Doesn't Afraid of Anything

Say'ri found herself sitting on a log by the campfire. Many of the Shepherds had already gone to sleep and the first watch was already partway through their shift. The moon hung low in the sky, its pale rays washed out by the stronger flames. It was on its way to dwindling, but that would not be for a while longer.

The fire was hypnotic to her. She had hoped to try and find some way to clear her thoughts, to figure out her path now that Yen'fay's cards finally fell from his dead hands. But all the flames did was remind her of his choices, his words, and of days long gone that were waiting to be buried.

The crunching of ground beneath heavy footsteps drew her attention, and she turned to look at the person. In the dim light, she made out a tall, masculine form with items in hand, and as he drew closer she began to see the lines etched in his face. His short crops of orange hair and his tanned leathers told Say'ri that it was Gregor, a battle-hardened mercenary that had been around combat for perhaps longer than she was alive.

His real age eluded her. War had made many of the Shepherds look older, had made her feel older. But his wrinkles and the scars he sometimes boasted of gave her the impression that he had known combat for a long, long time.

He said nothing as he approached her, merely taking a seat next to her under Say'ri's inquisitive stare. In his hands were a flask and a somewhat small cup. She recognized the characters on the bottle, written in her own language. It was a commoner's drink that saw as much ceremonial use in high courts and banquets as it was imbibed on a daily basis.

What surprised her was when he poured the alcohol into the cup he had and wordlessly handed it to her, a jovial smile on his lips. She almost dumbly accepted it, staring into the milky liquid. Looking up at Gregor, he had already filled another cup, bringing it to his lips and drinking deeply.

She followed suit out of respect. Say'ri was not one for drinking outside of ceremonial purposes. She had it before on countless occasions – weddings being the most common – but she had never sought to have it on its own before. The drink was slightly sweet on the tongue and hot down her throat, the burning settling into her stomach.

Turning to face him, he had already poured himself a second helping, this time letting the liquid sit in the cup as he stared into the fire, his upturned lips a shadow of the smile he gave her earlier.

"Sir Gregor," she started, "I thank you for your drink, but… did you perchance have a reason for imbibing with me so late this night?"

"Gregor was thinking. Gregor think that Say'ri much like Gregor, but Gregor not like Say'ri."

"I…" The statement had her at a loss. "I fear I do not fully understand. How do you mean?"

"Lady Say'ri had big brother. Loved big brother very much, but in end had to defeat brother."

"Yes, I… I had to defeat him." Her grip on the cup tightened. Gregor must have seen it, as he poured her another cup. "And by doing so, Chon'sin is no longer beholden to Walhart's reign – we are free to stand against him, as it should have always been from the start."

Gregor tipped his drink into his lips, letting the liquid swill in his mouth before gulping it down.

"Gregor also had big brother. Gregor love big brother very much, yes."

A short silence followed after, drinking in the implication of his words. At first her lips parted to speak, but then closed it, deciding that it was wiser to let her thoughts remain silent for the time being.

"But… big brother no longer with Gregor here."

"I… I am sorry to hear of your loss," Say'ri struggled to say. "I did not mean to bring up such thoughts to you."

"That okay. Gregor forgive easily, if Lady Say'ri let Gregor explaining."

"Please, continue."

Pouring himself a third and final cup before putting the stopper on it, the man took a breath. "Gregor very sad when big brother did the dying. Like Lady Say'ri. Gregor maybe have even bigger sadface than Lady Say'ri."

"But Gregor not like Lady Say'ri. Lady Say'ri doesn't afraid of anything."

Doesn't afraid of – what did he even-

"Fie, come again?"

"Lady Say'ri is with making the sadface. Good times with big brother long gone. But not afraid."

She looked back down at her cup, shaking her head. "I believe we are at a disagreement, Sir Gregor. I still yet fear what will come to pass. Walhart was a man who nearly bested my brother, whom we were only able to defeat because he stayed his hand. Do we have the power to defeat him?"

"Ahh," a chuckle came from the mercenary, "but Gregor still see braving in Lady Say'ri. Lady Say'ri worrisome and thinking the future, but not fear frozen and keeps with walking. When Gregor brother die, Gregor had salty raining from the eyeballs. Was very sad, yes, and could eat or sleep only tiny bit for long time."

Taking a final swig, he let out a satisfied sigh and put his cup to the side.

"Gregor is wishing was be like Lady Say'ri when big brother died. Sad, but calm. Like frost on young grass."

Closing her eyes, she lifted her own cup to her lips and drained its contents, feeling the alcohol's warmth rising to her cheeks. Handing the cup back to Gregor, she let her words fill the silence between them. "I do not think that I am as calm as I would like to be. As the princess, and therefore the to-be ruler of Chon'sin in my brother's stead, there is much I need to think about. Still, I thank you for your thoughts. It is good to know that others believe I am doing the right thing."

"Much welcome! Gregor always happy to saying good people doing good." his grin broke out again and he rose after he bid her goodnight, walking to where his tent was.

Turning her gaze back to the fire, the flames still burned brightly, but the heat felt more welcoming than before.


A/N: Allow me to present what I like to call the "Strange Talking" pair.

In my head, I secretly shipped these two for the longest time because I thought Say'ri was closer to Gregor's age than the other female cast. However, closer looks at Say'ri's portrait made me realize that she was younger than I first thought, so the ship is less plausible to me now. Still, I can at least see the two being friends still.

Anyway, this is just a short drabble of sorts that I've been thinking about. Yen'fay is killed and Say'ri and Gregor drink and talk funny. It most likely will not get more chapters, but that's okay.

See you all soon!

I do not own Fire Emblem, and I appreciate all comments and criticism.