I had originally not had much plans to do anything with Shadows of Valentia, not much was hitting me inspiration wise. And then my sister bought the Zofia Harbor DLC, and oh, my feelings! Minor spoilers for that DLC. Nothing major or plot wise, just him talking of his siblings.
It was pitch black when Fernand finally arrived at his destination: his childhood home. He had hoped to reach it before dinner, but he had been met with delay after delay after delay. As he slowed his horse to a walk, a lamp went on in the darkness and grew nearer.
"Lord Fernard?" It was Harold, the stable manager. He had tended to their horses for as long as Fernand could remember. "I heard your approach. We expected you earlier."
"I expected to be here earlier," he replied. He dismounted and handed the reins to Harold. Before he left them at the stable, he gave the horse a pat. He was exhausted, hungry, filthy, and annoyed. He wanted to wash up and go to bed. Had he arrived earlier, he knew he would have been pounced on as soon as he reached the door, with his brother around one leg and his sister around the other.
He almost hated missing that, even if they usually caused him to lose his balance. It usually earned them a scolding from Father, but Fernand knew their eagerness could not be contained.
Fernand sighed as he entered the estate. They would have to wait until the morning to greet their brother. Perhaps by bounding into his room at the crack of dawn and jumping on his bed until he awoke. To his surprise, he was greeted nearly immediately by his father and stepmother. He had expected them to be in bed at that hour.
"Fernand, we expected you sooner," his father began. He smiled, though it was a tired smile, as he clapped his hand on his son's shoulder. "I was growing worried when you did not arrive." He took the lance Fernand always carried and passed it onto a guard to put away.
"I apologize, Father. I assume the weather here has been poor. There were trees across the road and one of the bridges was out. I had to come the long way. But I told you I would be here on my next furlough, and here I am."
His stepmother stepped forward. She was a small woman, but warm and welcoming, though he still held her at a distance. Jessalynn smiled at him as well, and he bent to kiss her cheek as was expected of him. "The children wanted to stay up and wait for their brother, but I had them sent to bed. Do you want anything to eat, dear? I would be glad to prepare anything you want."
"I could do with a meal, but right now I am more tired than hungry. I would just like to wash up and go to sleep."
"Your room has been cleaned, your bed made. Everything is waiting for you." Jessalynn also offered to bring him some warm water to wash with. He thanked them both and bade them good night before starting the climb up the staircase to his room.
A lamp had been left burning in his room, and the window was open to let in the cool night air. His room had been put to order. It did not have that musty, unused smell, though from his father's letters, his brother and sister often used it as a play room. His dark green blanket had been washed, and he supposed at one point the bed had been neatly made. But at that time, it was in shambles.
One of the pillows lay on the floor. The blankets had been creased. And what more, there were two small lumps underneath, with a ratty yellow rabbit ear sticking out near the pillow that remained on the bed. At first, he assumed they were asleep. But he soon heard whispers and shushing sounds. A faint smile appeared on his face as he shut the door soundlessly.
"Oh dear," he began as he stepped slowly towards the bed. "It appears there are intruders in my bed... and me without my lance..." The two masses in his bed started to squirm. Before he could reach out and grasp the blanket, his little sister Emily could no longer contain herself and popped out.
"Ferny!" she squealed as she leaped into his arms.
There it was. If Fernand had been told at any point in his life that he would tolerate, even love, the nickname Ferny, he would never have believed it. Depending on the person suggesting it, they might have wound up with a few extra holes on their body. But from Emily's mouth, it was right. He would gladly deal with being called "Ferny" for the rest of his life if it were from her. And he would also take a ratty yellow plush rabbit to the back of the head for her as well, though he knew she did not mean to hit him in her glee.
It did not even hurt, after all.
He looked over her head to Beau, only a year older than their sister. He pouted and said, "You ruined it, Emily! What if it was Mother and not Fernand?"
Her grey eyes, the same shade as his own, widened. Fernand chuckled to ease her fears. "I am happy to see you both," he told them as he reached out with his free hand to ruffle Beau's dark hair. "But you should be asleep in your own beds."
"We wanted to see you," Emily whispered.
"And I wanted to see you." He returned her to his bed, where she sat cradling the ever-present toy and stared at him with rapt attention.
Beau's sulking fit quickly disappeared. He crawled across the bed and sat down by Emily then asked, "What did you do, Fernand? Did you get into any battles?"
"Well..." he trailed off as he heard a knock at the door.
"Fernand?" Jessalynn called. The children exchanged looks of fear, certain they had been caught out of bed that late. Fernand put a finger to his lips, becoming a conspirator in their late night antics. They dove under his blankets as he went to the door.
Jessalynn had not only brought warm water but also a platter of fruit, cheese, and bread. She did not want him going to bed with an empty stomach. He thanked her, all the while holding his breath in the hopes his brother and sister would be quiet and go unnoticed. He could not, after all, defend their choice. But he would be asked why he had not sent them to bed.
As soon as the door shut behind her, Beau and Emily popped out from under the blankets. He moved the tray of food closer to his bed before pouring the hot water in a basin. He removed his boots and stripped to the waist as his brother and sister attacked the food. A long, hot soak would have to wait until the morning. As he began to wash the dirt from the road off himself, Beau launched into an explanation of the things he had missed not arriving home in time.
"Lord Hartsfield came," he admitted. "He and Father spent a lot of time in Father's study. But that wasn't too bad, as Liera came, too."
