Author's Note: Okay, so I couldn't think of a better title. Listen up! Spoilers abound below these notes, so if you haven't beaten the game, stop reading right now. This is my first attempt at a one-shot using Guy. No, there's no yaoi, so you Matthew x Guy fans might want to stop reading now. I don't write that sorta fic. But if you're interested in reading about Guy, then feel free to continue.
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Less than a year had passed since he had left the troop led by the Pheraen nobleman. The green haired youth was traveling still, in search of tougher opponents and life to be lived. His blade was like new- he had, since his time with the troop, learned to care for the blade that he had made his own life. Guy was a swordmaster. He could repair his blade, keep it sharp and conditioned to be used in any battle he might be a part of. He remembered the earlier days of his training very well.
"Damn you Matthew!" he muttered under his breath, hating the man that had taught him that if he wished to be the best swordfighter in all of Sacae, he would need to be on guard all day, all night, all the time. Not a single second could pass by that he was not aware of. If such occured, that would leave him open to his own demise. Now, Guy could stay awake for about 4 days straight without requiring sleep- a necessary improvement. However, he had learned even more during his earliest training than simply that. He had defeated Matthew a few months ago. No, Guy had not killed him, but presented the thief no time to protect himself before leaving his Killing Edge's blade against the older man's throat.
With the debt paid in full now, and the oathpaper long since burned to ash, he had returned to Sacae to continue his training. He had wiped out the Ganelon bandits on his own, a rather simple effort really that did nothing more than build up his effort to become better. In a few more months, he would have to meet his old master, the man named Karel. That swordmaster had taught him many techniques, the strict and almost inhuman man finally forcing himself to stop teaching the young Sacaen before his body took over control, and would force him to kill Guy. A promise he had made then, one to return to face the swordmaster in a year's time. That year was very nearly up, and Guy was afraid.
Indeed, though he practiced every day and had become stronger, he feared the fate that so many others had tasted. Death was something that the young swordmaster had not ever wanted to face, especially alone. He wanted to become a great knight, a swordfighter of the Kutolah. But no, he could not return to his tribe. Not before proving himself to himself. Inside, the green haired one was far too trusting, too reliant on others. He could not provide for himself, could not hunt. But, that was not the worst of it all.
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It had been a rainy day when Guy met the young woman for a first time. He knew not when she had seen him, but she had nearly snuck up upon him before he had noticed her astride that steed of hers. "Umm..." was all that she said as she neared the then-myrmidon. Guy looked up to the red-haired maiden's face, surprised as he turned around, and stepped back. The shock of her closeness had surprised him overly much, and he wound up cutting his cheek upon the blade he had been cleaning off with a bit of cloth as he swept it backwards.
"Gah!" was all that the myrmidon said, wincing as he felt his cheek carefully, where he had cut himself. Not a deep cut at all, but the red of blood did seep from it within a few seconds. He felt foolish, his face turning red a little. He had been so jumpy then! The small amount of blood pooled, and then trickled along his cheek. He sheathed the blade quickly enough, even as he wiped the small amount of blood from himself with the cloth.
"Oh, wait!" and the girl on the horse held out her staff, a Heal staff no less, towards him and an aura of energy of some sort came from it and her before encompassing him. The wave of energy passed over him, causing Guy to shiver a little before letting out a "Hm?"
"Your right cheek is cut... There, that should do it." she said to him, and she gave the myrmidon a pleasant smile. Guy was simply silent at the attention she had given him. How was he to explain this to himself? She used her knees to guide her horse from the saddle as she gave a quick glance about the field, and then looked back to the man she had just helped. "Please, don't be afraid to tell me when you are hurt. Farewell." and with that, the red haired woman was off.
"But... it was barely a scratch. Strange girl." he said to himself, as he watched the girl head elsewhere within the battle. Then he was engaged against a mercenary, and thought of that woman was gone.
