It's here! It's here! I'm not dead! I swear!

Finding Fiora turns out to be both a blessing for Florina and a curse for Hector. But it's loads of fun for Serra. That's all I can say.

Hector needs a chapter. At least one chapter.


Chapter Four: Standing at the Gate

Theere they were on the Dread Isle, and they were so close to saving Lord Elbert, Hector could taste it. However, he couldn't shake this dark foreboding feeling he had. Something bad was going to happen. To top it off, ever since he started this whole adventure, he couldn't help but feel as though someone was watching him and wanted him dead. Maybe it was Serra, she certainly was annoying him to the point of death.

Mark seemed insistent on conserving the vulneraries despite everyone's protest, and Oswin was backing him up on his arguments. This meant Serra had to actually do work in helping to keep the army unharmed, which in turn meant she simply had to complain about it. The young cleric wouldn't stop babbling, even after their first battle was long over, and she always managed to corner some poor victim and make them hear her out. Usually the hardest hit by her incessant chatter would be Erk or Oswin, but lately she seemed to enjoy rattling off to Florina.

Hector knew Florina wasn't the sociable type, and he kind of felt bad for her, getting stuck with someone like Serra constantly hovering around. In fact, Florina didn't seem to like to talk to anyone really, outside of her sister and Lyndis. She even seemed to be a little afraid of him, although he couldn't for the life of him imagine why. He couldn't really dwell on such things now; he had to worry about getting to the Dragon's Gate. They had gotten past the power hungry sage Aion, and Hector was determined to take down Darin. Mark had personally reserved this fight for him, and he was more than eager to go into battle.

The only thing that could get in the way of his excitement was the prospect of working with Florina's sister. Fiora, while an excellent warrior and respectable in every way, simply didn't seem to get enough chances to correct him. All throughout the fight all he heard was, "Watch for those archers there," and "Guard Florina's right side over here," and "Watch where you're swinging that axe, Lord Hector, you could have hurt someone!" Hector was starting to feel that if Oswin were younger and female, he probably would have been Fiora. The woman was almost insufferable.

He sighed a little. He was going to show all these nit-picky sticklers. The young lord was determined to become such a brilliant warrior, that they all would be impressed. As long as he could help it, no one was going to get that little pegasus knight.

His thoughts were interrupted by a light laugh. Eliwood was behind him, a knowing grin spread across his face.

"It seems your 'look of conviction' has come back to haunt us," the red haired lord teased, "You haven't looked this determined since you decided to teach yourself how to use an axe instead of a sword back in school."

Hector smirked in response. Eliwood had a way of bringing up old memories.

"You know what's bothering me. That woman has to peck at every mistake I make throughout the entire battle," the blue haired lord said, annoyance hanging on his words. Eliwood shook his head half heartedly.

"Fiora's only looking out for Florina, the same way Uther looks out for you," Eliwood replied, "It must be some sort of older sibling complex."

Hector rolled his eyes, "I understand that, but does she have to criticize my every move! I couldn't even breathe without getting yelled at!"

The red haired lord clapped Hector's shoulder in reassurance.

"You'll wow them all, Hector. You'll gain the respect of all those around you. I have faith in you," Eliwood told his friend. Hector smiled and nodded thoughtfully.

"There's just one more thing that's bothering me…" he said.

"Oh?" Eliwood said raising his eyebrows in curiosity, "What seems to be the trouble?"

"I can't seem to get Florina to even really acknowledge me," the axe wielding lord stated in a defeated tone, "I mean since we're supposed to be working together for the most part, I kind of want to know more about her, and she won't even speak to me! Can you imagine that?"

Eliwood raised an eyebrow and tried to suppress a grin.

"No, I couldn't possibly imagine why!" he said in a playful tone. Hector narrowed his eyes.

"You know something about this, don't you?" he asked. Eliwood smirked a little and shook his head.

"Maybe you should ask Lyn about this, hm? She is Florina's friend after all," he suggested. Hector rolled his eyes a little.

"You get off the hook this time around, but I'll be coming back to you!" the blue haired lord said as he walked away. Eliwood sighed, his friend was hopelessly dense when it came to tact and the more sensitive things in life.

'He'll learn eventually,' the red haired boy thought, and got ready for the fight ahead.


The fight to the Dragon's Gate was only a few minutes away, and Mark was tying up a few loose ends. Hector followed the shorter boy as he explained his battle strategy.

