Days
DISCLAIMER: Fire Emblem belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems.
Boyd never stopped to smell the roses.
He was the 'let's just do this' type of guy, always jumping in and not thinking about a solution. It was the way he fought in battle, it was the way he lived. He sometimes thought that he was just a person of chaos.
In this way, Boyd found that his life was one of constant change.
Yet there were always the things that wouldn't change, the things that happened every day. The sun always rose, his axes broke at some time or other and Oscar always smiled.
Sometimes, they were understandable. If you use an axe long enough, it'll show signs of wear and tear.
Other times, it was near impossible to understand. Someone tried once to explain that the sun rose because the world was round – ha!
But there were the things that he did not try to question and accepted for their value, sometimes took for granted, even. It took him a very long time to appreciate the worth of his brother's smile.
-
"Oscar, what's it like on the battlefield?"
Boyd clutched his axe in his hand like a child to his stuffed toy. It was his first battle soon; he was excited. For the first time, he would stand side by side with his brother in combat. He felt pumped and excited, yet something about it all made him nervous.
Boyd, nervous? Ridiculous. Or that's what he would have said before.
He hated to admit it, but it was true.
Oscar looked over at Boyd from his position on the bench, where he was sharpening the tip of his lance.
"Are you nervous, Boyd?" he asked.
"N-no," Boyd replied instinctively; after all, he was Boyd, who wasn't afraid. It was just… a battle, where lives could be taken, blood could be shed and families could be torn apart… possibly by his hand. "All right, a little."
Oscar put down his lance and walked over to his brother, offering a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
"If the idea of fighting scares you, it's okay. Going out there is a big deal," he told Boyd. "As long as you fight in the name of the thing you believe in, whether it be yourself, others or the good of the world, you'll be fine." Oscar smiled, as though to comfort Boyd, to tell them that he was there for him.
The idea of just going into battle was still a little overwhelming for Boyd, but he put on a smile. He was Boyd! He had to be okay.
Oscar looked relieved. "Just don't go putting yourself at risk."
-
"No. There is absolutely NO WAY I'm letting you field Rolf again."
Boyd, Oscar, Titania, Ike and Soren sat around a table on the rocking ship, its up-and-down motion constantly moving the figures on the map. But it didn't seem like the group needed the waves to make their trip to Begnion rough.
"We stand at a very good risk of facing hawks or ravens on our trip at sea," Soren sighed. "With Shinon gone, Rolf's our only archer. Unless you can suddenly train to be as good as him, which I for one highly doubt – " Boyd shot a dirty look at Soren, " – Rolf will be vital to our survival." He crossed his arms, looking frustrated like a genius trying to explain things to a complete simpleton.
"But it's dangerous for him!" Boyd insisted.
"You know, he's actually quite a good shot," Ike commented. "Better than any average soldier, that's for sure."
"That doesn't change anything!" The axeman turned to Oscar. "Oscar, you're not going to let them get away with this, are you?"
His brother only smiled.
"You're thinking of letting him go, aren't you?" Boyd asked.
"He will go someday, Boyd," Oscar said. "Just that perhaps the time is here a little faster than we want it to be. Rolf's strong. And we're here for him."
Boyd was still a little wary, but if Oscar was smiling about it, it would be all right.
-
Boyd stared up at the tall tower in its blinding light. The next day, he would be one of the chosen few to enter that tower in order to defeat a goddess.
A goddess, for… goddess' sake!
Defeating the goddess Ashera. It was something so unbelievable that the reality of it hadn't hit him. He had tried to crawl into the tent so he could sleep, but the light emanating from the Tower of Guidance was so bright that even when he closed his eyes he got distracted by its brilliance. So he sat outside, listening to Rolf's snores from inside. Rolf had always slept easily.
"Tomorrow's the big day, isn't it?" Oscar walked over to Boyd and sat next to him.
"Big?" Boyd scoffed. "That's an understatement." He heard his brother chuckle.
"We'll be fine," Oscar said decidedly, as he too gazed at the tower. "We have the power of a goddess with us, too. And we have a commander like Ike. I've never doubted the Greil Mercenaries, and I won't now."
