Hey Guys! :D Sorry that this chapter took a while, school started and let's just say I wasn't ready. At all.
Anywho, I'd like to say thanks to everyone who reviewed/favorited/followed this story. We're up to 17 followers and I'm only on chapter 3 :O. You guys inspire me to write, even when I don't want to and/or have three hours of freaking AP US History homework.
Updated pairing list at the bottom of the chapter, be sure to check it out.
Again, be sure to review, yadda yadda yadda.
*Robin POV*
"Then... Then your claims were t-true..." General Raimi conceded from where she kneeled before Chrom. "A thousand apologies, Prince Chrom. Allow me and my men a moment to collect ourselves, and we shall escort you to the Castle."
Chrom nodded, clutching the wound at his side, "That would be much appreciated."
Raimi bowed her head respectfully before turning and marching into the Longfort's interior, its great doors slamming shut behind her. Victoria was immediately at Chrom's side, applying a healing salve on the wound Raimi had dealt to him. Chrom made a rather girlish squeak as the rancid green gel touched his skin before leaping out of Victoria's reach.
"I said I'm fine, Victoria! Gods, it's only a scratch!"
"Your wound is going to get infected, you idiot! Stop being stubborn and let me help you for once!"
"Get away from me, woman!"
Robin chuckled amusedly as he watched the spectacle, a knowing grin across his face. Looking around at the other Shepherds who were present, they were thinking the same thing he was.
"Gods, get a room you two!" Sully sneered, but not even she could stifle a smile.
Chrom paused momentarily, attempting to stutter out a rebuttal as a blush spread across his cheeks, "Y-you listen here-" He shrieked again, looking down at his side where a large green goop of salve now resided. Glaring down at his smirking tactician, he growled before storming away in the direction of the other Shepherds who were farther down the fort.
Robin laughed again, high-fiving the still-smirking Victoria as she walked past him. Around him, the other Shepherds chuckled before going back to dressing their own wounds. Turning towards the direction Chrom had just gone, Robin followed his commander, who would probably need help with coordinating their party's departure. That didn't bother Robin at all, who was eager to get out of this cold air.
The trek to Castle Ferox was a short but miserable one; his clothes soaked from snow, Robin could barely keep his teeth from chattering as Raimi escorted the party through the mountains. Pulling his sopping coat closer to himself, Robin trudged through the ice and snow, muttering various curses about the weather under his breath.
A hand on his shoulder roused Robin from personal pity-party; turning his head to look behind him, Robin was happy to see a familiar head of white hair.
"Hey 'Tori." Robin said with a lopsided smile, shaking snowflakes from his hair.
"Hey yourself." She returned the greeting, rolling her eyes at his use of her nickname. "Some fight back there, eh?"
"Hehe, yeah. It's a good thing Sumia jumped in when she did; your boyfriend would be a whole lot less attractive with a javelin through his head."
Victoria blushed immediately, "Chrom and I... That is to say... Our commander doesn't think of me as anything but a friend, I mean-"
Robin chuckled, shaking his head again. "You think what you want to, but I've seen the way he looks at you."
Victoria's eyes flashed, hope replacing the embarrassment that had been there only moments ago. "R-really?"
Robin smiled, nudging her shoulder with his, "Yep. Just ask anyone, Chrom's got it bad for you. You should talk to him about it."
And just like that, Victoria snapped back to reality, "Chrom and I are just friends, Robin. Nothing more." She said, shaking her head as if Robin has just suggested something as preposterous as Frederick riding into battle with a flowery dress on. "Now, there were some strategies I wanted to discuss-"
The group's sudden halt cut Victoria off. Looking around, Robin was caught off guard by the large stone castle that he had somehow failed to notice until now. As the great oaken doors swung open, the Shepherds were escorted into a large, simply decorated room.
More importantly, Robin thought to himself. A very warm room.
The Shepherds were then taken to another, even larger room. This one was more extravagantly decorated than the last, featuring statues and a large throne, but it still held the same mounted animal trophies and simple paintings Robin had seen in the first room.
Raimi turned to face Chrom, "Allow me a moment to fetch the Khan, milord." She spoke before exiting through another door, her armor clunking and clanking as she went.
"The Khan is away?" Robin asked, confused, making his way to where Chrom stood.
The bluenette nodded. "Out training, I'd wager. The Khans of Ferox prefer battle to politics. Or rather, battle is their politics."
"A warrior ruler, eh? I can picture him now…" Robin chuckled to himself. "A giant of a man of unparalleled strength, his broad chest covered in hair, his face-"
"Oh please," A loud, feminine voice spoke from behind them, "Do go on!"
The entire party turned towards the woman. She was tall, easily as tall as Robin was, and had large muscles that rippled as she walked towards their group. Her wavy blonde hair complimented her Feroxian tan skin, which glistened with sweat, indicating that she in fact been training. She did not wear the garb of a royal, Robin noted. Her white and red armor was dirtied and beaten, and her hair was messy and untrimmed; the only clean part of her was her blade, which shown as if had never seen a battle. This 'Khan' clearly took pride in her sword.
Robin shook himself when the woman looked at him expectantly, "H-huh?!"
