Hey guys, it's Cyber Emblem a new story! It started out as a Mia x Rhys story, but it turned out as more of an origin story for Mia as I came up with the plot and wrote it. Essentially, this is my take on why she behaves the way that she does, and how it would translate into a relationship with the sickly healer. You might notice a bit of a tonal shift in the middle of the story. I think my cynicism started to slip in as I was trying to write a story that was supposed to be a treat for a faithful follower. As a result I chose to tone down the story a bit and cut that part of the story short and leave and simply leave some things implicit as I realized that I was starting to push it a bit. Long time readers such as the one I was writing for shouldn't be surprised, but still, cynical realism wasn't actually what I was going for here. Anyways, I apologize if the represented characters seem to be acting out of character at all in this story. Out of all the Fire Emblem games, I am the least familiar with the Tellius series. As I said earlier, I'm writing this because when I mentioned this as a possible fic, one of my consistent reviewers expressed enthusiasm over the possibility of a Rhys x Mia fic, so I thus put it high on my priorities list. (I actively read every review I get sent, and I generally respond or at the very least take what is said into account. Unless I'm felling burnt out or they are saying nothing new or something completely out there).

As for my next work… either I'm finally going to write a non-FE story with The Fall of Richard Highwind, (A Final Fantasy 2 one-shot) or I'm going to start a mini series about Archanean characters. If I do the later, my reason for doing so is in order to get more collective views and in order to write stories focusing on characters whose names aren't options for character tags on this website. My current plan is for at least a trilogy, but it might turn out longer: Phina, Mallista, and Castor/Kashim I have solid ideas for. I have a vague idea for Navarre, and I plan on doing stories for the Whitewings at some point, but the Whitewings might get their own fic. "The Courtship of Linde" will definitely be it's own thing if it ever gets written. I have several more ideas that were outlined at the end of Crusaders Reborn, so take a look if you want me to get started on one of those sooner.

Anyways, I am a bit nervous about the quality of this story, but I hope you guys get at least some enjoyment out of it, even if its one of my lesser works. As always, please leave a review and enjoy!

P.S. If you do wind up liking this, I can try to follow up on this later if you want.

"I… I know he's not my rival. He cannot even lift a sword. So why can't I get him out of my head?!" thought Mia. She just couldn't figure it out. As of recently, she had realized that she had become slightly obsessed with Rhys. She could not discern a good reason why.

Her first instinct told her "Oh, it's because I thought he might be my white clad archrival, but he's clearly not!" but if that was the case, she should've been able to put him out of her mind. But it had been over a month since she decided that the old crone's prediction wasn't about him, and he was not out of her thoughts.

So clearly, something else was bothering her. It was infuriating and she needed to blow off some steam. She needed a sparring partner. So, she wandered through the camp, looking to see if anybody was available. Eventually, she came across Titania who was taking a break. "Hey. Can you spar with me?" she asked.

Titania looked at her, and perceived almost immediately that Mia had something on her mind and was looking for an outlet. "Only if you're willing to talk and answer my questions while we're doing so." she said. Mia agreed and their sparring session began.

At first, nothing was said. They needed to get into the flow of their motions before they could safely begin talking. Once they had adjusted themselves, the Q&A session began. "I know that it's normal for you to randomly approach someone and ask them to spar but… I can tell that it's different this time. It's clear to me that something's on your mind, Mia. What is it?" asked Titania.

"Oh…" said Mia, a bit surprised by the insight. "What gave it away?"

"The way that you asked and the way that you were carrying yourself when you asked screamed it. And trust me, I know how to tell." responded Titania.

"Hmm… I guess you would know, wouldn't you." said Mia after a moment of thought. "Alright, fine. Yes, something is bothering me. Today. But that's not the only reason that I spar you know."

"I never thought that it was." said Titania. "You spar all the time because you are obsessed with strength. Why, I would like to know, but I'm not demanding an answer for that question right now. No, instead, I'd like to know, what's bothering you? What has happened that-" Titania froze "Wait… Rhys mentioned to me something about you hunting for an archrival, and how you might get yourself or somebody else hurt over it. Does your current mood have something to do with that?" she asked.

Mia responded with a powerful yet erratic swing. Titania looked at her face and Mia's cheeks were puffed out and a slight angry red and there were sparks in her eyes. "What?! He told you about that?!" she cried, clearly annoyed.