---
That had been the beginning of everything. Since that time, he grew to have friends within the troop. Sain had been an interesting man... a scoundrel, really. He kind of missed his antics, going to different women within the troop and watching him get turned away each and every time. Kent, however... he had been the kind of person that Guy strived to become. Serious, always looking to the next mission, becoming stronger and protecting someone. Guy only wanted to protect his tribe, his family.
Lyn had been a wonderful sparring partner. The Lady Lyndis of Caelin was also from Sacae, and was ever stronger than anyone he had ever faced before. She could even hunt! She had all the qualities of a swordfighter from the plains- she could fend for herself. That was all that was normally required, after all. He also became a sparring partner of Raven's, and he found himself matched quite well against the mercenary. He was pretty quick and even stronger than Guy was. He was not, however, as precise, and Guy usually tore him apart, especially once Raven began using an axe.
But it was Priscilla, the red haired troubador, that he found himself thinking of more and more often. She had taken the time to come over to him during battle to see if he needed healing- at the time, he hadn't, but it was just as well that she had arrived. After all, he had cut himself with his own blade from the shock of the woman coming close to him as she had. But nothing could have prepared him for their next encounter.
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"Woah! Watch out!" Guy exclaimed. This time, he had been training harder and longer, and was much more aware when a horse clad in blue cloth found its way coming straight at him. What was the rider thinking? There was no knight in the saddle, it was that troubador again! And, she seemed to be having some trouble for some reason, though she did snap out of whatever it had been distracting her as she pulled on the reins quickly as she heard his words.
"What? Eeeek!" she cried, and the horse bucked upwards, pitching the red-haired one from her saddle. With a speed associated mostly to Sacaens, Guy had moved to catch her, and managed to get her to land on her feet. What a strange girl, he thought... though, he was also strange, in so far that he was pleased that he had managed to keep her from falling completely.
"What!?" he said to her, checking the girl over- she was a little younger than he was, it seemed, and did not seem to be suffering any ill effects from the spill she had just managed to avoid. She seemed to be in a daze, only an "Ahh..." escaping her as she shook her head, her free hand moving to her forehead as the other continued to clutch the Mend staff that she now used.
"Are you OK?" he asked her now, concern now showing. Of course he was concerned, for their tactician had Serra sit this battle out, and the troubador was the only healer on the field for their side. She seemed to regain her senses at this, and looked up to the myrmidon, a smile gracing her face as she nodded slowly.
"Y-yes, I'm fine. My concentration broke, and I lost my balance." she replied, to which Guy could only nod to. In his mind though, he was practically saying that that was an understatement! He helped her to steady herself before speaking again, acutely aware of how close they were at the moment. That alone caused him to blush a little, much as how the troubador was doing as well.
"Come on, stand up now. If I hadn't been there, you might have been hurt." was the myrmidon's words, which he rather regretted as soon as he said them. Indeed, Guy was not exactly the lady's man of the group. But at least he had not Sain's knack at getting turned away every time! Priscilla smiled again, regaining her balance, and then she moved to her horse and got back astride her steed before she turned to face the young man who had helped her.
"Yes... I must thank you, Guy." she told him, and he blinked, taking a step back involuntarily in surprise. She... she knew his name? How? Better yet, why? Why would she care to know the name of a mercenary such as himself?
"Huh!? How do you know my name?" was his question in reply, to which Priscilla simply smiled that same smile she had given him the first time that they had met.
"Well, I saw you around, so I asked Merlinus." was her answer, and Guy could feel the heat rush to his cheeks. No... Dammit, no! Not now! Mother Earth and Father Sky, why do you torment me? She had seen him around. Just how often? On purpose, perhaps, or was it simply coincidence that she had seen him around the camp?
"You saw me... around. So you know... Waaauughhh!" and the myrmidon, thoroughly embarassed, turned and ran straight towards the battle, where the troubador knew better than to enter into unless absolutely necessary. From where she remained, she watched the retreating myrmidon
"Wait! Don't go!" she called after him. Anything else she might have said was drowned out by the sound of battle as the myrmidon came alongside Kent and they both began to battle the enemies to be found there.
