Sorry, I just don't have enough cookies for all of you! XD Well-guessed!

As shown in the title, this chapter will mainly be told from Volke's POV, although not directly. Sorry if I made him a little out of character, but... this is a romance fic after all! Volke is fated to be OOC!

Chapter Two, In his Mind

It was one of those few moments Volke loved.

He had wandered for an hour in the forest and had finally found a nice spot near the river. The moss actually looked quite comfortable and the tree's branches were filtering sunrays. The running water was cold, a great relief on this hot summer day, Volke thought as he plunged his hand in the river.

He took his dark cloak off and, by instinct, he took a look around before he put it on a rock and stretched out on the mossy ground. He put his hands under his head and closed his eyes, simply enjoying the peace and quiet. Volke only slept two hours per day, and he intended to make these enjoyable.

For a few minutes, the killer allowed himself to empty his mind. He focused on his breathing and his steady heartbeats, his head filled with nothing but noises of water flowing and birds chirping. Volke shifted his weight so the daggers he kept tied to his hip didn't press into his flesh; he never considered taking them off. Danger could be anywhere, after all, and Volke felt uncomfortable and helpless without his trusted knives.

It was simple, really, two hours of sleep in sunlight; but it was enough to make Volke relatively happy. On those few moments he felt good, yet some part of his heart longed to have someone to share it with. The assassin shook his head. Sothe's bet makes me think that way, that's all. I never needed somebody other than myself, and I'm not dead, so I'll go on living that way. That, or I'm just growing old and nostalgic. Volke sighed a little. He knew there was no way Sothe would win that bet: no girl in the mercenaries had ever had the time to take a clear look at his face. The dark-haired man was sure some didn't even know he existed.

So what? It's not like I need them to acknowledge me, after all, he grunted inwardly.Why did he feel that way suddenly? Being lonely never bothered him before, staying away from others' eyes never was a problem! Damn that boy and his stupid bet! Damn Sothe and his need to get Volke a life!

Said man was distracted from his train of thoughts when something landed swiftly upon his boot. Volke opened his eyes and glanced up to see a little bird perched atop his shoe, curisouly peering over at the killer. The animal was small-bodied and its feathers were dark brown; a sparrow, Volke recognized. Under normal circumstances, he would have kicked his foot and growled at the bird to go away before he made it his appetizer, but he didn't find the will nor the need to do that right now.

Instead, the assassin slowly sat up and reached out for the bird. It didn't fly away, but just hopped on the other boot. Volke was confused; weren't birds supposed to be afraid? That one sure wasn't, anyway... it was still looking at him, its little head cocked to the side. Volke then noticed it didn't have a full set of feathers and its beak was rather small. It was a youngling, which certainly explained why it showed no sign of fear.

"So you're a kid?" Volke mumbled as he reached in his pocket and found a small piece of bread, which surely had been there for days because it was hard as a rock. The man crushed it in his fist and held his hand out to the bird, palm up. The fledgling chirped once and hopped onto Volke's fingers, gratefully pecking at the crumbs. "Fell from your nest, kiddo?" Volke glanced up but there was no nest in sight.

The sparrow lightly nimbled on Volke's finger before its attention returned to the crumbs. The killer chuckled under his breath; what if the others saw him now? They all would think he had gone seriously mad, feeding little birds and singing in the forest. Mist would seize the chance and try to get him to pick flowers with her and why not make him wear a dress while they're at it! So what, what was wrong with giving a young bird a few crumbs of bread? It didn't prove Volke had a soft side, far from that, he just felt he had to help the creature. He too had been alone and defenceless as a child, though not as defenceless as the hatchling, and that was the last thing a child wanted.

Volke tried to settle his mind on other things and extended a finger to touch the bird's head. It only glanced up at him once and resumed its feast; Volke finally managed to stroke the feathers with the tip of his finger, amazed at the warmth emanating from the skin. He wondered if his own skin was that warm, but guessed he was likely to never find out since there wouldn't be anyone to tell him. Here we go again! When am I ever going to get rid of those thoughts? Curse you, Sothe, and your cursed ideas. I should have said yes from the beginning to avoid all that.

"I should have said yes," he voiced out loud. The sparrow looked up at him. "Don't you think, featherball?" The bird chirped as if to answer positively, and Volke found himself chuckling. He then realized how silly that scene had to seem; an assassin talking to a sparrow, and thinking the animal was answering him. "Well, never mind, just eat."

Volke was going to resume caressing the feathers when...

"Volke! Here you are at least!"

The scream frightened the bird and it took flight quickly, disappearing in the trees. The killer was surprised to feel a little saddened by the loss of the animal, and didn't even have to turn around to know who had yelled so loud. Next time someone says I lack patience, that person's head is coming off, Volke thought grimly.

He leaned back down and almost immediately, Sothe's grinning face came into sight. "Hey down there! Is everything all right?" the boy asked cheerfully.