"The key here is simple, we need to press toward the Gate no matter who's chasing us, or who's in our way," Mark explained, "I'm putting our power players up front, as in you, Lyn, Eliwood, Florina and Oswin up front, and our faster people in back, people like Guy, Raven, Wil and Rebecca who are quick enough to dodge and keep running. Although, I might put Marcus…"

Mark could go on like that for hours. It wasn't that Hector wasn't interested, it was just that the brown haired boy got so passionate about his tactics that his rambles got unreasonably hard to follow after a while. Mark jumped forward, and backward and sideways when he talked and the blue haired lord was used to talking straight forwardly. Hector just started to assume that geniuses worked this way and the more confusing Mark's rambles got the better.

"So…I won't be working with Fiora, right?" Hector said a bit hopefully, interrupting Mark's cryptic monologue. The brown haired boy turned abruptly, a little thrown off by the interjection.

"Of course you will be," the tactician said, "Why wouldn't you be? Florina needs a little more back up, and they work well together."

"What? Are you saying I wasn't enough back up for her?" Hector asked a little miffed at the implications. Mark waved his hands defensively.

"No, no! That's not it! I mean, it's as much for Florina, as it is for you!" the tactician explained, "I have other jobs for Oswin to do, and Fiora is an experienced fighter. You need to have some guidance, and she's the best choice."

'I knew it there was a reason Fiora reminded me of Oswin…' Hector thought, his face unsuccessfully masking his annoyance with the whole situation.

"Is something wrong with you and Fiora?" Mark inquired.

"No, not at all…" Hector lied. Mark continued ahead, adding more details to his strategy as they went on. Just then Hector had a feeling of dread come over him. That could only mean one thing. Serra was near by. The blue haired lord turned cautiously. Sure enough, the cleric was right behind him. Fortunately, she seemed more intent on her conversation, than with him. Who was she talking to anyway? He hoped she hadn't cornered Florina again. Hector turned a bit more just to see who it was.

It was his worst nightmare. Serra was talking to Fiora. From the way Fiora was glancing at him, he could tell what Serra was saying wasn't good. Now he was worried. What in Emiline's name was she saying?

"Mark, I'm going to get into position," Hector said. Mark nodded and continued with the battle preparations. Hector was focused on the two chatting women.

'Now the direct approach,' he thought. He walked past Fiora and Serra hoping to catch a snippet of their conversation. However, like typical girls, they stopped mid-sentence just as he passed, and Hector would have sworn that Fiora gave him a look of sudden death. He gulped unconsciously. Women were a bit scary when they gave looks like that. That wasn't very successful. How could he find out what they were saying if he couldn't get in any closer?

"Hector?" a female voice said suddenly. The lord turned in surprise. It was Lyn.

'Perfect!' he thought, a smirk suddenly appearing on his face. Lyn, obviously confused by his reaction, blinked a few times before continuing with what she had to say.

"Eliwood said you had something to ask me," she said, "What is it?"

"Yes, will you do me a favor?" the blue haired lord asked. The Sacean girl raised an eyebrow.

"It depends on what it is…" she replied. Hector grabbed her shoulders and turned her in the direction of Fiora and Serra.

"Will you find out what Serra is talking about?" he asked.

"Why do you…?" Lyn began.

"Never mind about that right now!" Hector interjected, "Please, would you mind controlling that woman! I don't have the patience!"

An indignant look spread across Lyn's usually serene features. She narrowed her eyes and brushed his hands from off her shoulders.

"All right," she said going toward the two of them. Hector disappeared into a nearby tent. Unfortunately, someone was in it. Fortunately, it was only Lucius, and he was saved the indignity of being found in a woman's tent.

"Lord Hector? What are you doing in here?" Lucius asked.

"Oh, um…" Hector began. He just couldn't catch a break today.

"Watching the ladies in a more covert way, perhaps?" Lucius said peeking out the tent flaps at the group of girls, "My, that Serra is a lively one. Although she does seem to be very annoyed with me, and I can't seem to figure out why…"

Hector sighed, whether in relief or frustration, he didn't know. What he did know was that maybe, he had found an ally in this monk.

"So you're on Serra's black list too, huh?" the Ostian lord said. Lucius turned and smiled a little.

"If that's what you call it, then yes, I guess I am," the blonde monk replied, "She does say some awful things about me, especially while I'm within earshot. But then again, she says some awful things about a lot of people."