"Lady Liera," Fernand corrected. Liera was the daughter of old Lord Hartsfield. She was of an age with himself, though his siblings just adored her attention. He knew immediately why she was brought along, but he did not have the heart to tell them that she had been brought as a distraction for them as their fathers talked about the ongoing issues the people of Zofia were facing.
Emily stopped with a peach slice in hand. "But... she says we don't have to call her Lady."
"Even so," Fernand scolded, his voice muffled as he washed his face, "you must always remember your courtesies."
"Yes, Fernand," they said together.
Emily finished the slice of fruit she had been eating, then she softly said, "Lei - Lady Leira says they have a new baby pony, and that we could go see it if we wanted. Would you take us?"
"Perhaps on the morrow," Fernand said.
"She also shaid she'd teesh us to juggle," Beau added, his mouth full of bread. Fernand scolded him for that, as well, though on the inside he wanted to laugh. They had just confirmed what he knew. Ponies and juggling were the perfect distractions for small children. Even though he never understood where Liera's talent for juggling came from. It was the one unladylike thing he knew her to do, and it was also something Beau had been begging her to teach him to do for months, according to the letters he received.
Fernand listened to their excited chatter as he scrubbed away what dirt he could. Ah, if only the Knights of Zofia had a quarter of their energy! He was drained, and yet it seemed as though his brother and sister could stay up for a week and not even yawn once. He felt terrible, not giving them his full attention. Though, in his defense, he did not expect them to be waiting for him in his bed. Nor did he expect to arrive home so late.
After patting himself dry with a towel, he sat on the foot his bed. It was a good thing the Knights of Zofia did not have their appetite, as most of what their mother had brought him was gone. He reached for the bowl of berries as Emily sat beside him. "How long will you be home, Ferny?' she asked.
He ate a few then replied. "Two days." It was not long at all, and if it were not for the two little rugrats in his bed, he might not have even bothered to come.
"That's not long," she said sadly.
"No," he agreed, "it isn't." He swept her hair out of her face and smiled. "But I'm here now."
"Did you fight pirates?"
Fernand chuckled at Beau's question. "And what do you know of pirates?"
"Father says there are a lot of them, but we shouldn't worry about them here."
Fernand nodded his agreement. "We are far enough from the harbor to not have to deal with them. The other Knights of Zofia and I are doing what we can to keep them reined in."
"So you do fight them?"
"We have - " Fernand suppressed a yawn " - engaged in combat a time or two. And we have driven them off back towards the water." His bed looked so comfortable, even though it was unmade. But he had two very eager faces listening to his every word. It brought a sleepy smile to his face. He could not bring himself to shoo them away and into their own beds. He also knew if he even tried, they would return to his room within minutes.
"Could I be a knight when I grow up?" When Fernand nodded, Beau smiled at him. Fernand was surprised to see the boy had lost two teeth. Being a part of the Knights of Zofia meant he missed out on a lot, including birthdays and holidays, and even loose teeth. Those were things he never thought he would miss, of course he had also not expected his father to remarry. Or to wind up with two siblings who adored him.
Emily sat next to him, her thumb in her mouth and other hand clutching her rabbit. It also hit him that her fourth birthday was fast approaching. He regarded the rabbit. It had been with her since her birth, and she did not like letting it go. One arm hung limp, as she dragged it around by that arm day and night. The eyes were scuffed, one ear was crumpled, and the tail was long gone. Its belly was cross marked with stitches, from the various repair jobs done on it as its stuffing popped out.
Perhaps he could find her something new while he was on the road and have it sent to her before her birthday. If he could get away from Clive and Clair long enough to shop. He knew he would never hear the end of it if he was caught buying a stuffed animal. But for Emily, he might just take the risk.
He loved them both, but Emily managed to steal his heart. He tried not to coddle her too much, for fear of making Beau jealous, but their brother did not seem to notice. All he asked was to be included and to hear the heroic tales of the Knights of Zofia.
He yawned again. "Why don't we go to bed?" he suggested.
"But Fernand! You were telling us about the pirates!"
Fernand begged to differ, as he had just offhandedly mentioned fighting them once or twice. "I can tell you everything in the morning," he assured them. "In great detail," he added in hopes of enticing them to their own beds.
Instead, the two of them looked at each other and then scooted to the other side of his bed. With a sigh, Fernand pulled back the blankets. It was not what he had hoped for, but at least they would allow him to sleep a little while.
Or would they?
No sooner than his head had hit the pillow did they wind up snuggled up close to him. Beau had taken his left side, after having climbed over him, and Emily his right. And they were still full of questions.
"What do you do as a knight?"
"Serve the king and protect those who need it," Fernand replied sleepily.
"Can you come home more often, Ferny?" Emily threw her arm over his chest, her rabbit still clutched in her hand. It landed on his stomach, where it would spend the rest of the night.
"I wish I could," he sighed.
"Do you miss us?"
"Of course. Now please, let's go to sleep."
"We're not tired."
That much was obvious.
"The faster you go to bed," he argued, "and let me sleep, the sooner morning will come and we can spend time together."
That rang true to the two children. They scooted as close to their big brother as they could. Though neither was tired, they stopped their questions as Fernand fell asleep. Eventually, both of them nodded off as well, the excitement of seeing their brother finally replaced by exhaustion.