Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem
Lucina took care to be as quiet as possible. She would fail in her mission if anyone would hear her. As tentatively as she could manage, she snuck past her mother chatting with her father. At last, she finally stopped at the barracks. She rested her gaze upon a boy with dark brown hair. His hair was dark enough to almost be called black. His brown eyes gleamed with sincerity. And that earring he always wore glinted in the faint ray of sunshine pouring through the window. Lucina found herself falling in love with him all over again.
He noticed her presence. "Hey, why are you here?"
She shuffled up shyly. "I just wanted to say I wish you good luck."
He laughed. "If there's anyone in this army who has luck, it'd be me!"
Despite the grim circumstances, Lucina found herself smiling as well. He always made her feel like this. Made her feel like everything was going to be all right. Even though she did not approve of such feelings, she couldn't help but let all the responsibility fall off her shoulders and just relax for once. Or as he refers to it, "letting down her hair."
Lucina forced herself to stop smiling and look serious. "Inigo, I just wanted to tell you this because war is no game. Since my father isn't bringing me into this battle because the enemy is too strong, then I'm afraid it's quite serious. I just...don't want you to die."
For once, the smile was gone. He looked her in the eye. "I'm not going to. If it's for your sake, then I'm not afraid of running away to save my own life. It may look cowardly, but I know that a much greater responsibility lies back here. My responsibility is to be with you. And I won't let any old Risen on the battlefield take that responsibility off my shoulders."
Before she even knew it, Lucina found herself hugging him. She never wanted to let go of him, for she knew that once she did he would be gone in the blink of an eye, taken by Death without a word of depart.
Eventually, they both let go, and Lucina was faced with the fact that she couldn't stop him from going. He was just too far out of her reach, bidden by his duty to save the future. A duty that she shared with him.
Inigo smiled. "If you're really that worried, then let's make promises to each other."
"Fine. Promise me you won't be a fool and keep fighting once you're injured."
"I promise." His face broke into a wider smile and he looked at her. "Promise me that if one day I do die, you will find someone else. Someone else to take care of you."
For a moment, she stood silent. She knew that she could never keep such a vow. Finally, she nodded. "Fine." She wasn't going to officially say, "I promise." To do so would be to tell a boldfaced lie.
"I also want you to promise me another thing. If I die, you won't frown; you'll keep smiling for the rest of the day. I don't want a scowl marring that beautiful complexion."
At this, Lucina actually smiled. "I promise."
Inigo turned around and walked out the door. Although he did it quickly, Lucina still saw a slight frown on his face when he left. But she said nothing. She knew he didn't want to show her that he was just as afraid as she was.
"I'm telling you, I want to go!" Lucina shouted, for once losing her temper.
Chrom's face reddened. She had gone too far. "You are not going," he said in a barely controlled voice. "I'm not having my only daughter die on the battlefield."
"I came from the future to fight on the battlefield. You gave me Falchion to fight. And I plan on using it," she replied quietly.
Her mother appeared from the shadows. "Chrom," she said, "let her go."
Her father stared back at her mother. "What do you mean, Robin? She could get hurt or killed."
"But you let her fight before this. It's just this battle that you won't let her fight."
"Because these Risen are stronger than any other Risen we've seen so far. I don't want our little girl killed."
Robin put her hand on Chrom's shoulder. "Let her fight. She's spent her whole life fighting. You may as well let her."
Faced with no other choice, Chrom sighed deeply. "I might as well. But don't you dare get killed."
Lucina smiled grimly. "Yes. I shan't let you down, Father." She began to walk away, happy about her father's eventual decision.
Nervously, both Lucina and Inigo paced in circles. Chrom had told everyone that they were to be fighting in an hour. That was about 45 minutes ago. Now, the two proceeded to get more and more nervous every passing second. At last, they heard the unmistakable sound of a rally call.
Lucina turned to face Inigo. For once, his face was grim. Wordlessly, the two shared a brief kiss before heading outside. With a few brief words, Chrom began to lead everyone towards the fields. Lucina took in the horrible sight of the animated corpses infesting the area. She felt bile rise in her throat. This is what I came for, she reminded herself.
Wordlessly, the group threw themselves into the throng. Robin was right; these Risen were really strong. Despite being one of the strongest fighters, Lucina found herself overwhelmed by the sheer power and force she was up against. Even though she struggled, she refused to give up. At least, until she heard a shout. Her blood turned to ice. She knew that voice.
By then, all the Risen were gone. Still, that fact gave her no comfort. She shoved her way past everyone desperately, not pausing for artificial manners or customs. She found him on the ground, the life bleeding out of him from the gash on his chest. Despite her knowledge that the wound was fatal, she still refused to believe it. "Somebody get me a Cleric," she ordered.
Nobody moved.
"I said get a Cleric!" she said a little more forcefully. "He's going to die!"
Finally, her father stepped forward. "There's nothing we can do for him, Luce," he said grimly. "He's going to die, and no stave or elixir can heal him."
"No…" She buried her head in his chest. "No, no… This was not supposed to happen." She looked at him. "How could I have let you die?" she asked, tears streaming down her face.
Inigo reached up a hand faintly and caressed her cheek. "I knew this day was to come eventually," he said. He tried to smile. "You made me a promise. You promised that you would find another. And I'm sure you'll choose right. And we'll see each other again. I'm sure of it." He broke off from what he was saying, coughing intermittently. "Until then, just smile for me… Please…" His head fell back and a trickle of blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.
Lucina tightened her arms around him and sobbed. She knew she could never keep her promise, for she could never find another. But she could keep the other one. Even as she cried, even as they buried his body, she never stopped smiling. Even for a moment. Because she knew that she would see him one day. And she knew that he would be wearing the same smile that she tried to replicate every day.
Fin
Hey, I've had a fanfiction ban so I started posting some stuff on Young Writers Society. Although, I'm back now! And I have some new stuff since my ban. I have one other one that I wrote before this. Although, I'm publishing this first since I'm more excited about this than the other one. Anyway, hope you enjoyed~