyes flickered, quickly taking in his injuries.

"You're not old, Ranulf. You're barely a decade older than me, and I am certainly nowhere near my prime," she replied with a sniff, sitting on the edge of his cot.

"I was joking, Lethe. Joking. You need to stop taking everything I say seriously. Hah, you're not nearly as bad as Kyza though!" Ranulf laughed, but immediately stopped and let out a small whimper of pain. "Ow, ow, ow…"

"Are you joking, Ranulf? I can't seem to tell," Lethe replied with a smirk.

"Your words hurt more than these wounds, Lethe."

"So your injuries are that bad?" she inquired, looking at him from the corner of her purple eyes.

"Is that your way of asking if I'm all right?" he asked with a small smile. The other cat scowled, much to his delight. "Don't worry, I'll live. I heal fast anyway, and those beorc healers can do wonders with their magic."

"… Good. I just wanted to make sure that you were alive. I'll go now and let you get some rest." Lethe stood and took only a few steps before Ranulf called her name.

"Lethe, wait. It looks like my bandages are soaked again. I need to change them."

"Do you want me to get Rhys?" she asked, turning to face him, a quizzical look on her face.

"No, no, I don't need healing. I just need someone to help me unwrap and change the dressing," he answered with a wave of his hand. Though he said this offhandedly, Lethe caught the mischievous twinkle in his bicoloured eyes and she debated on walking out without another word. However, his bandages really were redder than they should be…

"Fine, I'll find Kyza."

"Oh, Goddess no! If you ask Kyza to come, Lyre will find out and they'll both barge in here bickering. The last thing I need is a headache. Lethe, you're good enough. Grab those bandages over there, will you?"

"You're kidding me," she said, glowering at him.

"Of course not! I mean, you're right here, and you're perfectly capable of the job. What? Do you not want to help your commanding officer who just happens to be your dearest friend?" he asked innocently, his tail curling in the air.

"Fine, I'll help you! But only because I know that the injury you sustained from that beorc general was serious," answered the laguz, though she had an irritated scowl on her face. She grabbed the roll of bandages and padded over to the other cat.

"Unroll some of that while I get this disgusting stuff off," he instructed, beginning to unwrap the soaked bandage around his stomach. "You know, it's been a while since we've been able to talk."

"We just spoke this morning."

"No, I mean alone. You know, spend quality time together?" he said as she applied the new bandage, her hands working deftly.

"Why do we need to spend… time together for? We're not… mates," she said the last word with near disgust, her nose scrunching up.

"You don't have to be mates to spend time together. Really, Lethe, you think of such funny things," Ranulf replied, relishing in the blush that crossed her pale cheeks. "Anyway, ever since the king assigned me to… advise Skrimir, I've barely seen you. Well, until this whole war started that is."

"You're complaining? You should be honoured that the king promoted you," she chided.

"Oh, I am. I'm just saying I missed seeing you."

"Excuse me?" Lethe demanded, looking up to glare at him.

"What? You mean you haven't thought of me once? I'm hurt!" he exclaimed, clamping a hand to his heart.

"You're ridiculous. Stop talking; I'm tired of your nonsense," the orange-haired laguz snapped, tying off the bandage. "There, it's finished. I'm leaving."

"No, my leg too. And then my arm," he said, proffering her his leg. "Please?" he added, noticing the smouldering look she was giving him. He smiled as she growled and reached for the bandages on his leg.

"I should bandage your mouth shut while I'm at it," she muttered.

"You're so cruel, Lethe. Don't you remember that time I bandaged you up?" he asked, his hand reaching up to gently caress her green ribbon.

"No, I don't."

"Really? I remember it clearly. It was back when we were younger, before I joined the army. We were out near the mountains…"

"So, Lethe, why exactly are we here again?" Ranulf asked as he leapt up onto the ledge beside her.

"You don't have to be here. I didn't ask you to come," she replied, scanning the trail in front of her and sniffing the air.

"Don't be stupid, Lethe. You know the Kauku Caves are near here. The rocks can shift unexpectedly because of the caves' volcanic activity. What if something happened? You could get hurt and no one would even know where you were. You didn't even tell your family! It's lucky I saw you sneaking away."

"For your information, I was 'sneaking away' only because my parents would never allow me to come here," she replied shortly, moving ahead, still sniffing the air.

"Gee, I wonder why? Maybe because it's dangerous? And why is that burning smell that I know is the Kauku Caves getting stronger with every step we're taking?" he demanded as he loped ahead of her, so that she would have to stop walking.

"I told you, go home if you're going to complain."

"Lethe, answer me. Does this have to do with Lyre's sickness?" The other cat flinched and he knew that he had hit the nail on the head. "Oh, Lethe, you know there's nothing you can do. The herbalist said that all we can do is wait and hope she gets better. There's a chance she'll recover without a problem."

"Yeah, well, there's also a chance that she won't. Also, there is something we can do. That herbalist is just too afraid to get it himself," she retorted, moving past him. However, he just manoeuvred himself to block her again, his eyebrow raised in query. "Ugh, if you must know, it's an herb, which only grows in… Kauku Caves."

"Are you INSANE?!" Ranulf exclaimed, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her. "Going in there is suicide!"

"I'll be fine, it grows near the entrance. It won't take more than a few minutes. Anyway, like I said before, go home if you're going to get in my way!" Without another word, she shifted into a cat, surprising him, and sprinted away.

