Hello again, everyone! I hope you have had a lovely week so far. Are you excited for the newest chapter? Let's do a quick recap so that we're all caught up for what's ahead: Inigo and Una, after keeping their feelings for each other to themselves, have finally confessed (in a hilarious way). However, there is no time for romance with the war against Walhart. They mutually decided to keep it a secret for now, so what could go wrong?
Spoiler for the next three chapters: A lot.
With Yen'fay defeated and Tiki rescued, the Shepherds decided it was time to attack Walhart head on. It seemed like the best course of action, and Una was hoping that a direct attack would catch him off guard. After all, the small size of their army would definitely throw him off.
Unfortunately, that meant the Shepherds had to march all the way from the bottom of the continent to the top. And, if that wasn't bad enough, Una had stupidly suggested that marching through the mountains would help hide their position from any Valmese spies. That usually wouldn't be a problem if it wasn't snowing.
Una grumbled to herself as Winnie hovered forward, pointlessly tugging her already too short skirt down a little further. Chrom had finally allowed her to ride her pegasus during marches again, but only with the promise that she would scout ahead from her height. This would have been a blessing if the wind didn't bite at her as soon as she broke the treeline. It was hard to last five minutes up there without a coat, and she was starting to regret packing her tactician cloak away. Her plegian blood hated the snow, and her Dark Rider uniform was not doing her any favors.
"Cold?"
The purpled haired girl sent Inigo a look that she could only describe as pitiful. The lucky bastard had received his father's extra swordmaster coat, and the fur lining his cheeks only brought more attention to her freezing neck," You can say that again."
He sent her a sympathetic smile, but didn't comment any further due to the future kids next to him. It was proving to be harder than they originally thought to keep their budding relationship a secret. It started off almost fun; they treated it like a special game, teasingly giving and taking away points when there were close encounters. The charm of that wore off fast. Lissa and Owain proved to be good at diverting attention away when they were close to getting caught (which happened more times than Una liked to admit), but keeping the act up was starting to become exhausting.
Una shivered as a particularly bitter gust of wind cut through her face. If it was this bad on the ground, she didn't want to imagine what it would be like up in the air. Inigo must have noticed, because he was halfway through shrugging off his coat when she caught on," No. You're not going to freeze because of me!"
"Do not fret, Una," He sighed dramatically," The heat of my passion for you will keep me warm."
"You almost got pneumonia three weeks ago!" She shot back," We are not going to test your good luck."
"Your solution is to risk your own health?" Inigo tutted," Your well-being far outweighs mine. You should take the coat."
"My life does not outweigh yours or anyone else's," Una sent him a pointed look," Now put that coat back on or so help me-"
"How about this?" The two shrank when they realized they had an audience," Inigo, why don't you accompany the fair Una in the sky?" Owain suggested dryly.
Lucina rose her eyebrow naively," I fail to see how that will help keep her warm."
"I'm sure I'll find a way," Inigo flirted, ignoring the gags that came from the kids behind him. Una only rolled her eyes as a response; he was definitely losing points for his brash suggestion.
Cynthia giggled," Aww, poor Una doesn't have to be trapped with him. He'd probably flirt her ear off and make her want to jump off Winnie!"
"I think you misunderstood," Inigo said, his voice dripping with sarcasm," Owain suggested I go up with her, not you. Though I can see how you would make that mistake-"
"-Alright!" The purple haired girl quickly grabbed her beau by the wrist and pulled him on the back of Winnie," Let's get out of here before you lose a fight."
"Lose?!"
As much as she hated to admit it, the immediate warmth that came with Inigo boarding her pegasus was fabulous. She pulled up on Winnie's reigns, waiting until they were above the treeline to snuggle against him," Tell me if it gets too cold up here for you. I was serious when I said I didn't want you catching pneumonia."
