C Support

Dusk. The time of day when light transitioned to dark as if a curtain was closing over the theater stage she was visualizing herself on. Being in the fantasy land she found herself in, Olivia couldn't help but smile as she gazed upon a make-believe audience cheering her on while she continued to dance across the stage like a butterfly. And once her feet stopped moving, her hands graceful at her sides, the dancer bowed to show her gratitude while being met with a powerful round of applause. Olivia's head perked up to show a wide grin spreading across her face, beaming as she laughed happily at how well she'd performed.

"Thank you very much!" she shouted to the audience and took another bow. "It's been a pleasure dancing for you all!"

Olivia stood upright again and looked on as they all began to beg for an encore. They wanted more. Not one to leave the crowd empty-handed, she complied with their wishes and started to dance once more.

But then everything went dark. Olivia nearly stumbled when she suddenly froze, peering out at the figures ahead of her. She began to shiver nervously, pondering whether it was the best idea to keep going. This would've been easy had she not been so shy, but the feeling of so many people watching her was beginning to have an adverse effect on Olivia's self-esteem.

Her face turned red out of embarrassment as her heart beat uncontrollably. It was getting to be too much…

Until she popped that awful daydream to prevent it from progressing any further in the direction it had been going.

"Well, so much for daydreaming about my theater," Olivia sighed, resting her head in both hands while perched upon several crates by the dining area where the army was currently eating. "Guess I really need to think through how I want to go about making it come true," she said, taking the small satchel of her savings from the pouch at her side. Olivia tossed it in the air several times before returning her satchel where it belonged—in the pouch so she wouldn't lose those precious coins—either accidently or to the avaricious merchant, Anna.

Hopping down from where she was seated, Olivia proceeded to cross through the camp in search of a spot where she could have some peace of mind. Sitting near the other soldiers and lieutenants as they ate didn't exactly help achieve that since they were busy talking to one another.

One of the louder groups consisted of Yarne, Gangrel, Vaike, Basilio, Henry, and other soldiers. Yarne in particular was enjoying himself with his new friends, especially since he discovered the courage within him to participate in the heat of battle. As for Gangrel, the former Mad King of Plegia earned the army's trust following the battle against Zanth.

As she weaved through the tents one by one, Olivia finally arrived at a small clearing located just on the outskirts of where the army was encamped with a pretty stream flowing by—a perfect spot for some much needed nest. Still somewhat exhausted by a skirmish she participated in earlier that day, Olivia stretched her arms up in the air and yawned. Hopefully she wouldn't be disturbed by anyone while taking in the beautiful scenery.

Though it appeared somebody else had the same idea and was still currently residing at the base of a tree.

Coming around it, Olivia was somewhat surprised to find Tiki just lying there in a deep sleep. The centuries-old Manakete certainly looked very peaceful as her chest rose and fell with each breath she took.

"Oh, L-lady Tiki…" Olivia whispered shyly, realizing this was the first time she'd been this close to the Voice of Naga. "I-I'm s-sorry, I-I didn't know you were here," she stuttered, her voice gradually becoming shaky. "I-I'll leave you to your rest, if you'll please excuse me."

"N…ay…" the ancient Manakete mumbled softly in her sleep.

"Hm?" Slightly perplexed, Olivia kneeled down to better hear what Tiki was saying.

"Don't go…Mar-Mar…stay…with me…"

Ah, so that was what she'd been dreaming of—precious moments with the Hero King, Marth. Olivia knew the story well and was aware of the Exalt's ancestry to him. The whole royal family of Ylisse was descended from Marth and had been in charge of the Halidom ever since Grima was first put to sleep. Tiki must've been grateful for the chance to know him during her long life while they fought against the Fell Dragon together. Unfortunately, a major downside to living for so long was watching precious loved ones die along the way.

Olivia felt really sorry for Tiki and she didn't want her to feel lonely. "O-okay, if that's what you want," she said softly, deciding to sit down quietly by the Voice while she slept. "I'll be sure not to wake you, okay?" Olivia inquired, figuring it wouldn't be disrespectful as long as she didn't accidently wake her up.

A small smile spread across the Manakete's face. "Thank you…Mar-Mar."

Olivia smiled too, glad to be of some help to someone in need of her—even if that person would accept aid like this from just about anyone. "You're welcome, Lady Tiki."

Turning to watch the moon just over the horizon, she took a deep breath and gazed upon its beauty until her peace of mind was suddenly interrupted when Tiki—for whatever odd reason—turned over in her sleep and put her head on Olivia's lap. It happened so quickly that the dancer was completely caught by surprise.

"L-Lady Tiki…?"

She didn't get an answer at first; at least, not a verbal one since Tiki was beaming.

"Oh Mar-Mar…" the sleeping Manakete blushed as she said the cute nickname she'd given him in a loving tone. "You're…so warm…Caeda is nice…but I can be…better than her…" She giggled in her sleep, no doubt fighting over Marth with this other legendary heroine they must've known. She seemed jealous of Caeda because she must've been the girl Marth fell in love with. "How…about it? Care…to spend…a whole day…with me?"

At this moment Tiki's eyes slowly flickered open as she looked up to see the face of her charming Hero King…

…only to face reality and see Olivia staring down at her. The dancer would've said something, but whatever those words were was a mystery because…

"BWARRGH!"

Tiki shrieked and quickly pulled away from Olivia, leaning against the tree and breathing deeply. Each breath came out jagged and her heart was beating rapidly in her chest with both arms clenched to it, just as the Manakete's whole face turned bright red.

It seemed even the Voice wasn't safe from embarrassing situations like this one. If that was the case, one could only imagine what her life would be like if this was an everyday thing.