Did Boyd have that sort of faith? Boyd wasn't sure himself. He would trust them with his life, but against a goddess?
An awkward silence fell over the two of them.
After a few moments, Boyd said, "Well, we'll win. We've got me."
Oscar smiled, then began chuckling. "Of course, Boyd."
Boyd liked the feeling. Even though it was potentially the last day of their lives tomorrow, he wouldn't have traded that moment away for anything.
-
A crowd. A suit. A priest. Mist next to him.
Yes, Boyd was feeling good.
He wasn't even listening as the priest went on with his blabbing. Boyd couldn't believe that he was actually getting married. Sure, he joked about it, and he did love Mist, but for some reason it never struck him that it would lead to this.
Well, he jumped into things. He wouldn't be Boyd otherwise.
"Boyd!"
"Huh?" he said absently to the speaker, who was Mist. She was very pretty in her white dress, but she wasn't emanating the serenity that maybe was expected at this time. On the contrary, she was almost glaring at him, her face jutting up at him accusingly.
"You're supposed to kiss me now!" she said quietly, but indignantly.
"… oh." So he did.
Their conversation hadn't gone unnoticed; when Boyd turned to look at the crowd, many people were laughing merrily. He reddened slightly and started laughing too, at how silly he must have looked. Mist giggled and kissed him lightly again.
"There," she said, sounding satisfied.
Boyd glanced over at his brothers, his two steadfast brothers.
Rolf was laughing, but Oscar, with his arms crossed, only smiled.
-
"Man, Oscar, you heading back now?"
Boyd crossed his arms, watching his brother pack up his clothes in a bag. He didn't know why Oscar had accepted the request to rejoin the Royal Knights. Didn't he say that he wanted to be a mercenary? That it was better for him to help people that way?
"Yes," Oscar replied, slightly absently, as he folded armour in a case.
Boyd continued to watch Oscar pack, but the questions built up in his mind. He had never asked himself why Oscar chose to return since he announced it at the mess hall two nights ago, yet it continued to irritate him.
Boyd decided that, looking at himself, he was a very single-minded person.
As Oscar stuffed his books into his bag, Boyd finally blurted, "Why are you leaving?"
Oscar paused and looked at him.
"The Queen asked me to return to the Knights," his older brother said. "With the second reconstruction, the army must be there to help rebuild the social stability of Crimea."
"But they didn't need you last time!" Boyd yelled, a little louder than he would have liked, but he continued on. "Why now?"
He watched his brother fumble with a small notebook, flipping it over and over again in his hands. Boyd didn't care if the reason was personal; he needed to know why Oscar was… leaving them.
"Before, the people needed me as a mercenary. After the first war, bandits were rampant. But the Laguz War resulted in the turning of stone in order to let laguz and beorc reconcile. It was the armies, the governments, that caused the conflict. It is now, in this fragile time, that Crimea needs me. As a knight." Oscar sighed. "It's up to you to keep Rolf in check, okay?"
Boyd couldn't stay angry at Oscar. Crimea would benefit greatly from him.
Yet the axeman couldn't help but feel sad; maybe that was why he was angry.
Perhaps Oscar sensed this, or he was just feeling malicious, but he smiled.
"Did you think I wouldn't come back?" he asked, almost laughing.
"Y-you mean…" Boyd blinked.
"I couldn't leave being a mercenary. Queen Elincia has agreed to let me take on some jobs when time permits. I'll come back."
It was one of those moments that Boyd had to contain himself to retain his manly image. The sight of his smiling brother about to leave only made him want to embrace him for a long time.
-
Boyd saw the familiar sight of his brother's horse running along the pathway. He knew, though, that the reason for his arrival was not the happiest.
As Oscar pulled the reins to stop in front of Boyd, he asked, "Where is everyone?"
"The mess hall," Boyd said flatly.
All the Greil Mercenaries had gathered around the long table at which they all sat for meals; even former members had been called back for this matter. Oscar and Boyd took the two seats left, the ones closest to the door.
"Everyone here?" Ike said. "Good."