He cheerily wrapped his arms around her waist, enveloping her as much as he possibly could. Inigo proved to be bashful whenever she so much as winked at him in public, but when they were alone, he was a big sweetheart," I am not worried. The winters were always colder in Regna Ferox."
"Don't I know it," Una chuckled," I almost got hypothermia the minute I crossed the border. Curse these dumb pegasus knight uniforms."
He wiggled his eyebrows, his eyes unsubtly skimming her bare legs," I'm not complaining."
The only thing that annoyed her more than his comment was the fact that she blushed in reaction to it," Oh really? I'd like to see you waltz around in a short skirt and tell me how it feels."
A satisfactory grin crossed her face when his cheeks burned bright red," U-Una! I couldn't! Everyone would stare! Gods, it would be so embarrassing."
"Now you know how I feel," She grumbled," I adjust much better to the heat in Plegia. At least then I can feel my feet," Una pulled her hands up briefly to blow a huff of warm air onto them," It's too bad everything else there fails to suit my fancy."
Inigo let out a small hum," Do you remember anything from when you lived there? My parents told me about what happened, but...you know. Sometimes memories come back."
Her face fell. It had been a little over two years since she woke up in that field, and she still couldn't recall a single thing. She had brought it up to Libra briefly, but the only thing he could suggest was to try and find certain objects to jog her memory. The only thing that had an effect on her was Gangrel's lackey, Aversa. For some reason, she felt eerily familiar," Sometimes they don't."
"Oh," He tightened his hold around her," I'm sorry."
"It's alright," Una replied chipperly, ready to push past the topic," I have grown accustomed to it. Why did you ask, dear?"
Inigo bashfully rubbed the back of his neck, playing out exactly how she had predicted. She had learned early on that if she ever wanted to change the subject, all she had to do was embarrass her boyfriend. Pet names always did the trick," I want to know more about you, Una. You're a woman shrouded in mystery."
She giggled," Make sure to tell me if you find out anything."
He played right along," Only if you ask nicely."
This time when she prepped to warm her hands, the brunet caught them in his. It was evident that his original plan was to make a romantic gesture by doing so, but his immediate withdrawal and unmanly yelp broke any suaveness he had built up," Una! Your hands are freezing!"
She felt a pout form on her lips as she moodily rubbed her hands together," What were you expecting? The whole reason you're up here with me is because you're supposed to be keeping me warm."
He met her glare for a solid minute before groaning in defeat and recapturing her hands in his," You're going to be the death of me."
Una decided that further teasing him wouldn't improve his mood, so she settled with a chaste kiss on his cheek before tilting her head back under his chin. He stuttered in surprise at first, only relaxing when he realized there was no double-motive.
She opened her mouth to ask him if he knew any good ghost stories when a distant group of shadows hidden in steam caught her eye," Inigo, do you see what I see?"
She felt him straighten behind her," Who in their right mind would trek all the way out here?" Una shot him an unimpressed look," And what I meant to say was that I don't understand how a person would set up camp all the way out here unless they were planning on making a surprise attack because that is the opposite of a bad idea."
He was lucky she found it cute when he fumbled to cover his tracks," Let's give Chrom a heads up and scout ahead."
Una pulled back on Winnie's reigns and guided the pegasus down next to where Buttercup, Sumia's pegasus, and Champion, Cordelia's pegasus, were situated," Inigo and I spotted a group of bandits ahead. Do we plan to pursue or avoid?"
Frederick, who was perched on the back of his wife's pegasus, scowled once he got a better look," I recognize their camp formation. They're slavers, milord. Such damnable scum..."
"We may be able to obtain more numbers if we release their prisoners. Naga knows we need them," Chrom, who was in similar position as Frederick, nodded affirmatively," We'll have to hurry if we hope to catch them."