"It was... then you came along," Volke mumbled, closing his eyes half-way to shield them from the sun.

"Glad to see you too! Say, we've got a few things to ask, could you spare some minutes of your beauty sleep, although you really need it?" Sothe chuckled.

"Did you just say I'm ugly?" Volke decided to humor the teenager and slowly sat up, stretching his arms. "I hope this won't take long, I admit there are other things I'd rather be doing."

"Tah ah! Just you wait, Volke! Soon enough you won't have to sleep to avoid being bored!" Sothe smiled as he plopped down next to the older man. "You'll have a lovely girl to cuddle with-" the boy ignored Volke's glare "-and plus, you'll have a smart pupil to train!"

"Oh joy, and I thought this day couldn't get any better."

"Birdie, birdie!" Tormod chanted as he jumped up to get a good view of the small sparrow perched on a branch. Volke wondered if it was the same sparrow than earlier. "Come down, birdie, come down! Come see Unky Tormy!"

Sothe turned around, clearly annoyed. "Tormod! Get your butt here and leave that bird alone!"

The red-haired mage sauntered over to them and Volke noticed he was waving a sheet of paper around. "What's this?" he asked.

"You'll know about it soon enough!" Tormod settled down next to Sothe. "So, first off, who do you like amongst the mercenaries?"

Volke growled in his throat. Can't he just give up? Well, the sooner it's over, the better. "Well, I didn't get to know everybody that well..."

"Volke, we're talking about which girl you like in the mercenaries."

The assassin sighed. "I only remember the princess' and Titania's names, others I only remember faces."

"So Titania, uh? Tell me what do you think about her?"

"What are you writing?" Volke enquired suspiciously.

"I'm the one asking questions here!" Tormod snapped. "So, what do you like about her?"

"What do I like? Oh, I simply love the way her hair flows in the breeze and her clear eyes sparkle furiously at me whenever I happen to find myself within fifty feet of Ike," Volke growled. "True, women who want to kill me really turn me on."

Tormod threw Sothe a glance, his quill hovering over the paper, as if asking if he should write it down. Sothe sighed heavily; it wasn't going to be easy, all right.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Maybe ten minutes later, Volke walked out of the forest, very irritated. It hadn't taken long for the two boys to annoy him deeply, and he had taken the first way out. Well, in truth, he didn't know what bothered him the most: the boys, or everything they seemed to reveal; his loneliness, his lack of real life.

I have to think about something else, or else I'll go crazy. Volke nodded to himself and proceeded to climb up a tree. A fairly easy task for the lean assassin, and soon he was sitting on a high branch and looking at his surroundings.

The priest and the swordmaster were training again... Rhys, and if he recalled right the girl's name was Mia. The poor man was doing his best to struggle against Mia's blows, but he finally dropped his sword and fell to his knees, panting. Volke shifted his sight elsewhere; Gatrie was playing cards with Tauroneo, and losing as it seemed, the Deain soldier was certainly cheating as usual.

Then Volke saw them. General Ike and Princess Elincia. The two of them were walking hand in hand around the field, smiling as though they didn't have a care in the world. The killer tried to set his eyes elsewhere, but he wasn't able to. So he braced himself and got ready to spy on them until they disappeared from his sight.

Elincia bent down to pick up a flower just as blue as Ike's hair and balanced it on said general's ear, giggling. Ike giggled too when the crystal-haired princess gave his nose a small kiss and he wrapped his arms around her for a big bear hug.

The assassin shook his head; this was a true exemple of what some would call puppy love. It made him sick... but at the same time, he felt envious. He never got a taste of puppy love, and would likely never find out what it was like. Not that I care or anything, he mused absently. Some other part of his mind whispered that being alone was finally taking its toll on him but he refused to listen to it.

The couple was now nearing the tree Volke was sitting in, and he was able to catch up on their conversation. "That flower really suits you, Ike," Elincia giggled.

"It does, doesn't it? I'm seriously thinking about giving up war to begin a career as a dancer, what do you think?" The blue-haired man laughed, striking a pose.

Elincia laughed along. "Well, I don't know how it will work out, but whatever success you have I will be there to see you on stage!"

"Aww, you're so good to me, what did I ever do to deserve this?"

The princess squeezed his hand and stood on her tiptoes to lay a gentle kiss upon his smiling lips. "Because I love you, silly."

"I love you too, Eli." Ike returned the kiss and then they got too far for Volke to hear the rest.

Just... why did he feel so jealous? Why did he suddenly want someone by his side too? And why the hell did he feel that way at all! He had had his own share of women after all!

Yeah, sure, if you're talking about flings and one-night stand, the little nagging voice reminded him. Nobody ever wanted to stay by your side for longer than one evening, the only thing you ever got was sex, never love.

"Shut it," Volke growled. "I don't need love, I'll live my whole life without it."