"You're the-?!" Chrom fought to keep the shock out of his voice, "Er, that is to say... The Khan, I presume?"
The woman smirked as if knowing what their captain was thinking. "One of them yes, and the first woman, might I add. I am the East-Khan, and my name is Flavia. I apologize for the troubles at the border, Prince Chrom. You are welcome in Regna Ferox." She said with a nod of respect.
"Thank you," Chrom returned the nod before continuing, "but I'm confident we can put that misunderstanding behind us. Is it true that bandits posing as Ylisseans have been ransacking your border?"
"Yes, curse those Plegian dogs! We found documents proving that much on the corpse of one of their captains. Plegia must see some benefit in raising tensions between your kingdom and ours."
"Damn them! I-Er... Forgive me, Your Grace. That was... indelicately put." Chrom immediatelty apologized, a light blush gracing his cheeks.
"Ha! Damn them and damn delicacy! Here in Ferox, we appreciate plain speech." Flavia laughed approvingly before continuing, "But down to business, I assume you have come to Ferox for more than a friendly chat and a fight with our border guards, yes? You need something... you need troops, don't you, Prince Chrom?" Flavia asked.
Chrom nodded. "That's right. We seek to protect both Ylisse and Regna Ferox from the Plegians. Any soldiers you could spare would be-."
"...I lack the authority to provide the aid you seek." Flavia spoke, disappointed.
Chrom's brow furrowed, "Forgive me, but I don't understand. Aren't you the Khan?"
"As I said before, I am one of the Khans. In Ferox, the Khans of the east and west hold a tournament every few years. The victor acquires total sovereignty over both kingdoms. And that means they have the final say when it comes to forging alliances. The West-Khan, Basilio, won the last tournament, you see, and so-"
Chrom interrupted her, " So we are to receive no aid at all?"
Flavia's eyes flashed, "Not if you always give up so easily! The next tournament is nigh, you see, and I am in need of champions. Should you and your Shepherds fight in my name, and win, Ferox's might will be yours."
Chrom's eyes shown with confusion, his brow furrowing further, "Us? I had assumed Ylisseans had no place in Feroxian tradition."
Flavia snorted, "On the contrary, the Khans themselves don't actually fight in these tournaments. Instead, we choose champions to fight in our stead. It was agreed that comrades nor kin would fight, as these tournaments can be deadly. Instead, we recruit outsiders to fight under our banner, although I've never heard of foreign royalty fighting for a Khan, hah!" The Khan trailed off for a moment before continuing, "Regardless, the choice is yours, Prince Chrom."
Chrom shook his head determinedly, "There is no choice, East-Khan. My people are desperate. We face not only Plegia's constant attacks, but now the added threat of the Risen. If fighting for you is the quickest way to an alliance, then we will take up our steel."
"Ha ha!" Flavia laughed, slapping Chrom on the back, "Oh, I like you, Prince Chrom! I do hope you survive the tournament! Come, I'll show you the arena where the tournament is held. We've another week before it begins but you can start training if you wish! But be wary! I hear an equally able swordsman champions the West-Khan. You must be ready for him!"
Chrom nodded, "Trust me, we'll be ready."
*Victoria POV*
Victoria awoke with a moan, blearily pulling her numerous Feroxian blankets over her. Shivering slightly, she nestled back into her pillow, nearly falling back asleep when-
*Knock Knock Knock* The solid thunks of her door roused Victoria from her slumber. Growling irritably, Victoria stomped to the door, her blankets still wrapped around her. Wrenching open her door, Victoria expected to see the stern face of Frederick, demanding she come help oversee training, again. Instead, she was face to face with her blue-haired captain, who was looking rather surprised at her current state. Her prepared insult dying away in her throat, Victoria coughed awkwardly and blushed slightly, tugging her blankets tighter.
"Er... Good morning, Chrom..." She trailed off, absently trying to fix her hair with one hand. Gods, I must look awful right now.
The bluenette shook himself, "Good morning, Victoria." He spoke, his voice sending little shivers down Victoria's spine. "I was wondering if you wanted to go get breakfast with me? But, I can see that you're," He cleared his throat, "busy at the moment, so I'll come back later-"
"I'll be right out!" She yelled, slamming the door as she raced around her room, discarding her blankets and ripping off her pajamas. Throwing on the cleanest shirt she could find, in addition to a pair of trousers and her trademark black coat, Victoria frantically ripped a comb through her long white hair. Not even bothering to pull it back the way she normally did, Victoria slipped into her shoes and opened her door again to, thankfully, find Chrom still waiting.
"R-ready!" She breathed.
Sitting in the massive Feroxian dining hall, Victoria eagerly dug into her breakfast: a Feroxian deer sausage with snowberry oatmeal. On her right, Stahl was doing much of the same, belching out words between bites as he attempted to eat and explain his "training regimen", if it could be called that, to an unimpressed Sully.
"Shleeph -munch- ishh -munch munch- himportanth!"
"Right..." Sully rolled her eyes, turning away and starting up a conversation with Virion.
