Author's Note: This is my first submission. Positive comments are welcome. Construction criticism, I welcome with... hesitantly open arms. Hopefully I won't take them too personally and they won't break me emotionally. But seriously, tell me what's good and what I need to work on.

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem.

Chapter 1 - A Swan on the Battlefield

"Thunder!" Robin called, summoning a ball of energy and launching it towards his foe. A loud grunt indicated he had made his mark. Robin needed the audible indication, because his eyes were focused on the ground. He was on one knee, catching his breath. Drops of sweat and tears were falling from his face. He managed to look up to see his target on the ground, not moving. Only a little farther away, however, another swordsman was running towards him.

'I'm so tired,' Robin thought. 'Is there any point in continuing?' He looked ahead of him and saw the allied convoy in the horizon. 'At least the others will make it out of here,' he thought.

Robin closed his eyes, allowing the exhaustion to take him. He had failed Emmeryn, and he had failed Chrom and all of Ylisse. 'But at least the rest of the Shepherds will survive. Ylisse will go on. Emmeryn's memory will live on. And my failures will come to an end.'

"Robin!" a concerned voice called. Robin opened his eyes and found the source of the voice. His eyes grew wide and his mouth fell open as he became mesmerized by the movements of a pink-haired lady. She moved like a swan skirting on a plane of water. Clouds covered the sky, and rain was constantly battering him and his surroundings, but Robin almost had to squint his eyes because of the brilliant performance before him.

Suddenly, Robin's energy was returning. His motivation was coming back. 'I can't just leave Chrom and the Shepherds. Emmeryn wouldn't want that. That would be selfish. That would throw away everything that Emmeryn sacrificed herself for.'

The enemy swordsman was closer now. Robin saw the distance and knew he could intercept and potentially land a strike first.

"Lady," Robin began, "I owe you more than you know. But for now, please let me guard your retreat."

"Robin!" she called again. Her eyes studied Robin's for a moment. "Okay. I trust I will see you back at the convoy."

Robin smiled. "See you back at the convoy." He then turned back to the Plegian swordsman. He replaced his tome with a sword. Without letting his opponent slow down, Robin charged forward. The swordsman committed to his course and pulled his sword back, ready to thrust forward. At the last moment, Robin spun to the side. The swordsman tripped up slightly to decelerate, giving Robin an opportunity to strike the man's back. The swordsman grunted and spun around to land a hit of his own. Robin jumped back with little effort to dodge the blade. When his feet landed, he pushed forward again, landing a final blow on his opponent.

Robin surveyed the battlefield. The Shepherds had been marching or fighting for hours, but his renewed energy made him feel like the battle had only just begun.

Hours later, the convoy had pierced its way through the Plegian lines. They had finally settled down to camp because the night was too dark to continue. If it wasn't for the darkness, then fatigue or hunger or a plethora of other reasons could be used. Regardless, Robin found himself under a tree next to his tent, reflecting on the recent past.

Robin was disappointed that the honorable General Mustafa of Plegia had to fight to the death, but at least the remaining Plegian soldiers withdrew and allowed them to pass. And they hadn't lost anyone in battle. 'Anyone except the Pegasus knights. And Lady Emmeryn...' Robin had not been given any opportunity to release the emotions he had been building up since Emmeryn sacrificed herself. He had to comfort Chrom, or plan their retreat, or throw himself into the battlefield. It was dangerous to keep all those emotions in, as he realized in battle a few hours ago. And whether he wanted to or not, he was going to use this current break.

Tears started to form in Robin's eyes. Emmeryn was as kind as she was beautiful. She had welcomed Robin, conversed with Robin, confided in Robin, inspired Robin, and sacrificed for Robin. And watching Chrom and Lissa during these times was heartbreaking. Robin could now grasp the concept of empathy. It wasn't just a nice, imaginative word. He could feel their pain.

The sound of footsteps rustling the foliage interrupted Robin's thoughts. He quickly dried his eyes and face and sat up straight. A light approached the side of his tent. "Robin!" It was the same voice as the dancer from the battle. Robin stood up to greet her as she appeared from the corner of the tent.

"Lady Olivia, correct?"

"Um, yes. Um, you can just call me Olivia," she said, her eyes cast downwards.

"Olivia, then. And you can call me, well, Robin, as you have been."

An awkward silence settled in. Robin watched her as she continued to watch the ground. Robin scratched the back of his head, wondering what to say.

"Olivia?" he asked. She raised her head to look at him. "Olivia, thank you."

"But… for what?" she asked.

"I guess you don't realize it, but you saved me. Back there in that battle."

"Huh? But all I did was dance, and I know it's not very good." Olivia used one hand to hold her other arm as her eyes wandered and a foot started twisting into the ground.

"It was inspirational," Robin said. "It was a brilliant light in such a horrible day." He saw that Olivia was starting to blush. "Well, you don't have to believe me, but still. Thank you."

"Well, you're welcome," Olivia responded. Her head was turned down, but her eyes looked up to study Robin's face. "I appreciate your kind words. Even if they may be a bit exaggerated."

"Well, if that was horrible dancing to you, then I would love to see your horrible dance in the future," Robin said.

Olivia's eyes widened in fright and her face turned red. "H….Horrible?"

"I was joking!" Robin exclaimed. "It was a joke. Just, thank you, okay? I'm sorry, I wish it wasn't so difficult to say."