"Don't get angry with him. He's supposed to tell me stuff like that. I'm your superior officer, I'm supposed to know if there is a possibility that you might be engaging in troublesome behavior." said Titania, calmly. "Ike knows as well. He doesn't care, but I've been meaning to address this with you, I just haven't had a chance."

"How can hunting for an archrival be troublesome?" asked Mia.

"Very easily." said Titania. "You have no idea how easily. Have you been watching Kieran's disruptive behavior towards Oscar? That's just a mild example of how badly that kind of crusade can go."

"Oh, you mean that red cavalier who's always…? …Ok, I see your point." admitted Mia. "But, look, I haven't found my archrival yet… and I'm beginning to think that I never will. I think that maybe that old crone was feeding me a bunch of hooey. Either way, I know that Rhys is not the one."

Titania rose an eyebrow "You thought that Rhys was… you DO realize that he's always been chronically ill, right? That's why he's a healer in the first place. He can't use any weapons."

Mia sighed "I know that NOW, but I didn't then, and the fact that he was a healer didn't stop me from trying to make him a fighter. When it made him sick, I stopped it. I'm determined, but I'm not thoughtless."

"So… is that why you're upset? Because you're disappointed that you couldn't make Rhys out to be your archrival?" asked Titania.

"No…" said Mia. "I mean yes, I mean… It has to do with him. I… can't get him out of his head. I mean, I can't get him out of my head. I decided that he wasn't my archrival, I decided I was going to leave him alone, so I should have stopped thinking about him, but for some reason, he keeps popping up in my brain, and it's annoying. Why won't he stop popping up in my head?!" exclaimed Mia, waving her arms like some upset anime schoolgirl.

Now both of Titania's eyebrows were raised and she made a face. "Well… this was unexpected." she thought to herself. "Are you… is it possible that you might have a crush on Rhys?" she asked.

Mia's eyes widened in horror "No." she exclaimed "NO! NO! NO! NO! It's not that! I'm not doing that! I'm not settling down, I refuse! I'm a warrior, it's my destiny to travel the world, honing my skills and getting stronger, not to get lovesick and settle down. I decided a LONG time ago that I'm not going to be no housewife!"

Titania raised her arms in self-defense "You're… jumping to conclusions, Mia. I suggested a crush, and that's it. Everybody gets crushes at some point, but not everybody settles down. I never did, so relax, Mia."

Mia actually did calm down. "I'm… sorry that I overreacted." she said.

Titania nodded "Apology accepted. But you're not completely off the hook. Your reaction seems to point at a large underlying issue at hand here, so if you don't mind, I think it's time that we actually DID talk about you."

"…What do you want to know?" asked Mia.

"Do you realize that we know next to nothing about you? Sure, we know what you are like, and that you are a skilled warrior, but your history never is brought up in a discussion. Now that's fine, you don't have to, in fact, you can walk away right now and not tell me anything if you want. But, I want to help you understand yourself, and to do that, I need to understand where you came from. So if you wouldn't mind."

Mia thought about it for a minute, then she sighed. "I don't like talking about it… but that's a fair point. Could we please go someplace else first?"

So they relocated, and Mia explained her background to Titania. She was the youngest child of three, and far younger than her siblings. Her sister, Din was fourteen years older than her, and her brother, Ernst, was sixteen years older. Mia had loved Din, but couldn't stand Ernest. Their household had been extremely paternalistic, and Mia had watched her sister suffer because of it.

Din was a strong, supportive woman, who had done her best to be cheerful, no matter the situation. She had been Mia's primary role model in life. She probably would've been able to forge a life of her own if it weren't for the influence of her father and brother. Because of them, she was wed when Mia was still young. Very unhappily wed, as her husband was just as, if not even more chauvinistic and paternalistic than her birth family.

Mia had immediately hated him, and his appearance in her life is what solidified her tomboyish personality. She already liked to do several things that were considered "non-girly", but she still liked some girly things as well up until that point. As soon as her brother-in-law showed up though, she did everything in her power to spite him, her brother, and her father. That mainly consisted of throwing to the side every girlish thing that she had ever liked.

"I see…" said Titania. "That explains a few things, but how did this lead to swordplay? And what was the final straw? What made you leave home for good and become a mercenary?"