Just keep on pretending.

The assassin shook his head and decided it was time to move on... or at least, to move around. He grabbed the branch he was sitting on and let himself down onto a lower one. He proceeded to get down the tree that way without making a single sound. When he jumped to the ground, however, he caught sight of something blue and green right beneath him. Volke was going to collide with it, but his quick reflexes kicked in and he grabbed onto a low branch. It bent dangerously from his weight, but the man was able to change the course of his fall. He landed brutally on his feet next to whatever was standing there.

Or rather, whoever. The girl jumped up for about two feet into the air and turned around, raising her spear, pointing it at him. "I didn't mean to scare you," he quickly said before she decided impaling him was a good idea.

The helmeted head tilted to one side as the girl relaxed. "Oh... sorry... I just thought t'was some enemy hidin'," she mumbled as a way to apologize.

"I'm no enemy." He noticed the girl's voice had a slight accent but she was obviously trying to hide it. Volke vaguely remembered seeing her on battlefield, but he couldn't quite make out her name. Nipha? Nephir?

"You are the murderer?" the young woman asked very shyly, her fingers nervously running up and down her iron spear. Her eyes were downcast although Volke could tell she was trying not to be intimidated. Did she fear him?

"Murdered I am, but I mean you no harm," the man said to get her to relax. Why he cared enough to do so, however, was beyond him.

The woman nodded a little but kept her eyes glued to the ground. Volke wanted to ask what she was afraid of, but he changed his mind when he realized it was pretty obvious. The assassin was instead thinking hard to remember her name, in case it would reassure her about his intentions. Naphie? Naphene? Wait, wasn't it-

"Nephenee!"

Both killer and halberder whirled around when they heard the screech.

Calill really was a sight to see as she was doing her best to run up to them while holding her skirts, her usually neatly-kept blond hair sticking up everywhere. The sage finally stopped her mad run next to Nephenee, panting. "Where on Tellius were you!" Calill exhaled. "I searched all over the stronghold for you!"

"Ah... sorry Calill, I was only taking a walk," Nephenee apologized quietly.

"Well, you better-" The blond sage then seemed to take notice of Volke's presence. "Never mind that. So, what were you chatting about with Mr. Volke here?" The assassin didn't like the look Calill gave him; it meant she was trying to get her little nose into someone else's business.

Nephenee tensed up and Volke could have sworn he saw her blush under her helmet. "We-we weren't exactly chattin'!" she stuttered, her accent coming back once again.

"It's true, and I was taking my leave." The red-clad man nodded politely. "If you will excuse me, Nephenee, until later." He then walked away.

Calill rubbed her chin with a manicured finger, staring off at him. "My, my, our dear Volke growing sociable? Who would have thought?" She expected Nephenee to add something, but when she only listened to silence, the sage turned to her friend to find her unmoving, her eyes staring off into space. "Nephenee? Are you feeling well?"

Once again the halberder kept silent. Calill smirked in a devious way as her crazed mind brewed up a plan. "Nephenee? You know, you are doing yourself emotional harm, staring at Volke's rear like that."

Calill didn't have to wait long. Nephenee started and blushed several dark shades of red, her hand gripping her spear so tight the sage was sure it would break in two. "I-I'm not!" she half-shouted, half-stammered. "I-I didn't even know his name! He fell from the tree, and I've already heard 'bout him, 'course, but I never got see his face so I'm just wonderin'!"

The accent and bad grammar made Calill wince inwardly, but outside she was still smirking. "Were it false, you wouln't try to deny it so much!"

Nephenee groaned and angrily stomped away from the grinning sage, still tighly clutching her spear in her hand and pushing her helmet down to hide her blush.

Calill crossed her arms and sighed. The girl just wouldn't admit some men found her pretty, beautiful even, and she was way too shy to engage in any sort of relationship. Even months after Nephenee had joined the mercenaries, she refused to take off her helmet, or speak with Calill about which man she found attractive or not. Although trained, she was shy, too shy.

"How will I ever remedy that?" the sage sighed.

"Aw man, where did he go now?"

Calill turned around curiously to see Sothe and Tormod walking out of the forest, busily searching for something, or someone. "If you're looking for Volke, he went that way," Calill pointed out.

"Hey thanks!" Tormod smiled.

"Come on, Tormod, we don't have all the time in the world to find Volke his girlfriend!" Sothe urged him, grabbing the young mage's sleeve.

Girlfriend? The nosy part of Calill's mind sprung awake and she caught the two boys before they took off. "Wait! Did you say girlfriend?" she asked.

"Yeah, Sothe made a bet with Volke," Tormod filled in quickly. "He has to find a girlfriend for him in one week, and that was yesterday! We don't have much time left."

Calill rubbed her chin in thoughts. It was crazy, yet... yet she felt it could work. With a little help from Sothe, Tormod and herself, of course.

"Boys... I think we have a deal."