Though Olivia had been slightly startled by Tiki's sudden outburst, she managed to calm herself before reaching a hand out for her shoulder until she was suddenly stopped.

"I-I-I'm s-s-so s-s-sorry, Olivia!" Tiki cried out as she whipped towards her to apologize. Her voice was extremely shaky when she spoke; obviously this experience completely unnerved the poor girl since she was stuttering all of her words badly. "I-I-I d-d-didn't m-m-mean t-t-to! I-I-It w-w-was a-a-an a-a-accident, I-I-I s-s-swear!"

"Lady Tiki, it's—" Olivia started to speak in an attempt to calm the flustered Manakete down, but was interrupted again when Tiki grabbed her hands.

"P-p-please f-f-forgive m-m-me, I-I-I'm r-r-really, r-r-really, R-R-REALLY s-s-sorry!"

Again she opened her mouth to speak, but Tiki squeaked and drew away again upon realizing that she had actually seized the hands of a girl she mistook for the man she loved. "O-Oh gods, h-how embarrassing…" she said, turning away from the dancer while putting her head in her hands. Tiki struggled to make eye contact again and evidently had a difficult time doing so since her thoughts turned into scrambled jargon that made no sense, but she eventually succeeded in accomplishing that. "P-please understand, Olivia, I-I was unaware of m-my actions! I-I truly didn't mean t-to do what I-I did! I-It just happened!"

Olivia knew from experience that words were the hardest part, though the Manakete somewhat surprised her when she miraculously got those right immediately despite her timid stuttering. So it was only through experience from being in embarrassing situations herself that enabled her to feel the same way. Without any effort, she simply raised her hand up and smiled cheerfully to dismiss Tiki's fear. "O-oh, don't worry about it, Lady Tiki, it's quite alright. I understand exactly where you're coming from since it happens to me a lot too."

"R-really…?" Tiki whispered meekly, still embarrassed over what she just did. Perhaps this was actually the first time in her life she'd been this flustered. "I-is that s-so…?"

Olivia smiled warmly and nodded. "Of course, Lady Tiki," she replied, "I'm always getting in these sorts of situations—okay, so maybe not like this instance—but I do know how you feel. I mean, you really did remind me of myself just now."

Tiki's eyes widened slightly when she realized how uncomfortable she must've made Olivia feel by imitating how she always reacted, even though it was unintentional. "O-oh my…" she stuttered, her blush toning down slightly, "I-I'm so, so s-sorry, Olivia. I-I didn't think—"

"U-uh, n-no," Olivia panicked a little as she tried to reassure her that she didn't mean anything by the comment, making sure to smile even if it was sheepish. "I-it's quite alright, I-I know you didn't mean to offend me—I-I mean you didn't do anything wrong." She took a deep breath and hung her head in defeat. "Oh, who am I kidding? I'm screwing up like I always do."

"Olivia, I—"

"Don't worry about me, Lady Tiki, I'm fine," Olivia said, looking up at the Manakete again to show her that she was still smiling sheepishly. "I know I'm not very good at this kind of stuff, b-but I've gotten used to it, really."

Tiki smiled softly, somewhat relieved that this little incident didn't blow out of proportion. "I-I see; thank you, Olivia." She looked a lot calmer now, which was different from moments ago.

"You're very welcome, Lady Tiki," Olivia smiled more sincerely than sheepish.

"A-ah, would you please not speak to me so formally, Olivia?" Tiki tipped her head down and blushed again. "I-it's embarrassing really. I-I mean, I joined this army as a friend and comrade, so…u-um, I-I don't want to impose formalities on any of you s-since I-I'd rather be friends." She made eye contact with Olivia again, but it was a struggle this time since she was feeling very shy. "Unless…y-you don't want to…?" Tiki swallowed nervously, unaware of this action on her part. Olivia opened her mouth to say something, but the Voice interrupted her. "Y-you don't have to, I-I don't want t-to force you or anything…"

"No, I'd love to be your friend, Tiki."

"O-oh, alright," Tiki sounded a little surprised, but still happily accepted her friendship. She smiled again, but this time it was sincere like Olivia's. "Thank you, Olivia."

"You're welcome, Tiki."

"By the way, Olivia," Tiki's expression changed from its quick moment of happiness back to her shyness. "Y-you won't tell anyone what happened, w-will you?"

Olivia smiled. "Don't worry, my lips are tightly sealed."

Tiki closed her eyes and sighed in relief as she leaned against the tree. "Thank goodness. I don't want to imagine how everyone would react if they heard of what I did."

"They won't hear because it never happened," Olivia said with a wink.

"Right," Tiki agreed as she winked back, "this incident never happened."

…

Despite having important things to do, I actually managed get this short piece done. I honestly thought I might have to write poems like a while back, but this proved to be easy once I started this. I'll continue working on this little project since it's only going to be three chapters long and they're all going to be pretty short, so I think I've got time to write this.

Tiki and Olivia have always been two of my favorite characters in Fire Emblem: Awakening. Tiki is quite an interesting asset to the game because she was alive in Marth's time and has acquired life experience while growing into a fine young lady. As for Olivia, I think she's the best dancer throughout the whole franchise since she's the first one to use swords in combat and second seals to change classes. That makes her an incredible asset to the game unlike the dancers from past Fire Emblem installations.

Personally, I feel this story should've been an in-game support conversation since Tiki and Olivia go well together in my opinion. Since they weren't able to do that, I decided to write this story about their interaction together as friends. Their friendship will progress through the regular support levels as in the game—C, B, and A—so you'll be seeing two additional chapters following this one. And as I said above, all three are short so as to make the story feel like an actual support conversation.

I hope you like reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem; it's owned by Nintendo.