What a mystery it was, to see him not carrying out his sworn duty to the prince and princess. His oath had him bound to their sides… But he wasn't there. Not right now, anyway. Never had he been alone like this before, sat at a table as he glanced at a note which was addressed to him.
A note, she had to add, which had been sent by her.
Robin had heard about the prince's direct orders handed to him recently, requesting that he try to spend at least an hour a day on himself, and also about the difficulty which he had stumbled across whilst trying to do so. She too knew what it was like trying to find a way in which to spend time upon something other than her own duty as tactician, so… Why not offer to try and figure out something to do alongside him? They barely just considered each other as friends, so surely it could help in their bonding in order to become close friends in a similar way to which she and Chrom were.
Besides… The two of them quite obviously needed a change of pace, with the way that the Shepherds were slowly becoming more and more independent… Plegia was becoming a threat, but it wasn't much of one at that moment in time. Plus, with them being on the road to Ferox, and everyone being rather unwilling to go ahead any more than they had done that week, the time was available.
After a few minutes, she noticed Frederick shake his head with a sigh, and place the paper down onto the table. It made her bite her bottom lip in frustration, before walking over to him. "What's the matter with you? Annoyed with a simple offer?" At the lack of a response, she growled and pointed at him. "You're so damn typical, you know that, right? Lissa was right – you need to wind down every so often and do something different!"
The sudden glare which she received in response to her snap was not appreciated, and neither were his harsh words. "I would only appreciate hearing those words from somebody who happened not to be a hypocrite."
"At least I try to do something different with my time."
"Such as stare at me as I read the silly letter which you left for me? If you do, as you say, consider us as friends, why did you not inquire in person, rather than through a note?"
She held back a growl then, before reaching into her coat and scrunching up some paper into a ball and tossing it down. "Well, I was going to offer you this, but I guess it's pointless now, seeming as you are unwilling to take up my offer." It didn't take her long to storm out of the tent and retreat to her own tent, leaving the knight with a puzzled look upon his face.
He stared at the paper for a moment, before rolling his eyes as he stood up to remove a book which had been left upon the table. However… The paper began to grow frustrating. It was just there on the floor, a place where paper simply did not belong. He picked it up, and went to put it into a bin…
But instead, he ended up neatening it out, and looked at it.
'I somehow ended up with this in a local village, but I thought that maybe you would appreciate going with me more than anyone else. You do work really hard, and you really do deserve a break, Frederick! And just so you know, Chrom approved of this. So you can't say that your duty lies with him when it comes to me giving you this.'
And attached to the paper… Was a ticket of sorts. A ticket to a theatre production. For that evening. "That woman… Why does she insist on things like this?..." Once more, he glanced at the ticket, but ended up moving his line of sight towards the ground and wincing.
He appreciated theatre, that was for sure… But after what had happened on the day in which he was meant to accompany Lissa and Emmeryn to the theatre for Lissa's tenth birthday… He hadn't been so keen when it came to attending them..
I can't keep avoiding things such as this forever, can I?… And then, he neatened out the crumpled paper a bit more, before folding it up. Perhaps… it was a bad idea to get mad at her before realising what this was about.
Meanwhile, Robin was slowly trudging towards her tent, kicking at the rather coarse dirt which had been a battlefield against risen just weeks earlier. Her mind was almost completely blank – since her brief outburst before, she just had barely thought about anything. The most that she could think about was how the dirt compressed under her feet, or had ended up being kicked forward just to be flattened by her next step.
Then she stopped, and sighed. "Chrom and Lissa had told me that it was a good idea… Said that it was a good opportunity for me to try and find some sort of familiar ground with him… But no… I guess not." She whispered, before she realised that she had accidentally walked past her tent. After backtracking a slight bit, she continued to speak. "I wish that he would open up… He claims that I am the secretive one… But I've been more open than him..."
Robin then shrugged off her coat, before looking up at the top of her tent. "Another few hours for me to be a recluse here then… Not that I mind..."