---
It was then that Guy had realized something- like it or not, he was starting to fall in love. With Priscilla! How could he, a Kutolah tribesman from Sacae, fall for such a woman from Lycia? Oh, she must be from Lycia, for no women from Bern had yet joined the troop. The only woman to join from Bern had been Vaida... and the woman had kept Merlinus completely terrified of her from the first day she had joined the troop. Strangely enough... it was that same day, actually, when Guy's thoughts of Priscilla had overcome his sense of battle, during the battle.
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"Hahh. I can't beleive it... I'm so pitiful." Guy had told himself. He was standing alone near the eastern bridge, where the tactician had said that nomads and nomad troopers were nearing. He didn't even hear any signs of battle- the nomads must have gone a different way.
"Why do you say that?" came a woman's voice from behind him. Guy didn't notice the voice for some reason, but did hear the words easily enough. The voice did, however, register in his mind- which made him think that the voice was simply the person's that he was thinking about in his head, and not that she could be standing right behind him.
"Well, it's just that when I found out you'd noticed me all this time... ...I'm so pitiful." was the swordmaster's response to the valkyrie. Both had been promoted in earlier battles, earning their new titles by using items that had been found by the tactician.
"All this time?" was the question asked next. Yet another question that the voice of the girl he liked asked him, inside his head? Ah... well, may as well answer the question. It was not as if she was right here with him, after all.
"Well, from the moment I first saw her, I kept asking myself, what's a girl like that doing on a battlefield? I thought about her all the time..." he replied to the voice. An honest answer, really. He had been thinking about her, practically every day. Save for the times when he had been training with Master Karel, that is.
"Her?" the voice asked. The voice was intrigued, even a little mischievous. Then Guy blinked and turned around to look over his shoulder. And there she was! The girl he had been thinking of for so long now, had been answering in his mind aloud... But no, she had actually been behind him, listening to him ramble on all this time!
"What!? Eeep!!!" was all that Guy could muster. His face was almost as red as the girl's hair, though one could not truly see the splendid color of the valkyrie's hair underneath the hat that she wore. He glanced to the ground, mind racing as his heart did the same.
"Oh, excuse me. I didn't mean to disturb you." was what Priscilla said to the young swordmaster, but she remained looking at him. It seemed as if she had meant to disturb him, actually... To get answers to questions without his realizing it! But no, Guy could not be angry with this girl.
"Oh... my heart..." was all that he said, barely audible to the valkyrie who sat seated upon her steed. She blinked, perhaps a little surprised herself, and then that smile that she had smiled before was on the girl's face again, and melted what little sense that Guy had remaining within his head to the point of not knowing just how to continue speaking with the woman.
"So what about... a girl like me?" Priscilla asked, and Guy blinked. It took a moment for him to be able to realize that he would need to reply to a question like that, though the redness of his cheeks should really have been enough to answer for him without the need to voice it aloud.
"Err... I, uhhh..." stammered the rather beleagured swordmaster. How could he possibly answer her without hurting her feelings or lying? For indeed, lying was something that the man from Sacae could not do. It was against the honor of the tribes of the plains to lie for any reason. His mind was racing still, reason slowly coming back to the green-haired man, but not before Priscilla spoke again.
"You, uhhh... what?" she asked, teasing the swordmaster. Mother Earth, Father Sky... please, do not begrudge a fool his heart, he thought to himself, and he glanced to the sky before looking back to the valkyrie before him. Finally, with barely enough wits to his name to outsmart Bartre, he replied to her in an almost intelligent manner.
"I... you know... I think you're, umm, cu--" he began, but...
"Yes?" she cut him off. She seemed eager to get an answer from the swordmaster, for some reason. Surely, she could not like Guy as he liked her? Was it at all possible?
"Um, I mean that you're uhh... curious!" he managed. Curious? By Elimine, no! Cute! Beautiful! By far the most graceful and beautiful and cute and amazing woman that he had ever met, yes! Curious? She was certainly curious to him as well. It was no lie. But then, it also was not the entire truth, and it hurt his heart to say such. When his answer was met by a questioning gaze and silence, his eyes fell to the ground before he could speak to Priscilla again.
