Never thought I'd see the day when I write a drabble, but I had an idea and ran with it. One of the few internal inconsistencies in Fire Emblem 7 is Florina's pegasus. It is referred to variously as both male and female, both Huey and Makar. While writing an unrelated story, and trying to decide which name/gender to use, I remembered that fanfics have the power to do anything. So behold, my attempt to explain this away.
Makar and Huey
"Come on, Florina!" Lyn called insistently. "We need to go!"
"I'm coming!" Florina called. "It's just... Makar is injured. I don't want to push her."
Lyn entered the stables, and looked the pegasus over. She didn't know much about pegasi, but she did know that Makar had been through a lot that day. The pegasus seemed to do fine in the battles to free Castle Caelin from the occupying forces of Laus, but it also fell on Hector. And while falling on an Ostian lordling was preferable to falling on the ground, Hector's armor definitely made it a less than pleasant experience.
"Do you think she'll be OK?" Lyn asked.
"I think so," Florina said. "Eventually. But she needs time to heal."
"We could get Serra or Priscilla in here, and have them use a staff..."
"It might work, but..." Florina stroked the pegasus on the muzzle. "Makar's been through so much lately... I don't want to push her too hard..."
"Well, then, why not change out for another pegasus?" Lyn offered
Florina shot up. "I can't do that!" she said. "The bond between a pegasus and a rider is forged over many years. You can't just change it out for a fresh one whenever it grows tired."
"OK," Lyn sighed, holding up her hands. "I didn't mean to offend. But what about your other pegasus?"
Florina blinked. "My... other...?"
"You know, the one that followed you here."
"You mean Huey?" Florina hesitated for a moment. She had met Huey shortly after she and Makar started training together. The male pegasus was a little more ornery than Makar, but Florina had ridden him once or twice in those early days, and he seemed all right with it. A few days after she and Lyn had settled in at Castle Caelin, Huey appeared flying towards them. Florina realized he must have followed her, albeit at a distance, probably by tracking Makar's scent. She had taken in the pegasus, and cared for him in the stables, even ridden him several times, but...
"I... I don't know..." she looked around. Huey's stall was nearby, and he was looking over the edge of it at her. "I love them both, definitely... but Makar..."
"Makar will be well-cared for," Lyn said. "This way, she'll have time to recover. The next time we get back here, you can swap them again. OK?"
Florina shut her eyes. "This... this is a big decision to make so quickly..."
"I know," Lyn sighed, "but you do need to make it. I'll be outside; I need to finish getting ready. We need to find our way to Badon and get a ship to the Dread Isle as soon as we can."
Florina nodded as Lyn vanished out the door. She looked from one pegasus to another, trying to make a decision. Finally, she let out a sigh, and gave Makar a rub on the snout. "I'm sorry, girl, but Lyn's right... you should rest. Are you OK with that?"
The pegasus replied with an affectionate snort. Florina smiled, then gave her mount one last pat before going to Huey's stall.
While she wasn't looking, the male pegasus stuck his tongue out at Makar, who returned the gesture. Makar was sorry that she would miss out on the action, to be sure, but she could use a break. Huey deserved a turn, at least.
Hopefully, he wouldn't screw it up by falling on Hector.