A brisk shout that evening was enough to snap Robin out of her half asleep state, and gods, was she not in the mood for something like that! Whoever decided to disturb her was in for a lot of trouble… Once she was properly awake, that was. Upon hearing another, slightly quieter call she begrudgingly rose to her feet and went over to the entrance of her tent, before sticking her head outside just to see as to what the loudness was about.
"Ah, so you are awake. Are you aware of the fact that I have been calling your name for a good few minutes now?" Frederick. Of course it had to be him! Nobody else dared try to disturb Robin when she was wanting to wind down… They all knew how she was likely to have a few thousand volts of electrical magic threw at them. "I believe that you were wanting to 'wind down' and invite me to do so alongside you? Well, now is your opportunity."
That made her ears perk up. He was willing to waste time?! That was a surprise! But then again… Chrom had probably just ordered him into doing that. But either way… She wasn't in the best of states at that time. Even if he could go out, she probably couldn't. "You got me at a bad time… You could've spoke up earlier, you know. Got my attention a few minutes after my outburst previously. I'm tired."
The frown which the knight put on moments later as she rubbed her eyes almost made her feel… sorry for him. The best description that she could come up with was… A big, tough dog who was whimpering for food. That was as close as she could get… without her descriptions becoming offensive.
"Then if I allow you a few minutes to have a drink of tea, would you be willing?"
That did not seem… right. At least coming from Frederick. "I don't need a drink. But… are you ailed? Something doesn't seem… Normal about you, Fred-"
A snort from him moments later made her roll her eyes. Perhaps her judgement was wrong then… Before she could try and say anything else though, he had took hold of her wrist and began to take her what she assumed was elsewhere in the camp. No tugging or pulling that she dared do would be able to get him to release his grasp of her.
After a few minutes, Robin felt his grasp loosen and his pace become somewhat slower, allowing her to finally catch up with him, rather than be dragged. They had, rather than ending up elsewhere in the camp, ended up on a dirt road, leading to the local town. "We are far too late for the time specified on those tickets which you threw to the ground. That does not mean that we cannot… 'waste time' visiting a few locations elsewhere in the town. I understand that this notion was what you were requesting earlier? I would not mind, seeming as milord did tell me not to carry out my typical evening duties… And seeming as you requested to do such a thing."
No eye-contact was being made with the tactician by the knight, but it was quite obvious that he was doing so for a reason. What was made worse by this, was the fact that her chest was beating so erratically at that point, and she wasn't too sure about why. Had she managed to… break through his stern, 'no time to relax' exterior, and found something somewhat more… human inside him?
In the spur of the moment, the woman was quick to grab hold of his waist in a hug due to how happy that was making her feel. She noticed many things about the man in her embrace, such as him actually not wearing his armour (she was surprised that she hadn't realised that earlier); his breathing was so calming, and on top of that… Her head rested almost perfectly on his shoulder when she was stood on her toes. "I… I'm sorry if this makes you feel uncomfortable… I am just glad that you're willing to spend time with me as friends, especially after the… rough patch which we started off in when we first met."
Not long after she let go of him, and noticed him trying to divert his eyesight once more, it was surprising to see him mouth the word 'friends'. Her mind didn't dwell on that for long though, as she was quick to think about what they could actually do in the town! Shops would be closed as it were late at night, the only open places being pubs, local restaurants and inns, alongside the theatre, which they were obviously too late to actually attend. Perhaps they could… have a meal somewhere, if he hadn't ate yet - she hadn't, after all…
By the point that the pair had started walking towards the town again, Frederick no longer had hold of Robin's wrist, but rather her hand. Neither of the two were really sure on how friends were meant to act too well, Robin through her amnesia and Frederick though many long years of loyalty as a Ylissean knight, so they were not too bothered with that.
Looking up at the purpling sky, peppered with orange clouds, Robin began to speak once more – albeit more cheerfully than previously. "Do you have any ideas on as to what you want to do? I'm not too sure on as to what there is in the town, I've hardly left camp except for training since we set it up, the only time I went to the town was to pick up food supplies!" Her coat slowly began to billow in the wind, and her hair was starting to blow into her face. "I am happy with even just sitting down on a bench somewhere, and getting to know you better. It could help… It could have tactical advantages..."