"Aye aye, captain," The tactician gave a tiny salute with a small smile on her face," Inigo and I will fly ahead and see if I can release any of their captives. Cordelia, you flank left, and Sumia, you go right. Cherche and Gerome can stick closer to the ground and wipe out any archers. We will meet in the middle towards the other end of their camp. Meanwhile, our ground units will spit up, one side as offense and the other as defense for our refugees. Anything I missed?" Her small group shook their heads," Lovely! Now, let's get in and get out before these scum can cause anybody any harm."
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The steam rising off the river was not doing Una any favors up in the air. After much maneuvering, she had managed to find the group's makeshift prison and cracked the locks. She had run into a rather skilled archer that Inigo recognized as Noire and instructed her to lead the ground unit towards the middle to meet the Shepherds. Una would fly ahead and try to knock out as many opponents as possible.
This proved to be easier said than done when the ground units took this to their advantage. She didn't want to get cocky due to the lack of surrounding archers; if anything, it unnerved her. She had taken an arrow to the leg once before when saving Maribelle, and it was an experience she never wanted to happen again.
Inigo grunted as he parried an oncoming spear, leaving an opening wide enough for Una to shoot a thoron at the enemy rider," This is exhausting. We'll have to sneak away for tea after this."
Una rolled her eyes playfully as she shot another bolt at a knight, grimacing when a agonized scream sprung from the man's lips. She could feel Inigo stiffen behind her and chose to pull his attention away from the enemy's brutal death," I don't think that it's the best time. Maybe tonight after this is all over?"
After a few seconds, he managed to pull himself together," You know how to keep a man waiting, love."
"Love?" She turned to face him with a cheeky smile," Do my ears deceive me, or did you just give me a pet-name?"
His cheeks burned bright red," Aha, well...I can stop if you wish."
"No," She softened bashfully," I rather like-"
Everything next seemed to happen in slow motion; An incoming arrow heading straight for Inigo caught her eye from the mist. Without a second thought, she shoved him off the side of her pegasus, watching as his face shifted into one of surprise. A beat of pain struck her shoulder, and immediately his expression flickered into one of horror before disappearing into the mist below them. She could faintly hear a splash beneath, but her relief was short lived when her body rudely reminded her of the arrow embedded in her shoulder. Una didn't have time to fully process the pain that started to radiate from the new wound, because she felt an all too familiar shock of a terrible sting enter her left leg. Somewhere in the back of her head, she heard Winnie yelp and felt her start to kick. She didn't have time to grab the reins her body started to tip off the side and towards the steaming river.
Una was only pulled from her haze when her body lurched to a halt. She blinked wildly, trying to see through the spots clouding her vision and put herself together. The purple haired girl whimpered and shot a desperate look up, only to see that the arrow and pinned her leg to her horse. Oh gods, she would have to pull an arrow out of her own leg.
Sucking in a terrified breath, she used her good arm to close her fist around the wood," Alright...y-you can do this Una. You've had an arrow pulled out before, you can do it again," Una squeezed her eyes shut," O-One...Two...Three."
I wasn't kidding around earlier when I said a lot could go wrong. And boy, let me tell you, this is barely scraping the surface. We know that Una is an incredibly capable fighter as well as tactician, but what will happen when she's out of commission? I don't want to spoil too much, I want you to enjoy the roller coaster you are about to embark on. All I will say is that the next chapter picks up right where this one left off, and it's in Inigo's POV.
I want to give a quick shoutout to those of you who started following this story from my post last week! Thank you for your interest! I hope you like it so far. Review time!
Lance Eterna: Hello! I'm so glad you're back to see where to story goes! I'm really excited to have you along for the ride, and I can't wait to hear your feedback!
I don't have an official post date of the week yet because my daily schedule is in a bit of a flux right now and I need to get back to consistently writing. I'm going to try and keep it so that posts happen about once a week, and I'll aim towards the beginning of it. If you guys have any suggestions, theories, or feedback, I love hearing it! The Fire Emblem Community is one of my favorites because everyone is pretty supportive in it! As always, thank you for reading and I hope you have a lovely week!
-Uprisingdragon