Hector hit the jackpot there, "Like who?"

"Oh, everybody!" the blonde replied, closing the tent flaps, "Oswin, Priscilla, Erk, you, Matthew…"

"What does she say about me?" the lord pried. He was so close…

"Well—"

The entrance to the tent flew open, revealing a very perturbed Serra.

"There you are! I thought you only trusted me with your prayers to Saint Emiline!" the pink haired cleric snapped, "How dare you trust her over me!"

Hector raised an eyebrow, "Her?"

Serra stamped her foot, "Yes, her!"

Hector shot Lucius a confused glance. Sure he was very androgynous, but certainly after all this time, Serra must have realized that Lucius was a monk, therefore he had to be male. Before Lucius could say anything, the cleric brusquely grabbed the blue haired lord's arm and dragged him out of the tent.

"You'd better hurry up!" she cried, "The battle is going to start soon and poor Florina is up there all by herself! No wonder Fiora doesn't trust you with her sister's safety!"

"Who says she doesn't!" Hector cried.

"She told me herself!" Serra snapped back, "She says your guard is slipshod, your defense is off, and your timing is even worse!"

That did it. Hector was going to defeat Darin, he was going take down everything in his path, and Florina would not be so much as grazed by a single arrow, sword, axe or otherwise. He was going to protect her if it was the last thing he did.

Hector wrenched his arm from Serra's grasp, his eyes narrowed in determination. Serra huffed angrily as he stormed off. As soon as he was out of hearing range, a smirk spread across her face. A few moments later, Fiora stood at Serra's side her arms crossed, her face in decided calculation.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" the older girl asked, "He might do more harm than good, and I'd only be adding to the fire."

"No, do just like you did in the last battle, trust me on this," the cleric said.

"I'm not sure I trust you on anything just yet," Fiora said staring the cleric down. Serra turned to meet her gaze with an equally intense look.

"You will find that you can trust me. I promise you that," she replied with a look of confidence.


Mark's tactics had never steered wrong before, and it was still true even now. Hector's forces easily barreled through Darin's Black Fang soldiers. Lyn, Matthew and Sain had been given the assignment of apprehending a thief, while Eliwood, Kent and Marcus led part of the army through an indoor route.

Hector felt exhilarated in battle, but he always kept his eye on Florina, who was by his side as usual. Fiora was still criticizing his every move, but she seemed more intent on correcting Florina than him. Florina responded better to her sister's instruction than he did anyway. The lavender haired girl didn't say much, but her strikes were becoming more and more powerful.

Hector wished he had time to watch Florina's improvement, but he had to make sure she stayed alive to continue her growth as a warrior. He pressed ahead, the pegasus sisters behind him. As he came to the entrance to the Dragon's gate, Hector felt the anticipation of the battle ahead fill him with excitement. It was cut short by a knight riding in front of him.

"So, you're Lord Hector?" he said, "Darin's been so worried about you coming, I almost thought you were a threat to our cause. But I see you're not."

Hector readied his Wolf Biel for a fight, but before he could make a move, a javelin came sailing through the air and landed in the knight's left side.

"Nice shot, Florina!" Fiora said. Eliwood's part of the army came from around the bend just in time. Kent came riding up behind the knight and plunged his lance into the man's left arm. Fiora motioned for Hector to go on.

"Go! Take Florina with you!" she cried. The lord nodded and started to leave.

"Lord Hector!" Fiora cried. Hector turned slowly.

"If Florina gets so much as a scratch, I will have Sir Oswin make sure it never happens again," the older pegasus knight warned. The blue haired lord nodded in understanding. He could picture it now: two hundred push ups, full armor, in the blazing sun, while Oswin rested his feet on his back with a good book. Delightful.

Florina was already a good distance ahead, so he had to catch up. She was right behind him as they entered. The two of them made short work of the guards and Hector eagerly turned his attention to Darin.

"So it comes to this, eh, Lord Darin?" the young lord said a smirk playing on his lips.

"I don't have time to play games, boy," the older man boomed, "I'm going to rule all of Lycia, no, all of the world!"