It probably wouldn't have tactical advantages, she just wanted to simply get a feel for Frederick as a person and friend, not as a comrade.
"I am also not aware of what there may be in the town. Perhaps we should do as you suggested. I am not one for partaking in many social activities or visiting locations which tend to have more activities happening at night."
Yes! This is what Robin wanted. He was being honest with her – a sign that he was definitely willing to be friends, or at least make an effort to be friends!
It was getting very late, close to midnight, and the knight and tactician were still both in the town, discussing what was now a very trivial topic. Chrom. "And Frederick… Perhaps Chrom needs to be sent to classes on 'how to actually be a prince'! A few days ago, he completely ignored my request to stay outside the tent I was in, because I was bathing. In the women's bathing tent."
Frederick's face twitched at hearing that, before shaking his head. "That… is something which I can actually believe milord would do…" He took a moment, before his mouth fell open slightly. "And am I right in assuming that this is why that thief has named you… Bubbles?" He glanced around once she had nodded in response, and then stood up. That prompted Robin into doing the same, before she began shivering.
"Gods… It's rather late now… I would say perhaps too late to even go back to camp..." Robin muttered, pulling her coat around her body tightly. She knew that he was bound to insist on returning to the remaining Shepherds, but he probably wasn't aware of the rather… shady figures which were now lingering around the town. For all that she knew, they could have just been people who had to work at night, but her anxiety was far too much. "Please… Could we just stay at an inn somewhere in town, just for the night? I… I honestly feel too tired to make my way back..." And she didn't want him to know about that anxiety.
But perhaps she was right about feeling tired, and just wasn't aware of it.
Frederick was rather surprised at seeing the normally composed tactician stuttering under her breath just then, before he had to grab hold of her arms as she stumbled forward. He could tell that she was feeling scared about something though, despite her not wanting him to be aware. After all, he had seen each of the royal siblings act like that at least once through his years as a knight. But what was she scared about? And what didn't help either with the way that she had suddenly started acting was the fact that the temperature was starting to drop, and clouds were just about covering the entirety of the darkened skies. The weather was about to take a harsh turn…
The horrific cold breeze following was enough for him to make up his mind, in agreement with her suggestion. "… This once, we can sleep away from the camp. Any other time, we shall have to return."
"Thank you…" Robin took hold of his hands as she continued to shiver. "You're a good friend, Frederick..."
After everything had been sorted out in terms of where the duo would stay in a local inn, rain was drenching everything outside that was in sight. Robin stood at the window and was biting her lip as she tried to make out the outlines of buildings. Frederick was glancing over at her from a seat in which he had decided to sleep upon, allowing Robin the comfort of the room's bed for when she decided to sleep. "Hey..." The tactician had began tracing shapes in the condensed water upon the glass of the window when she finally spoke. "Do you think that anyone would be worried about us?… Chrom and a few others were assigned to guard the camp tonight, so they might've tried looking out for us..."
The knight frowned, before watching as she wiped off all of the symbols. "I doubt that they would be worried. The weather would be enough of an explanation… Are you… Bothered by being out here, and not at the camp?" He felt as though, as a friend, he would have to find out what was the matter with her, so once he had finished speaking, he stood up and placed a hand upon her shoulder.
Robin shook her head, before drawing one other thing upon the window… And it was… A tome and a lance. But why those?… The only link which he could make was that the tome was her signature weapon, and that the lance was his weapon of choice… It was rather confusing…
After bringing her hand back down to her side, the tactician then turned to face him with a smile. "Come on… We should probably sleep." And then, she gestured over to the bed. "You can sleep on it if you want… I don't want you always putting others before yourself. The best knight that the Shepherds has needs to have some luxury once in a while..."
"Does the tactician not need luxury too?"
"Frederick." She gave him a stern glare, which could only make him smirk. This must have been what it is like for her whenever he was in charge of training. "Don't you smirk at me, mister." A quick poke was made at his shoulder. "You're the one sleeping in the bed."
