Rendezvous
"He talks of 'us' as fated and destined but frankly, I think 'us' was a product of luck. Unbelievably fortunate and blessed once-in-a-lifetime luck but still...luck nontheless." A series of chance meetings that lead to the chance romance. FE7. Sain X Fiora.
Disclaimer: I do not claim to own Fire Emblem nor wish to profit monetarily from it.
A/N: Exam season is over, and so holidays are now in session. Four -well, three and a bit- glorious weeks of free time. Expect more frequent updates in that time frame. Enjoy the chapter.
4. Reception
There were a lot of reasons that many of the Ilian Knights would give Fiora eyes.
Half a year earlier, she returned from the campaign against Nergal - the "Silent War", she decided it would be called. With her came the news of her squad's unfair, unfortunate and untimely demise. Fiora was months late, acted against at least a page of regulations and therefore reprimanded swiftly and accordingly. Her professional reputation suffered greatly.
It was the duty of all commanders to give the message to remaining family and significant others should any of their squad fall. Many of the poor girls had siblings, parents, and promised ones. Although it was to be expected that those in the mercenary profession might die, the wipe-out of an entire squad begged the leader's ability and character a questioning of the serious sort. Some in Edessa no longer welcomed her into their institutions.
Even the letters and gifts of condolences from the gracious Lord Pent proved no good.
Her name was mud - of the disgusting muddy snow slush variety that the people tread upon. With a vengeance.
It was three months before they would let her join a squad again.
There were indeed many reasons to give eyes at Fiora and over time she became used to the stares and glares.
However, in this circumstance, a particularly odd circumstance indeed, she was sure the eyes were not of the usual meanings.
On her return from her most recent mission - some bandits troubling the borders of some Etrurian noble's land - she was greeted with news that her mail had become a crowning nuisance in the mail room. She nearly fell from the sight of the sheer amount of it.
A pegasus knight of the 2nd Wing - maybe - currently on mail-duty was giving her eyes as Fiora began to gather the large sacks of something. Fiora was pretty certain it was eyes of curiosity, although she dared not meet her eyes to confirm.
Nor anybody else's as she lugged the packages along.
And so, as she dragged three rather large - and rather cold - bags across the halls of the majestic Ilian Knight's Quarters, she kept her eyes down and tried to remain as inconspicuous as possible.
Which was hard. Unbelievably and frustratingly so.
She sullenly cursed the kind souls and pleasant mannerisms of those who thought she required aid.
-00000-
In the quiet comfort of her room, she wishfully wondered what kind of wonders the bags held. Fiora was still a little too stunned to open them.
The sacks, three in total, fit comfortably in the abundant spare spaces of her room. Fiora did not think much of furnishings; a bed, desk, and storage space were more than enough for her belongings and livelihood. She thinks she owned about three outfits. She glanced towards the sacks.
Perhaps her younger sister Farina had happened upon an enormous wealth and saw it fit to gift her a wardrobe fit for a queen with the surplus.
Sitting on the lone bed, she shook her head and chuckled; Farina would never happen upon wealth large enough that she believed it to be too much. Fiora drew the blankets up around herself as she felt a chill run over her. Winter appeared to be coming early. She took another glance at the sacks.
Perhaps her youngest sister Florina, who dwelled in the much warmer climate of Lycia, remembered the icy chill that was Ilia in winter and gifted her with warm wool blankets.
Blankets still around her, Fiora wandered over to her desk and peered at her calendar. She questioned why she would be receiving gifts in the first place; there were no upcoming or recently passed special occasions. She glanced again at the sacks.
Perhaps it was some joke and the bags were actually full of coal.
Which would not be that bad; she could set it alight and have her own little campfire.
Goodness knows that the temperature in her room warranted one.
Fiora was Ilian! She should really be able to take this cold in stride. Fiora sighed, the weeks spent in Etruria made her soft.
Perhaps they were parcels from Lord Pent. He had a wealth of kindness that ran circles around his monetary wealth.
Fiora circled the sacks, which were idly resting in the middle of her room, still unable to bring herself to actually open them. She spared a glance out her window - her window! It was open!
There was a reasonable explanation to the frost growing on her nose!
She rushed over to the window, ignored her icy hands, and promptly slammed it shut.
Having conquered the mystery of the dreadful chill, Fiora felt like she could brave anything. Even her mysterious packages. She marched the two steps to the sacks and grabbed one with a fierce determination. Untying the knot that locked the contents, Fiora fiercely ventured inside and pulled out a parcel.
Steeling herself before she read it, Fiora was certain she was prepared for anything.
To the most wonderful, charming, most beautiful, enchanting, honorable, and exquisite Dame Fiora of the Ilian Pegasus Knights, your devoted Sain of the Caelin Knights offers you this gift in hopes that it pleases and brings a heavenly smile upon your divine features. Let this gift and the many others that have hopefully followed or preceded it...
She was wrong. Nothing could have prepared her for this.
The parcel and her jaw fell with a distinct clutter.
-00000-
Despite how garish the gifts and however thin she believed Sain's affections for her were, Fiora could not bring herself to throw his presents away.
It could have been the persuasive force of good manners - such a force also persuaded her to send him a courtesy thank you letter - or perhaps the fact that the gifts were surprisingly practical.
Practicality was one of the few things she privately idolized and actively preached.
The fairly large stuffed toys were a wonderful addition to her bedding setup; they served much like extra blankets. The very gaudy dresses were bundled up and placed along the walls; acting as padding and giving her room extra protection from exterior chill. The bunches of flowers, although wilted by the time of opening, retained their delicate scent. Stuffing the petals in bags of thin material, thin enough to let the scent through, they become a sort of room freshener - winters in Ilia forced interiors to become stuffy, the scent of these dried petals alleviated much of it. The confectionary thankfully did not expire and Fiora found that her midnight cravings were wonderfully satisfied.
All in all, they gave her room a warmer, brighter feel.
Ilia didn't feel so cold anymore.
The eyes didn't burn as much anymore.
Heavenly smiles frequented upon her divine features a lot more.
Fiora found herself feeling disappointed that she was only able to spend a week among her newly acquired luxuries before she had to leave on her next mission - more bandits.
Her commander, noticing the lack of Fiora's usual enthusiasm, rapped her on the shoulder and barked, "Shape up or else those Lycian bandits might actually give you a hard time."