"Well, I don't know about elsewhere, but where I'm from, swordplay is kind of seen as the ultimate expression of masculinity. What better way to show them that I did not fit into their idealized role for women?" explained Mia.

She frowned and then looked hesitant for a moment before continuing. "There was also… another reason. Din encouraged me to learn how to defend myself. None of the guys around me were happy with my behavior, and she was afraid that they might take… extreme action and try to teach me a lesson."

"Did she have solid enough evidence to support such an assumption?" asked Titania, frowning.

"…Yes. After she got married, she never moved around as much, she couldn't as she always complained about being sore. She never said why she was sore, but I have my suspicions. Also, Din only ever wanted one or two kids at the most. When I left home, I had five nieces and nephews, and I suspect that I had a sixth on the way. Ernst was unmarried, by the way, and none were from him. Yea, he was bad enough, and all of their friends were similar in personality, so... yes. She had a solid reason to believe that I should practice self-defense."

Titania cringed at that and didn't press further. Mia continued "Yea… once I reached marrying age, Din heard them making plans to 'settle me down' with one of their buddies, the strongest and most "manly" of the lot. That's why I left. I didn't have anyone training me in the sword, so my skills weren't exactly sharp enough to press the issue and I did not want to deal with that."

Now, Mia raised her blade "Now though, if I ever go back home... if anybody presses the issue, they have another thing coming. I'm never going to be put in that position again. In fact, maybe I can get Din out of her position, what do you think, Titania?"

"I think that this conversation took a much darker turn than I was expecting." stated Titania, bluntly. "I suspected that you that you had a good reason for your obsession with proving yourself but… really? Your experience was THAT BAD?! Your behavior doesn't indicate that kind of past at all! Also, if your problems came from chauvinistic men, then how come you don't hate all men on principle?"

Mia shrugged "Because I know that not all guys are like that. I believe that everybody should be judged based on how they act and on what their bodies allow them to do. Of course, that judgment has to come after the fact. You have to see someone in action before you can judge whether they can do something or not." she said firmly.

"So basically, because of your upbringing and personal history, you believe that everybody should be judged based on merit, and as a result you're out to prove the female stereotype wrong." said Titania.

Mia made a face and then shrugged it off. "Y…yea. That sounds about right."

Titania smiled. "You know… that gives me an idea. I think I can explain that obsession with Rhys that has been bothering you. It still goes along the lines of my crush idea, but it can give you an explanation of why you would have a crush in the first place, so you can have an idea of how to deal with it. Would you like to hear it?"

Mia tilted her head sideways, looking at her curiously. "Ok… this should be interesting… why do you think I would have a crush on him?"

"Because, I think that on a subconscious level, your brain recognizes that if you ever were to marry, he'd be an ideal fit when it comes to your… well, your ideals." Mia looked confused, so Titania elaborated.

"Here's what I mean. From what I can tell, most men picture woman this way; a frail person, maybe sickly, who cannot possibly fend for themselves under most circumstances, and are usually relegated to a healer's position, someone who always needs someone stronger than them around to protect them when danger is near."

Titania let the words hang in the air for a bit before continuing. "Mia, you've striven your whole life to be the opposite, and you've succeeded. You don't fit that description at all. But tell me, who do you know who does? Who is not a girl, but fits that description perfectly?"

"So… you're saying that Rhys and I have our roles reversed? That we're each the opposite of the stereotypes" asked Mia.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. I'm saying that maybe, on some level, you recognize that he's the perfect match for you in that regard and thus the sudden obsession. You would make the interesting couple, you have to admit, and it would throw your family off if you ever returned. Now, Mia, I'm not saying you have to act, or that it's actually a crush you have. All that I'm saying, is that maybe you noticed the parallel, and just haven't realized it." explained Titania.

"That… That's brilliant!" exclaimed Mia. "It's not quite the answer I was looking for... thought that I was looking for... whatever, but that actually helps a lot! Thank you, Titania, now I can move on! Ok, let's spar some more!"

"That's it? That's your response? You're just going to… huh." said Titania. "I guess, I was expecting something different from you. So you're not going to think over it?"

"Oh, I'm going to think over it, but later. Right now, I want to get some more practice in. Come on, let's move some more!" exclaimed Mia, swinging with her practice sword.

Titania didn't know what else to do other than to pick up her weapon and rejoin the sparring match.