By the morning, when Frederick was awoke by the sounds of birds, he could feel his arm being constricted by something. Upon opening his eyes, he noticed Robin lying beside him, eyes red and puffy as she was practically clinging to him. She seemed to be asleep at that point, but it was more than obvious that she had only just been able to drop off. What had she been crying about though?…
Gently, he pulled his arm free before frowning as he stood up. He knew that they needed to return to the camp, there were so many preparations which needed to be done… But he didn't want to just leave her in this sort of state! As a knight, his duties in camp were calling him, but as a friend, he needed to remain here! Then he looked at the window… The outlines of the tome and lance were still very faintly upon it still…
That little drawing which Robin had done made his mind up… Perhaps… A few more hours would be acceptable. He would just have to work into some of the night when they returned, that was all. His decision did have a downside though… He had a few hours to think about the question which was on her mind. What made her cry?...
"Gods, that is cold!" Robin growled, feeling a bit of snow be threw down the back of her coat, and having it melt upon her back. "Lissa, was that completely necessary?!" The tactician slammed her book shut, before glaring at the Ylissean princess as she grinned and ran away towards Lon'qu, presumably to either tease him or throw snow at him.
She pursed her lips together, before standing up from the log stump which she had previously been sat on. It highly annoyed her when she was reading a book surrounding topics which interested her – namely her strategy books which she had scribbled many hundreds of notes within the margins. It was bad enough that she wasn't even able to reside within her tent at that moment in time, there were too many holes in it which needed repairing, meaning that she had she had no choice but to reside elsewhere in the camp. Considering that they were now in Ferox, the coldest country of the continent though… That made the situation worse.
It was annoying.
In the search of a new peaceful area of the camp though, she could hear a conversation which was going on nearby… And her curiosity had began to get the better of her for some reason. Normally, she would ignore conversations… But those voices were foreign. Not one of her companions. There was a moment of silence as she hid behind a tree, before she heard the voices once more. "Yeah, this has to be the Ylisseans! Gangrel did say that if we found them, we had to use this, so come on-!"
Gangrel!? The vile king of Plegia, who had kidnapped Emmeryn a few days previously?! He had sent people to seek them out?! Just those thoughts were enough to send Robin's pulse frantic.
There was the sound of a quick slap, and the tactician could only wince. It sounded like it hurt. Following that was the second voice. "But how do we know for sure that it's them? We were told specifically to spot the prince, princess or tactician before we use the reeking box! We should try and look for them first! That, and those three in particular are supposedly very close. They're likely to be in one place."
Robin was close to shaking. There was going to be a planned attack upon the camp, and with risen, no less… She wanted to run and warn everyone, but if she did… She would end up alerting the people who were talking to her presence, and she was not a fast runner. They would be bound to catch up to her if she went… Gods, this was quite the dilemma…
"And..." Before Robin could realise that they had spoke again, a hand had clamped itself around her throat and was pushing her into the tree, rendering her incapable of shouting or trying to escape. "Speaking of the tactician, look who I just heard blowing her cover as she snooped in on us!"
She had dropped her book! How had she not realised that she had dropped her book?!
Elsewhere in the camp, Frederick wiped his forehead with a towel as he had just finished a training session with both Chrom and Sully, and gods, had they actually pushed him to his limit that day. The cold weather may have contributed towards that, but… Something else was holding him back, and he just wasn't sure what. As a matter of fact, something had been holding him back for weeks by that point…
Screams in the camp were not exactly welcome after such a training session though. It made not just the knight, but his two companions snap to attention and grab hold of their weapons. Chrom looked rather concerned as his grasp of Falchion grew tighter."What in Naga's name was that?… Are we under attack, or has somebody just set something on fire like a few days ago?!" He was then quick to move towards where the screams had come from, with Sully quick to follow. Frederick stared at his lance for a moment, with it being damaged slightly from training, but then straightened out his face. Chrom may be right, it could be an attack on camp… So he had to make sure that he was ready to deal with such a possibility right now.
