Books had brought him comfort; pages could be worn and torn or well cared for, their condition mattered naught to him as long as he could fill his mind with knowledge and ignore the void in his heart. Always the earliest to rise and see the dew on the grass, feel the chill of the morning air and watch the sunrise, he'd be the last to rest his head on the softness of a pillow and call it a night.

It was a strange ritual Robin had grown accustomed to once he'd join the shepherds, though the void in her heart slowly filled as he gained friendships that would transcend lifetimes, he'd always hold himself back from partaking in romantic ventures, but he'd smiled and lend a friendly ear when his lord and friend Chrom, would ramble and muse on his sudden love interest, Sumia. And when his friend would finish his bouts of love, Chrom would look Robin in the eye and tell him to seek out love, Robin would only respond with smile and nod, promising he would try.

He wouldn't though, he always worried if he'd left a woman behind, wondered if she was still waiting for him, or if her stomach was swollen as she and his unborn child waiting for his return. If he was married before wouldn't he have a wedding band? He considered that at one point, he'd searched his whole person, and his ringer finger showed no sign of once bearing a ring. It took months, but he'd finally convinced himself that no one was waiting for him, and he felt alone again.

Friendship can only do so much for a man, he loved the company he had gotten from the Shepherds, they're quirks and personalities would bring out joy, laughter, fear, and most importantly new memories for him to cherish.

In one fateful night that could've easily been forgotten due to the drunken stupor he was pressured into with Chrom, the two friends stumbled back to their camp, he remembered they stopped for a moment their bodies racked with laughter on the abandoned road, the young lord had lost his balance and lay splayed out on the ground below while the tactician attempted to keep his footing his giggles making him rock on his feet.

With some struggle Robin pulled Chrom to his feet, helping his friend find his balance, with shushed words of guidance, Robin was surprised by what happened next. The young lord hard curled his fingers and tightly gripped the young tactician's shoulders, pinning him in his position, the fun mood gone and replaced with a serious one. "R-Robin." Chrom hiccupped, his eyes glared into the confused orbs of his companion as he tried to register his words.

"I know you feel alone, but forget about your old life. The Shepherds, we're your new life, and you're my brother, you're my family, I love you brother." Chrom said with a slight slur. Though it might have just been the alcohol talking, Robin felt his eyes fill with tears and his arms wrapped around and held the young lord tightly only faintly aware that Chrom had embraced him back and tried to soothe the amnesiac as he wailed loudly in the dead of night, weeping for the gift he had just received. He had a family.

That simple gesture brought in a transformation in the young man, though the two men never spoke of what happened the night there was a silent agreement between the two, they were brothers and they would always watch out for the others well-being.

X

As the campaign against Gangrel was reaching its fateful end, Robin didn't know what exactly sparked his interest in the red haired Pegasus Knight, but he did know he was smitten.

He had strayed a little farther from the Shepherd's then he would've liked that battle, everything was going according to plan until he was caught off guard and surrounded. There was only so much he could do, he remembered the small burning and tingly sensation that had spread through his fingers as he cast spell after spell in order to protect himself, when the magic took too much of a toll on him, he brandished his blade and prepared his onslaught, until a large gust of wind knocked him out of his train of thought and he saw her sweep down and hold the enemy at bay and defeated them at what seemed like a blink of an eye.

"C-Cordelia!?" He spluttered out, as he gaped up at her, he vaguely remembered her flashing him a small smile as she dismounted her Pegasus to mend his wounds. He remembered feeling her soft finger tips tracing over his face as she brushed back locks of his brown hair, while her thumb pressed a medication against his forehead on a cut he was unaware that he had received, from a distance away he could hear the loud cheers of victory as the Shepherds had won another battle.

"You should be more careful." She had warned while silently working on his wounds, his response was to nod numbly at her advice as his eyes stayed glued on her face. He work seemed to take forever, but he didn't mind and enjoyed the small talk they had exchanged, unaware of the blue speck in the distance that seemed to be sprinting in their direction.

"Robin! Where in gods damn were you!?" Chrom shouted, knocking the tactician out of his stupor. He watched as Cordelia quickly left the rest of her job unfinished and slightly stumbled back away from the two, a crimson blush on her face, her eyes darted on the two men before resting on Chrom, giving him a weak greeting before running off.

The two men froze in their positions as they watched the girl flee, before the young lord remembered what he had come for and began to scold the tactician for leaving his eye of sight. However, Robin's attention wasn't on his friend, he continued to watch Cordelia until she escaped his line of sight. She was beautiful, he concluded before meeting his friend's eyes to apologize for his actions.

X

Robin made it his mission to have at least some type of interaction with her once a day. It started off small, with passing greetings, sitting at the same table during dinner, and then before he knew it they were having small talks that turned into great conversations. On some evenings they would sit side by side near the campfire, she would work on her lance and he would read or dabble on a trap he was improving to show off to Donny.

Robin was in love, but he soon realized her heart belonged to another. The other being his best friend, his brother, his lord, Chrom.