"Wait! Lethe! Argh, wait for me!"

When he finally caught up to her, he found her standing in front of a cave opening. A stench of burning and sulphur wafted out from the darkness and he could almost feel his fur begin to singe.

"You're not seriously going in there."

"Wait for me here," she said before plunging into the cave.

"Lethe!" he called after her, but to no avail. Shifting from foot to foot, his tail twitching anxiously behind him, he let out a growl of exasperation. Shaking his head at his stupidity he entered the cave.

Coughing, he squinted his eyes in the smoky air and looked left and right. Then he caught sight of Lethe, kneeling a small distance away, her hands plucking at something on the ground. He was about to walk towards her when both their ears pricked up and they looked about in alarm. A flaming rock had shot up with a hiss from the nearby lava and it was hurtling towards Lethe. It was too late for the female laguz to dodge and she let out a yowl of pain as it collided with her.

"Lethe!" the blue-haired cat quickly ran towards her and propped her up. Her hand clutched something tightly, but her back and shoulders were burnt, her clothing scorched to a crisp. "Lethe! Hold on!"

Lethe groaned and now satisfied that she was alive, Ranulf hefted her up and dashed out of the cave and down the slope. When they arrived at a small patch of grass, he laid her down and began to inspect her wounds. He hissed through his teeth and winced as his eyes scanned her back. Her skin was red and blistered, pieces of charred clothing still stuck to it and blood oozed from some of the ruptures. It definitely wasn't pretty.

"How're you holding up? Are you still with me?" he asked Lethe, holding up her face so that he could see if she was conscious. Her eyes were screwed shut and she whimpered softly. He could see tears seeping from under her eyelids. He couldn't help but remark that she looked very… innocent and he smirked lopsidedly. "This is going to hurt, but hang in there."

Humming and swishing his tail, Ranulf dug into his pouch and pulled out several medicinal herbs and balms as well as a roll of bandages. Good thing he came prepared.

"Are you sure you don't remember?" he asked again.

"Yes, I'm sure," she answered with a scowl, her tail thrashing unconsciously.

"Well, I'll never forget the day I saw you in tears. But, I guess it was to be expected. Getting burned, for a beast laguz is horribly painful, and this was before your military training, too. You had such a brave face on when I was applying—YOW! Too tight! Too tight!"

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to," she snapped, not at all apologetic. "You were distracting me with your talking."

"Hmmm… My apologies. I seem to be rambling," he responded, attempting to appease her anger. Lethe stopped scowling and Ranulf smiled slyly. "You know, I think I'm a little feverish from the pain."

"Are you now? I thought you said that you were fine," she snorted, finishing the bandage on his leg.

"Oh, I'm perfectly all right; just a little feverish. I thought that I should tell you, since you seemed to be irritated at me. It's probably why I'm talking nonsense," he answered with a shrug and his hand began to fiddle with her ribbon again.

"Stop it. Keep your hands to yourself," Lethe snapped absently, her eyes focused on his arm.

"I gave this to you, didn't I?" he mused, ignoring her and continuing to run his fingers over the silky fabric. The other cat paused for a second and Ranulf could see her face redden, and he smiled. "You know, I thought that you threw it away. Imagine my surprise when I saw you again, after so many years, and you were wearing it. I thought you hated it."

"I… I didn't hate it," she managed to spit out, her face flushed with embarrassment. Why was he bringing the issue up after all this time? He had never mentioned it before.

"Good, because it looks nice on you. I knew that I had good taste, even when I was young," the laguz stated with a satisfied smirk.

"… Whatever," she grunted. They stopped talking as Lethe finished the bandaging on his arm. "There, it's done. If that's it, I'll be going now. I'm quite tired of your talking."

"Hmm, all right," he replied. Lethe nodded and stood. However, as she turned and began to walk away, her eyes widened in surprise as she felt something slide around her throat. It seemed that Ranulf's hand still held one end of her ribbon, and as she had turned, the ribbon had come undone from her neck. "Oops, sorry. I thought I was holding a bandage."

With a growl that said she was not amused, she leant over and reached for the ribbon beside Ranulf. Before she could stand up straight, Ranulf's arm lashed forward and grabbed her shoulder, pulling her towards him. His smiling lips connected with hers before he let her go and let himself fall back onto his bed.

"Mrowr!" Lethe yelped, jumping back with a hiss, her tail erect and her teeth bared. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"I'm sorry, did I do something to make you mad? My mind feels all… muddled right now, what with my fever and all," Ranulf said, feigning weakness. His head was tilted back so that he could blink at her innocently and his tail swished on the bed playfully.

Lethe hissed again, her face red, and glowered at him balefully. She knew fully well that the cat was lying through his teeth and she now realized that he had planned to do that all along. His contented face said it all.

"I knew that I shouldn't have bothered checking up on you!" she spat with disgust before storming out.

Ranulf smiled and curled up to sleep, purring all the while. It should be illegal to enjoy yourself that much.

COUGH! HACK!

Oscar: C'mon, spit it out! Wouldn't do to have you pass out on us now…

FireEdge: Ack… Sorry about that. I seemed to have been choking on all the fluff… (haha, I made a funny). Anyway, this idea kinda just popped into my head one day and I wrote it. Just for the sake of it, I decided to relate it to Ribbon, so I guess it could be called an impromptu sequel. Hope I kept them all IC. Leave a review and tell me what you thought!

--FireEdge--