And what was he met with almost as soon as he had reached the centre of the camp? A mass fight between soldiers and risen. But it was all disorganised, such as with the Shepherds' pre-Robin days, when they were without a tactician… Was she there in battle?
Back near the camp's outskirts, Robin was struggling to even pull herself up onto her feet. After being spotted by those two Plegians, they had ended up hurting her rather brutally in order to stop her from relaying the message of an impending attack upon the camp. There were bruises covering both her neck and her legs making breathing a struggle and movement an annoyance. Her shirt was rather cut up, and in turn, so was her stomach.
Plegians and their love of slow, painful deaths… Robin was close to tears. But she couldn't cry, not if she wanted to breathe properly.
After one last failed attempt of pulling herself up from the ground, the tactician was barely able to breathe and the most that she could do was move her hands a slight bit. Gods damn it, why did she have to drop her book? She could have gotten away without injury if she hadn't…
Seconds turned to minutes as she hoped with all of her heart that somebody would find her in this state, but the longer that she waited, the less that she had confidence that somebody would find her whilst in this state. Every so often she would hear footsteps nearby, but that was normally just someone rushing to gather medical supplies for somebody participating in the ongoing fight, or to distract some of the risen. It often got her hopes up over nothing.
When her breathing was becoming almost far too painful, and her eyes were half closed, she noticed that something was moving nearby… And towards her. She could feel the slight vibrations of the ground beneath her.
A cold pair of hands settled upon her cheeks, and a familiar face just about emerged in her wavering line of sight. "Robin!" The voice, despite the franticness of it, was a calming one to her, and the hands felt just as comforting. "What happened? Were you hurt by-!" It was Stahl. The cavalier's eyes grew wide, before one of his hands gently rested upon the side of her throat. "Did somebody try to… Kill you?… It looks as though somebody tried to strangle you…" His lips then pursed in a newly found seriousness, and he had to pull her up to her feet gently. "Right, I'm getting you to Lissa and Maribelle." She almost fell over straight away. "I'll go at your pace though, it seems as though you are barely even able to stand..."
Frederick gritted his teeth as the last risen in the camp was defeated by his lance, and watched as the foul creature dissolved in the typical way. It wasn't like the normal risen attack though, that was what was annoying him. Normally they would be the ones who come across the risen… Not them suddenly appearing in the centre of the camp. He intended to go seeking out the reason behind this seemingly out of the blue attack, but he quickly received his answer.
"Look what I just found… I've seen these 'bout before. Some shady merchants in Plegia sell 'em." Gaius was stood looking over something, and then picked it up. "Yeah, that's a reeking box, all right. Apparently it can raise the dead, but I bet the dead this time was the risen." The thief studied it for a minute, before shrugging. He obviously wasn't too bothered about it, but to Frederick… That made it seem as though he was more suspicious than anyone over who actually used the box.
Before he could even have a chance to interrogate the thief though, the entire surroundings fell silent following a loud "What?!" from Chrom. Stahl was stood by him, biting his lip as he pointed towards the tent in which the healers were tending to the camp's wounded. The knight felt obliged to see as to what was going on, so of course, he approached Chrom, who was now raking his hand through his hair in worry.
"Milord… What is the matter?" Chrom's lack of a response led to the knight staring at their ally. "Stahl, what did you say to milord?"
The cavalier gulped, before looking between the knight and the lord. "It's best if you see her yourselves…" Then came a seemingly anxious hand gesture, in which he shakily clenched his fists. "I think you should come too, Frederick, she muttered for you as I took her to Lissa and Maribelle..."
See her?… Had a woman in camp ended up getting injured? That led into more questions... Who even was it who had been injured? And why did she say his name out of anyone in the camp? Frederick's head was full of questions, and he wanted them answered.
The sight which he and Chrom was met with wasn't what he had wanted. There was Lissa, tending to the injuries of about two people which the pair had definitely seen in the battle against the risen, but the majority, about four or so people, were able to tend to their own. And then Maribelle was tending to somebody else who was sitting upon a seat, their raspy breathing being one of the few sounds in there… Robin.
