A/N: My first Fire Emblem fic! All right, so this takes place whenever you want it to, in the beginning of the end of Sacred Stones. One-sided SethxEirika and a rather twisted OCxEphraim.

Please enjoy and let me know what you think~

ChiyakoChan

He loved her. He loved her eyes, the azure which sparkled with a passion so bright, he followed her blindly. He loved her smile, the sound of her laugh. He loved the way her hips swayed as she walked, voluptuous curves inviting his touch—

But it was not meant to be. She was his princess, and he was her knight. He was supposed to fight for her, kill for her, die for her. He was not supposed to dream of her—naked and calling his name—and wake up in the middle of the night and pretend she was the one touching him.

"Eirika…"

But he loved to love her. He loved the pain.

"Prince Ephraim, might I ask you to leave me alone-?"

"Oh no, no, no," that mocking voice wet in her ear, "Since when were you so cautious of me, Irena?"

"Since I decided men were fools," her feminine body shuddered as his finger trailed down her chin.

The touch trailed lower as he spoke, "Then you must have made the decision not too long ago, hm?"

Pushed hard against the wall, she squirmed. The anger was obvious in her voice, "Don't you dare say—"

"Say what, Irena?" the man pinning her down wrapped his arms around her waist, "I know how much you admired him. I am almost hurt that your affection for me does not match your affection for him—"

"Do not speak any…!" was the feeble retort, a harsh whisper through the lips of the unwilling woman pressed hard against him.

"He never notices you, does he?" taunting fingers fumble with clothing and tantalize burning skin, "Is that why you're so disappointed?"

The trembling Irena attempted to protest, "I just told you that I am…that I…nn-!"

"That you are what?" his finger entered and she cried out, "You are such a terrible liar, Irena."

In the moonlight Irena sat up in the plush sheets, legs crossed and her fingers teasing a bruise on her inner thigh. Brows furrowed in some sort of frustration, Irena did not dare look at the sleeping figure beside her, the man who taunted her oh so easily.

Ephraim…a glutton of a prince…lifting herself from the bed, Irena stumbled through the room to retrieve her clothes. Tired body shining in the night light, Irena stood still when she realized when she was caught.

"You always leave before morning…" groggily Ephraim spoke as he sat up, hair a mess.

Irena then continued getting dressed, "Would you like your sister to find me here?"

She could hear the smirk in his voice, "Eirika would not care. She walked in on us during—"

"She did not see my face that time and I would prefer to preserve my anonymity,"
Irena was having trouble with her undergarments.

Silence. Cheeks burning the woman tried to ignore Ephraim's stare. Under the blue-white light, she hesitated with each movement, covering their sins with thin cloth. It was a long moment before he spoke, "You're shaking."

Leaving the pool of light upon the crimson rug, Irena searched for her dress and said nothing. The velvet curtains of the canopy bed waved heavily in a breeze, whispering to her and telling her to go back to him. Silken sheets scattered on the floor smoothed against Irena's feet, caressing her motions when she had no choice but to get down on her hands and knees to feel for her dress. The darkness was warm.

Forcing his sore body out of bed Ephraim reached over on the other side of the plush mattress and picked up the puddle of ebony material. Irena tensed when he touched her shoulder, naked body closer than permitted when not involved with something more intimate.

Irena snatched the dress away, slipping in the sea of ivory on the floor. Embarrassed Irena stood, footsteps muted by the plush, luxurious carpet. As she disappeared into the blackness Ephraim spoke, "You are always so fragile," he stepped out of bed and caught up with her then, "I always feel like I'm going to snap you in half when I—"

The second his fingertips grazed her waistline, Irena retreated from him, "Enough!" she rushed to the door, half dressed, "I do not love you!"

She slammed the door behind her without a second glance.

In the hall she was alone in a colder type of darkness that caused her to shiver. She never liked the dark. It was only another reminder that she was indeed a lonely, filthy soul who was loved by no man but lusted for by many. But she was fragile and she was delicate, and she felt hollow inside. That was because the one she loved chased after another woman. Both she and he were broken beings, really, because both yearned for love where love was not offered. That was enough to shatter a heart, if only piece by piece. So they were broken. After all, he was a knight and he loved a princess. She loved the knight but made love to the prince when she was a lowly peasant servant of the castle. He was a knight who loved royalty, a taboo which only welcomed—

"Ah-!"

When Irena collided with Seth, the Silver Knight, she scowled at the irony. As the steadfast man recovered, both himself and Irena's slim body, he whispered through the darkness, "Princess?" wistfully with thinly disguised hope.

In the black, black hallway it would have been tolerated. Both Irena and Eirika had petite figures and long wavy hair and, on this particular night, both had a faint scent similar to that of Ephraim's. But the woman who was mistaken was not the least bit forgiving of the similarity.

"I am afraid you are mistaken, General," Irena shrugged his hands off her shoulders roughly, "I am not your 'princess.'"

He did not detect the terse tone in her voice, "Ah, you are the Princess's servant. If you'll excuse me—"

The knight motioned to brush past her, but Irena caught his arm, "You smell of soap. May I as why you are using the bathing pool so late?"

Caught off guard, Seth snatched his arm in his instinctive defense, "That is not a servant's business. Now, if you'll excuse me."

The fragile girl was offended by his brusqueness and she fell against the wall, sensing him take step after step away from her heart. The hollowness inside her ached with an invisible pain and she retreated to her quarters.

She hated to love him. She hated the pain.

A/N: Uwaah~ Love triangle, square thing. I'm thinking of making this a couple chapters, but it could still remain a standalone…kind of. Please let me know what you think and it'll help me decide what to do with this :) Pretty plz~

Thx for reading!

ChiyakoChan