What little talk there had been stopped at his voice.
"I asked you all here because I have something I must tell you," the blue-haired commander began. "As the Mercenaries, I feel you above all should know."
"So tell us, and get it over with," Shinon snorted.
"I'm leaving."
Although Boyd knew that he and Mist were the only ones in the hall who knew of this ahead of time, he hadn't expected such a silence to follow. Finally, someone spoke.
"Leaving?" Rhys repeated. "As in from the Mercenaries?"
"From everyone."
Immediately, the mess hall exploded into noise – objections, questions, too many things.
That night, Boyd and Oscar were lying awake in Boyd's room; the discussion had gone on too long for Oscar to leave safely.
"Oscar… what now?" Boyd said quietly. "Mist is in charge of the Mercenaries and I know my role isn't big, but I'll have to help her."
"You don't know what to do, is that it?" Oscar asked in response. Boyd slowly nodded. He found it hard to admit his fear, his uncertainty. Then again, before, he might have not at all. After all, he was Boyd.
In Oscar's absence, Boyd realized he missed the reassurance of an older brother.
"I'm gonna miss Ike, you know?" Boyd mused. "Mist and I both. Can't he see that he'll change everything around him?" Slowly, Boyd found himself starting to yell. Ike… he couldn't believe this! How could he leave them after all this time?
"He has a reason," Oscar said quietly. "Probably he thinks his presence will threaten others. He doesn't want that."
"But – but – argh!" Boyd sat up in his bed out of frustration, slamming on the bed with his hands. Oscar slowly sat up and looked him in the eye.
"Ike is leaving because he holds faith in you, right?" he said. "He's placing faith in you with his sister without him, he's placing his faith in you to hold the Mercenary fort together." Boyd watched Oscar smile. "This is when he needs you most, and he thinks you can do it."
Maybe, just maybe, Oscar was right.
-
This wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't how it was going to end.
It was the regular mission, twisted in all the places possible. Boyd, Oscar and Rolf were going to help out a small village when they were ambushed. Their skill was superior to the bandits they faced, but there were too many of them to be covered by just the three brothers.
Boyd felt something strike him on the back of the head, cutting into his skull. As he fell to the ground, he placed his hand to the place of contact. A red-stained hand greeted him when he brought it back in front of his eyes.
He thought he heard Rolf yell his name, thought he saw the last of the bandits fall as his brothers rushed towards him. Boyd started to flicker in and out of consciousness.
Was this… dying?
No, he couldn't be. He wasn't supposed to die this young. What happened to his dreams of telling epic stories to his grandchildren?
"Boyd! Boyd!" Boyd felt himself being turned over and his head being cradled. It was hard for him to open his eyes, but he saw two heads hover over his, their tense breaths forced into his shallow ones.
They were his brothers. Rolf. Oscar.
"Are you okay?" he heard Oscar ask. Boyd tried to focus in on his features. The hair, the squint… yet no reassuring smile. For some reason, Boyd found it hard to nod in response at his worry.
Maybe he was dying, after all.
"Everything will be all right," his older brother continued, yet he still did not smile. Somehow, Boyd felt that nothing would be all right.
That smile, that constant smile that made each day pass, was gone. Boyd hadn't realized how much he needed that anchor to his chaos until he no longer had it.
"Hey Oscar," Boyd managed to get out.
"Shh," Oscar replied quietly. "Save your energy."
"You and I both know I won't get back."
Through his fading vision, Boyd watched his brother's expression change from worry into desperation at his statement. There was no turning back now. Might as well not waste breath.
"Why are you so down, Boyd?" Oscar asked. "This isn't like you."
"And you, Oscar?" Boyd found it hard to keep focus. "You always smiled, no matter what. Why won't you smile now?"
"Boyd…"
"As the days go by, you were what stayed the same. Why now, when I need it the most?"
Even in his fading eyesight, Boyd saw a single tear roll down Oscar's cheek.
And a smile.
He would be all right.
No matter what the future held for him now, he would be all right.
Since I had one with Rolf's view on Oscar, here's one on Boyd's.
-EmbeRin