She hadn't participated in the battle against the risen, why was she there getting cared for?!
Chrom looked pale just looking at her, having been quick to notice her heavy bruising, just as Maribelle caught sight of the two. "Good… You have both arrived." She then saw Robin shakily raise her hand to try and greet her friends, which induced a sigh. "I shall put this in rather simplistic terms, seeming as what I have managed to get from Robin and also Stahl was simplistic. Two Plegians were responsible for the risen attack of before. They attempted to severely handicap, possibly even kill Robin because of her overhearing their plans to attack." Robin looked as though she wanted to cry as she took a few deeps breaths whilst the noblewoman spoke. "Stahl found her barely conscious leaning upon a tree. Most of her injuries were simply just bruising, the bruise upon her neck being of most concern, but there were also many slashes from a knife upon her stomach and chest. These intruders obviously did not appreciate the fact that she did discover their vile plans!"
The tactician carefully grabbed hold of Frederick's arm once both he and Chrom had moved closer to her. "I could've… stopped the whole… attack..." A few more breaths were taken, before she continued. "I am… So sorry..." Then tears began to stream down her face. "It's my fault… they… said that they would… only attack if they… saw me, Chrom… or Lissa… And they saw me." She was struggling to breathe as she wept, it being almost painful to hear the frequent breaks in her sentences.
Frederick felt horrified. That had happened in their camp?! And why… And why was it Robin who had to get hurt?… She didn't deserve to have that to happen to her! However, that did give him an idea then, and he was capable of making his mind up very quickly. "Well, they won't do it again. Lady Maribelle, if you do not mind, I wish to look after Robin for the time being." It would mean that his duties would have to be taken on by somebody else whilst he cared for the tactician, or he pulled her along with him as he did them, but that was not likely to be allowed… But he had one main reason over all others which made him desperate to help her recover.
"I… I see no problem in that, Frederick… But I must ask a question, whilst she happens to be speaking to milord..." Despite the tactician still clinging onto his wrist, Maribelle was right, she was mid-conversation with Chrom. "Why? I have never seen you act in such a way before, especially towards Robin. You had such disdain towards her at first..."
The knight looked down at the ground, before closing his eyes. "Robin… Has been on my mind for a while now. Perhaps it was due to a side of her which she revealed when we were… bonding, I reckon could be said, and that side I have not once seen whilst in camp, but perhaps not. It could be something else entirely. But I do also fear for our tactician, for she has been straining herself as of late due to our new predicament in regards to the Exalt's capture..." By that point, Robin's hand had loosened its grasp, and was now slowly slipping down his arm, to return to her side. Before that could happen though, he used his hand to take hold of hers. He didn't want to have her let go… At least not yet. For... Some reason...
Robin had her eyes closed as she lay upon her side, the warm blankets of hers feeling much warmer than they normally would be. After all… She wasn't the only person using them at that moment in time. Frederick was lying beside her, having fell asleep quite a few hours previously. He had managed to get his way, and was in charge of keeping an eye upon her… But of course, staying awake to watch an insomniac wasn't an easy task. On top of that, staying warm within Ferox, particularly at night… That was difficult too. She had practically no choice but to lie beside him. That had been the case for the past few days.
But what he had said just as he fell into his slumber that night… 'Promise me that you will look after yourself, Robin, and that you will tell me if anything bothers you… I am your friend, as you said, after all.' What was that about?… It had been dwelling upon her mind quite a bit… Was he truly that worried about her? Or… Was this something else entirely?
By that point, the tactician was beginning to get rather restless in the position which she was sat in, and her neck was beginning to sting a slight bit, just as before. She turned her body to lie upon her back, and then glanced upwards. Through the canvas of the tent, she could see the light of the moon, and the shadows of the snow which was resting on top of the material. It was such an odd sight, yet not one which dissatisfied her… No, she quite liked it in fact. Despite everything which was going on, at night, the moon was the one consistent thing… That was rather comforting to her…
A voice, a quiet one, was gentle enough to pull her out of her thoughts. "What are you looking at, Robin? You seem to be… In awe." Frederick's eyes were half open, and he was looking particularly tired as he tried to keep his eyes upon her.