Olivia exhaled in relief. She then giggled. "I'm sorry I'm making it so difficult to say thank you. But I'm happy with just a thank you."

"I'll keep that in mind in the future."

Another silence started to form.

"Hey Olivia?" Robin asked.

"Yes?"

"Um, why did you come here? To my tent. Did you have something to say?"

Olivia's eyes grew wide again and a familiar look of fear appeared on her face. "Oh gods, I forgot! Basilio wanted me to tell you that they're serving supper! Oh, I'm so useless," Olivia lamented.

She jumped when a hand touched her shoulder. "Olivia, you are not at all useless. And I'm hungry, so lead the way."

"Oh, okay!" Olivia exclaimed. "It's not far, just watch your footing!" Robin stayed close to see the ground that Olivia illuminated with her torch. Robin could see a group of torches ahead. He could smell roasted meat in the distance.

"Is that roasted pig skin? It smells delicious," Robin commented. His mouth was salivating. It had been ages since they had eaten anything well-prepared.

"Oh, is that so?" Olivia asked. "I'm glad." The darkness and the shadows formed by the torch danced on Olivia's face and made her expression difficult to see, but Robin thought he saw a smile form on her face.

They arrived at a big tent, where several people were already eating. "Robin's here!" a loud voice announced. "Good, you brought him!" A giant, eyepatch-wearing man walked towards the two, a flask in his hand. "Robin, I'm excited to hear what you have planned for our counterattack! But for now, eat!"

Basilio's words made Robin immediately turn his thoughts to battle tactics, and his recent failures. 'Do you even want me to be responsible for your lives? The Pegasus Knights, the Exalt… all of them are dead because of me...'

"Took you long enough, Olivia!" Robin heard Basilio saying loudly.

"I'm sorry! I'm so useless," Olivia responded meekly. Basilio was laughing.

"You're not useless."

Basilio stopped laughing, and both of them turned to look at Robin, who had just voiced the thought with significant authority and strength in his tone. Robin noticed the brief moment of silence and looked at the two of them.

"Er, well, yes. You're not useless. You just helped me realize something," Robin said.

"Uh, what did I do?" Olivia asked.

'I may have failed, but they still need me. And I can still help them. I can still make sure no Shepherd dies. All of us are going back home to Ylisse.'

Robin smiled at his newfound realization and conviction. "I'm going to get some of that pig roast before it goes cold."

Basilio was laughing obnoxiously again. "Ah, Olivia prepared that. See, I guess you're not useless, Olivia! Unlike that reigning khan of ours."

A stripped rib bone hit Basilio in the back of his head, stopping his laughter. "Hey, you're the one who lost his job," Flavia said, busying herself with another rib. She turned to Robin. "Robin, come, sit here. Let the useful, currently employed sit here."

Robin filled his plate and walked to Flavia's table. Lon'qu was also present, eating quietly. As Robin sat down, another plate was placed on the table next to him. Olivia quickly but quietly sat herself down next to Robin. All of them were quiet, save for Flavia, who was vigorously enjoying her food.

"I don't know how Basilio manages to find and keep all these skilled people, with that personality of his. Olivia, I hope he doesn't act like a complete buffoon with you."

"Oh no, he's very nice!" Olivia defended loudly, before quieting herself. "I mean, he can be noisy sometimes, and a little not-so-delicate..."

"Not-so-delicate!" Flavia laughed. "You're very good at speaking politely. He's a stinky old man, just go ahead and say it!"

"Old! I'm not the only one getting on in his years," Basilio said, walking up to their table. "Or her years…"

"Hmph, I'm plenty young enough to beat some sense into you," Flavia said, standing up and raising her fists.

"Well, grandma, you're certainly thinking like a naive youth!" Basilio responded, standing tall and looking down at Flavia.

Robin watched as the two of them looked ready to pounce at a moment's notice. He started to move and say something, when an arm gestured at him to stop. Robin turned to see Lon'qu retract his arm and continue eating. "This is how they talk," Lon'qu said.

Olivia giggled. "It's just like we're back at the capitol!" she said.

"Gah, woman, eat over there!" Lon'qu snapped.

"I'm sorry!" Olivia said, taking her plate and withdrawing to the far end of the table.

"Er, just not so close or loud," Lon'qu mumbled. "Or so present."

"Not everyone can be like Kellam," Robin said. He surrendered himself to the fact that there were eccentric people everywhere. Robin decided to enjoy the food he had in front of him, while Basilio and Flavia's argument gradually escalated into physical blows. The Feroxi antics were almost enough to make Robin forget about the overwhelming complications and obstacles involved with their approaching task.

Robin glanced at Olivia, who was eating her food quietly, watching Basilio's arms flailing around as Flavia locked his neck in a chokehold. Robin focused on his thoughts as he chewed mechanically. 'Even peaceful pursuits are absorbed by the war. Just like Emmeryn...' Robin tightened the grip on his fork and stabbed his food with more strength than usual, unknowingly startling Olivia and earning a brief glance from Lon'qu. 'And that's why my job isn't done. No giving up. I'm going to see this through to its successful conclusion. And maybe Emmeryn's soul can find some peace. And maybe I'll find some peace, too...'

Author's Note: Gah! I found some errors in this first chapter. I saw some 'Flavio's instead of 'Flavia', a misused preposition, and some of the thoughts in the last paragraph were not italicized. And, I put an author's note at the beginning and end of the chapter! Hopefully I've fixed those errors.