"Right…look, I'm ready for a fight whenever you are!" Hector snapped. Darin smiled a bit too widely for the younger lord's comfort. The older lord readied his hand axe and Hector was ready to dodge his blow. Darin hurled his hand axe through the air. Hector realized that it wasn't aimed at him at all, it was headed slightly to Hector's left which could only mean…

"Florina! Look out!" he cried. The girl was instantly on the defensive, but just in case her defense wasn't enough, Hector was in front of the swirling blades first. The axe slashed across his side viciously before it rounded back to Darin's grasp. Florina gasped in horror as Hector gripped his side in pain.

'That hurt more than it should have…' Hector thought. Florina handed him the vulnerary they had been given. Without another word she flew forward, that same fiery look in her eyes as she had before when they first fought together. He knew her attacks wouldn't do much, but they'd keep Darin distracted long enough so that Hector could heal a little.

Darin had a few jabs at her, but Florina was quick enough to stay out of his reach. Hector was impressed by her speed, she dodged his attacks with extreme ease. She doubled back to his side as he downed part of the vulnerary and stood up finally.

"All right Darin, no more low blows like that," Hector said putting his Wolf Biel on his shoulder, "If you're going to fight me…"

With one fatal swoop, his axe pierced Darin's armor and flesh easily. The young lord pulled his weapon from the carnage and thumbed his nose in defiance.

"Like I was saying, if you're going to fight me, then fight me," he said in a dangerously low tone. Eliwood entered the room as Darin was uttering his final words.

"Great job, Hector! I saw the whole thing!" Eliwood said, "Mark refused to let me in until you finished Darin, and I am just amazed!"

"Thanks, that means a lot to me," Hector said with a grin. As everyone poured into the throne room and Eliwood waited expectantly at the foot of the stairs to the Dragon's Gate, Mark approached Hector.

"Good fight, my lord," the tactician said.

"Hector. Call me Hector, please," the blue haired boy corrected. Mark waved the last statement aside.

"I want the three of you to meet me at the steps of the Dragon's Gate in five minutes, all right?" the tactician said. Hector nodded and went off to find Lyn and Eliwood. When he found them, they seemed engaged in an enthralling conversation. Hector approached the two of them, and told them of Mark's instructions.

"Okay then, see you both in five minutes," Lyn said leaving the company of the two lords. Hector raised an eyebrow.

"What's her hurry?" he asked Eliwood.

The red haired boy smiled knowingly but replied, "No clue."

Hector narrowed his eyes a little, "You have this habit of dodging my questions. Since we have a much more important matter to attend to right now, I'll let you slide. But after we save your father, you will tell me what the hell is going on around here."

Together they went to the designated meeting spot, ready to claim another victory.

Or so they thought.


:Edit (8/25/05): I did change some wording and the ending slightly. Oh yeah, and I changed the chapter name. Hopefully it will be a little more believable.

If you want to know why it took so long to post this chapter, I shall say:

-Studying for AP testing

-The actual AP test

-SATs

-Pre-calculus

-Studying for finals

-The actual finals

-Getting Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones

And that's about it.

Thank you:

Lord of swords and waffles: Heehee! Fiora is so much fun! And Serra has a secret plan, that is…well not really a secret except to the people she's scheming about. And us right now.

TheOneAndOnlyT: I told myself I could not review your Joshua/Natasha story until I finished this chapter and it worked! I'm finished, and as soon as this is up, I'm reviewing. Hector does care for Florina, and this chapter has Mark encouraging him to explore the reasons he wants to protect her (beyond his duty that is…). And you know…I almost hate it when you're right about what I did wrong. I have this "Oh, yeah…he's right…" moment when I read your reviews. But I do make note of them, I do! I try!

Nightmare: Yes, the plan is to continue until Nergal's defeat and perhaps an epilogue. Hector and Florina's relationship has so much more potential beyond the boundaries of the support conversations. I'm still a bit unsure about the other pairings, but if you came here for Hector/Florina, you'll definitely be pleased. Thank you for reading!

Hamano Ayumi: I still don't know…but one thing's for sure, Fiora will not steal Hector away:)

ChibiHeart: Wow! Kent sure gets a lot of love here! Everybody wants Fiora with Kent! I'm not making any promises…but how about a maybe?

Jasmine Reinier: Oh my! I hope I didn't kill you with my super long gap between updates! It wasn't on purpose, I swear!

Mashou no Tenshi: Serra's torture knows no bounds. However, in terms of torture, she gets more of a kick with Hector because he reacts more than Florina. Yes, hopefully if it all works out, there will be Florina and Serra support conversations in this fic.

Erin: Oh, I'm so happy to hear people say things like that! I love you!