She pulled her side of the blankets around herself tightly, before smiling. "The moon..." And then, she closed her eyes. "It's so nice to look at… Even though it's just the light breaking through the material of the tent. It's… Always there, whether you want it to be or not." And what she realised then… It was also nice to be able to talk a bit better than she could in days previously, following the attack, also. "Don't you think so, Frederick?..."
He pursed his lips together for a moment, before nodding in agreement as he looked upwards too. She was right… It did seem, as she had said, 'nice'. However, he noticed that she still seemed mostly distracted. "Robin..." That led to him sitting up, and turning to face her. For some reason… He longed for a bit more attention than he was receiving. He knew that such a thing was selfish, but… Sometimes even his emotions took control over his thoughts. "May I ask you something?… It's important that you answer me now."
Tugging the blankets around herself even more, making the knight shiver as by that point, seeming as one of his feet were now exposed to the cold, Robin then lay on her side which allowed her to face him properly. She then gave him a sound which indicated that she was fine with him asking the question.
"When we were in that town, a few weeks ago… That night which we stayed in the inn… You cried. I may have been asleep, but upon waking, your eyes showed obvious signs of it as you held onto my arm… Why?"
She remained silent for a moment, before looking up at the moon once more. "Because..." Robin closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Hmm… Why was I crying?..." Another pause was made, before the tactician put on an extremely awkward smile… A self-deprecating one. "Because… You're too good for me, Frederick." The look on his face was particularly amusing, it was obvious that he didn't exactly grasp what she was saying. "I like you, Frederick… But I know that I am likely not even anywhere near the sort of standards which you are likely to have for a woman to be anything more than a friend..."
Frederick could feel something building up in his throat as she spoke. She had been crying because… she liked him? But what made things worse as he processed this is that she looked close to tearing up once more. He didn't want to see her cry…
On top of that though… Many different pieces had began fitting together. That, or he was really over-thinking the situation. The initial invite to spend time together, having gone to seek Chrom's permission for him to take the night off? The desire not to return to camp for that night? A lance and a tome drew upon a window as it rained? Making him sleep in the bed whilst she opted for elsewhere (despite her still ending up in the bed)? Wanting him when she had been injured? Even her allowing him to look after her, and turning down anyone else once he had started to do so?
After he had taken a few minutes to think, Robin was now lying upon her other side, likely to conceal her tears. "You… You can go if you want, Frederick… Return to your own tent… I can see it in your face, you think I am stupid..."
That angered him, hearing her say that. She wasn't stupid! Unlike Cordelia's love towards his prince… Robin's love towards him… Was not unrequited. This was why she had been in his mind so much… She had such an impact upon him, he couldn't bear to just be her friend. "And why would I do that?" He bit his lip as he heard her sniffle, and see her hand taking hold of her arm. "You do not know what my 'standards' which you mentioned before happen to be. You never know… You may meet them all."
"Wh- What?..." She was surprisingly quick to sit up after that, looking at him with wide eyes. "Frederick… No… No, no, no… You don't know what you're saying, it's bad enough that I-!"
He cut her off by taking hold of her chin gently, and gave her a gentle kiss. "You know, this time about a month ago… I was wondering something, prompted by a question by the exalt… She said that both the prince and princess were growing more independent, meaning that I was not required to act as their knight as much. Lady Emmeryn asked as to whether I would consider finding somebody to spend that spare time with – a companion, if you wish… So I asked myself a question. Who? Who would I be willing to spend time with? Who would I dare reach out to, and request a friendship?" He closed his eyes and put on a calm smile after that. "Three days later, you gave me your invitation, but I had forgot of the question. However, since then, without even realising it… I have been answering that question in my mind so much… You. You were the answer…" By that point, he was hugging her as she had began to slowly weep. "I like you too, Robin… Please, be mine..."