"Yeah, well, you looked like you needed a pal, so I showed up, just like that!" he said, looking up to the valkyrie again. She was just watching him with that same look, and inwardly he set a thousand curses upon his mind for defying what his heart wanted him to say. Silence, once more, was his only reward for the half-truth he had given. A pal? A lifelong partner, perhaps, is what he meant! But no... they were from two separate worlds.
"Don't look so distressed. I won't pry into your personal affairs." he said quietly, looking her in the eyes now as he smiled weakly. This time, she watched him carefully as she seemed to understand what he was saying.
"Really?" she asked, quiet as well. She did not seem to thrilled about this, not in the slightest. Guy could tell that she felt strongly for him, and he hoped that she could see that he felt just as strongly for her as well. Their eyes remained locked for a moment longer, and then the swordmaster spoke once more.
"When I see a woman in need, I just want to help. That's the way we are, back in Sacae!" he told the young woman. She seemed to smile softly at that, the first smile she had given him having faded with the silence that had existed between the two. It was likely the closest that they would get, at this point, toward anything that either could say upon the battlefield to one another.
"Thank you, Guy." she said hesitantly, the smile still on her face, though her eyes looked a bit sad. Guy's own heart was breaking- there was so much more he wanted to tell her! But just then, they both heard the thundering of hooves, and in the distance, across the bridge, he saw a trio of enemies- a nomadic trooper and two nomads. With a small smile, he looked up to the girl he liked so much, and winked to her.
"Oh, yeah... Uhh. Leave it to me!" he told her, and when she smiled brightly and nodded, the swordmaster went off after the enemies that had appeared, drawing his Killing Edge to defeat his opponents up close... and personal.
---
Guy had fallen in love with Priscilla. But with things unfinished between himself and master Karel, as well as the fact that Priscilla was royalty... Guy had to leave her before she could try and say good bye to him. It was her smile that he saw more than anything, that loving and knowing smile that she had given him the last time that they had seen one another. Indeed, though he would have enjoyed staying with her, it certainly would not have worked. Their lives were too different.
She was a noblewoman, of house Caerleon. He was a mercenary warrior, a swordmaster of Sacae. His love for her would never work out, for there were far too many who would rather see her marry someone of noble birth and upbringing. It was this loss of love that drove him now, the thought of seeing Priscilla one last time before he would battle Master Karel driving him to Etruria. He had left Sacae a few months ago and was hired on as a guard for a merchant on his way to the country of Etruria.
He left the merchant's employ a few days ago, having arrived in the country of magic, and the swordmaster journeyed to the territory that Caerleon ruled over. Here he was now, known as a traveling swordmaster, as he stepped up towards the gates of the castle. But as he did so, a neigh behind him caught the swordfighter's attention, and swiftly the young man turned.
Of course... it was her. The Valkyrie who had claimed his heart as her own. The long red hair tugged at his memory, her smile at his heart. One could never fully understand that which would drive her to be gone from the castle at the same time he would arrive. It was something only love could bring to the two, the two who had fallen in love on the battlefield. He smiled- it was the first time that the swordmaster had done so, ever since leaving the troop before they could say goodbye. She smiled in return- unknown to him, it was also the first time she had given a whole-hearted smile to anyone since their unsaid farewell.
Guy took out his blade and saluted his love with it, the flat of the blade pressed against his forehead gently. Priscilla raised her staff, saluting him in return in the same way, and they both continued to smile as Guy sheathed his blade and walked away. She knew already what was to happen- and she turned in beside him, keeping her steed going at a slow pace, so as not to leave her love behind.
Together, the two left Etruria and made their way towards the plains. They said little along the way, each saying only three words every so often to one another.
"I love you."
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Author's note: Ack... I can't tell if this was supposed to be romantic or what! What do you guys think? I'm not sure if I did well on this or not (kinda my first one-shot fic), so who knows if I can actually do another one (with Erk this time!). Please, read and review... and let me know if you'd like me to try my hand at going with Erk the next time.