"Ignore her, bud!" Vaike spoke from across Stahl, "The Teach agrees with you! Sure you can be the best fighter in the history of ever, but if you're too dog-tired to hold your sword up, what good are you to anybody?! That's why the Teach always gets at least ten hours of beauty sleep, not that he needs anymore! Right, Miriel?!" He nudged the irritated redhead with his elbow, "Har har har!" Vaike chortled, slamming his arms on the table.
Victoria rolled her eyes. Men... She thought. In front of her, Miriel gave an irritated huff before slamming her fork down and storming away, her robes billowing out behind her. Vaike, still laughing at his own "joke", immediately stopped when the redhead stood and stomped off. Quickly grabbing both of their trays from the table, Vaike hurried after the mage.
Robin appeared from behind the hulking blonde, an amused smile on his face as he watched the man chase after Miriel.
"Morning everyone!" He spoke, nodding to the entire table. "I do believe you owe me twenty coppers, Stahl." Robin added smugly, setting his tray down.
"Hah, as if! Miriel has clearly got the hots for Frederick!" Stahl said, sliding his first tray of breakfast away before starting on his second.
Robin rolled his eyes before digging into his own breakfast.
Victoria turned to her left to see that Chrom was still avidly conversing with Kellam and Frederick over gods-knows-what. Sighing, she stood and collected her tray, dumping it in the trash before heading for the arena.
Time to train.
The fireball obliterated the last training dummy, sending flaming bits of wood and straw everywhere. Looking out over her handiwork, Victoria nodded approvingly at the fifty-odd mannequins she had destroyed in a little under two minutes. Turning towards the other side of the arena, Victoria readied her tome for Round Two when she heard a noise from up in the stands. Pausing, she turned towards the noise to see a man rise from one of the chairs only to stand there, staring at her.
Him... Victoria thought. Marth.
By some strange fate, the same man who had appeared from the portal and saved Lissa was also the man who would be fighting them in the coming tournament. Marth stood there for a moment, sizing her up, before turning and walking towards the exit. Dropping her tome, Victoria ran after him, through the arena floor exit and up the stairs into the main hallway.
Running down the hall and around the corner, Victoria almost bumped into the man's back. Marth drew up in surprise before turning to face her, "What do you want?" He gruffly asked.
Panting heavily, Victoria drew herself up to her full height, still a few inches shorter than Marth, before answering, "I suppose I could ask you the same thing. It's forbidden to watch the other Khan's champions fight, you know."
Marth stared at her a moment longer before turning and walking down the hall.
Growling, Victoria ran until she was in front of the bluenette, forcing him to stop again.
"What." He demanded again.
"I don't-" Victoria stopped when she saw that Marth was visibly shaking, clenching his hands at his sides. "H-hey, are you alright?" She asked, reaching out to touch the man's shoulder.
Marth flinched back as if she had struck him, "J-just stay away from me!" He yelled, racing down the hallway.
This time, Victoria watched him go.
Strange.
"Again." The cold voice rang out through the empty room. "Faster this time, do not hesitate."
Mire rose forth from his hands, reaching out before striking the dummy thirty feet away, parasitic blots of green slime appearing on it before exploding, obliterating the wooden figure.
The man nodded, his goatee wobbling slightly, "Better. Use your anger, my son. Do not be afraid."
He cast the spell again and again. He cried out in anger, anger at his father, at his mother, at his god, at himself. Eventually, all the dummies had been destroyed.
The man looked out at their remains before turning to face him again, "We shall move to more complicated tomes tomorrow, my son. For now, go rest. We shall resume your tactical studies later."
He nodded thankfully before bowing and walking quickly out into the hallway and to her room. Knocking quietly, the door opened almost immediately.
"Hello, my son." The white-haired woman spoke softly, looking at him lovingly.
"Momma." He sniffed, clutching at her sides as he hugged her, tears straining her clothes.
"Shhhhh..." She sighed, running her hands through his hair, "Soon, you will never touch another of those accursed tomes."
"B-but... Father s-says-"
"I know, I know." She murmured soothingly, "Come, you need rest."
Robin sat up, dazedly rubbing sleep from his eyes. Another dream... He thought. That's the fourth this week... Robin shook himself before throwing off his covers, undressing as he prepared to start his day. That can wait... For now, I have a tournament to win.
Welp, there's another chapter! :D
Hopefully everyone enjoyed it, if you did, be sure to leave a review. If you didn't, please leave a review!
Next chapter, we should see the tournament (that means I have to write a fight scene D:), some new characters, another plot twist (or two, or three...), and probably something else, idk yet. \_O~O_/
Also, here is an updated pairings list for anyone who wants to know!
Chrom/Victoria
Robin/Lucina
Sumia/Frederick
Panne/Gregor
Stahl/Cordelia
Tharja/Gaius
Sully/Virion
Henry/Olivia
Miriel/Vaike
Maribelle/Ricken
Libra/Cherche
Donnel/Nowi
Lissa/Lon'qu
Kellam/Whoever Remembers He Exists :D
Morgan/Inigo
Marc/Severa
Owain/Noire
Yarne/Kjelle
Brady/Nah
Cynthia/Gerome
Laurent/Knowledge
