Hey guys! Now, as I said last week, this chapter has very little mention of either Chrom or Robin because the past few chapters (and next few) will feature them as it normally does. As the title of this chapter says, this chapter is devoted to enhancing the relationships I've started to establish (and a few that are brand new). I hope you enjoy!

I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening.


Ever since the first day of school, Ricken had come in the band room to practice and Nowi would lull herself to sleep while listening. The first week went by without either of them going past mutual feelings of amity, but as the second week of their meetings came on, Ricken began to notice her nightmares. He could tell how bad they were if she scrunched up her face in distress or whimpered. When he asked his older brother, Dimitri, what to do about it, the college freshman replied that he shouldn't pry. That seemed to be pretty good advice until the Monday from the third week of school rolled around.

The day had started off bad when Ricken forgot his contacts at home and had to come to school in his annoying nerd glasses. If that wasn't bad enough, none of their authority figures showed up for marching band practice. Hence, there wasn't an after school clarinet session.

Ricken had gone home, but the guilt of leaving Nowi without her daily nap was eating away at him. His parents noticed their son's inner turmoil during dinner, but were brushed off when they asked. Eventually, he told his parents goodnight and returned to his bedroom to debate what to do. Just when the freshman decided that he should call his brother and ask for advice, there was a knock at the window," Nowi?!" He practically tripped over his own feet as he hopped from his bean bag chair and helped the girl into his room," What are you-Are you-How did you find my address?"

Now that they were close up, he could see that his friend was in rough shape. Her already messy green hair was a rat's nest, her bright eyes were dulled, and there were dark circles sagging on her cheeks. If that wasn't bad enough, she seemed like she was going to start crying at any moment. He didn't even want to imagine what his parents would think if they found a girl in his bedroom at this time of night. If only Dimitri was here...

Nowi sniffled and swayed a little, trying to keep herself together," I-I had a nightmare on Saturday night, so I could barely sleep on Sunday night, and I w-was hoping to take a n-nap today, but everyone l-left."

The auburn haired boy furrowed his eyebrows," Wait, you haven't slept properly in two days?!"

"I-It's pretty normal for me," She whimpered without a trace of her usually peppy self," I was hoping I could stay here the night."

His eyes nearly popped out of his head. Did she have any idea how much trouble he'd get in if they were caught? Only someone completely crazy or...desperate. That was it. This was her last option. Ricken sighed," You can stay, but I have some rules. First off, you have to be extremely quiet. Secondly, you have to leave early in the morning so that my parents don't catch you. Finally, the only place that my parents won't be able to see you would be...in my loft bed...so basically...we're going to...Ah...how should I phrase this without making it sound weird?"

Nowi blinked," We're going to share the bed, right?"

He turned as red as Cordelia's hair," I-If you don't mind."

"Nah," She yawned," I'll sleep better if you're with me."

Ricken nodded, not sure whether to be relieved or nervous," Okay. G-Goodnight, then."

The green haired girl smiled and climbed onto the bed, making sure to stay on the side near the wall. Ricken followed suit and turned off the light before climbing in next to her. Thankfully, they were both small enough to fit on the twin sized mattress without too much of a squeeze.

She giggled as she watched him settle himself," It looks like we have another secret, don't we?"

"Er, right. If you can avoid telling anyone about this, I'd be really grateful. People would get the wrong idea."

Nowi smiled," Hee hee! No problem. After all, you're holding on to a secret for me, too!"

Ricken chuckled softly," Geez! Let's hope we won't need to keep any more!" The change of lightning was finally starting to set in, and he felt his eyelids begin to grow heavy," I'm going to sleep now. Goodnight, Nowi."

Just as he was about to shut his eyes, he felt Nowi kiss his cheek," Thanks for doing all this for me, Ricken. It means a lot."

His eyes popped right back open, the sleepiness immediately draining out of his body. He felt a warm glow envelop his body, leaving him with a goofy grin. Once he was sure a few minutes had gone by, he touched the spot where she had kissed him. It was undeniable at that moment that he would do anything for the insomniac, which both excited and scared him. This feeling was a lot deeper than friendship. Was it...oh gods.

He had a crush on Nowi.

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Maribelle had to put up with a lot lately. It was bad enough that her precious Lissa was starting to pine off after a Plegian boy and her parents were once again trying to set her and Chrom up. So when she saw the foreign boy trying to steal food from the band storage again, she blew her top," Hold, you overgrown lummox! I would have a word with you."

The red haired boy tilted his head before dropping the food from his hands," Creasing the forehead and squinting eyes is wasting such beautiful face."

Maribelle blinked," Beautiful? Why, goodness me... Argh! Do not try to change the subject, you silver-tongued weasel! I've a most serious matter to discuss with you."

The senior bit his lip sheepishly, but prepared himself for the upcoming lecture she was about to give him," Gregor is listening."

So Gregor was his name? Why did he speak in third person? Maribelle crossed her arms slowly, making sure to observe his reactions," You took a candy bar from the storage again, didn't you?"

"Yes. Food portions Gregor receives is not enough to maintain mighty physique. If Gregor is fainting from hunger while marching, Shepherd ladies will be plunging into despair, no?"

Maribelle deadpanned," Good heavens, you are a self-deluded nitwit."

He chuckled," Is true! Is happening all the time."

He didn't seem to understand what she was telling him. How could he if he thought that women were after him of all people," Are all foreigners truly this inane, or is it just you?"

"Eh? Gregor is not catching that last part. You must say again."

Maribelle groaned," Listen to me, fool. the Shepherds have strict rules about such things. Food is saved for a reason. You can't just go willy-nilly breaking..." Gregor's eyes were having a serious stare-off with her bows instead of listening," Hey! Are you even listening to me?!"

"Of course! Gregor is hearing pretty lady! Do not be rule breaking near Willy, yes?" He asked, sending her a charming yet untrustworthy smile.

"A lack of discipline leads to disorder, and disorder leads to wickedness. Innocuous though they may seem, your acts could cause the ruin of our whole band."

Gregor scrunched his eyebrows," But Gregor is only taking chocolate..."

The blonde had to fight the urge to slam her head against the wall," You think I'm exaggerating, don't you? One small crack is all it takes to bring down the dam that holds back chaos!"

"...Gregor is thinking Maribelle is carried away with this vivid imaginings."

She glared at him," I am a woman of fair mind and breeding. I believe in what is right and proper. And I will not abide rogues who flaunt the rules that make us strong."

He held his hands up in defeat," Enough! Gregor is making many apologies for candy, yes? From now on Gregor obey all rules and be model of good behavior."

Maribelle felt like this wouldn't be the last time they had this conversation, but she allowed him to get away with it this one time,, Then we have nothing further to discuss. I bid you good day."

Gregor watched as she left the room and let out a low whistle," She is pretty like rose, but her tongue is sharp like thorn..."

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Panne had a burning hatred for any person that wasn't part of the Taguel tribe. They were insolent and narrow minded creatures that found the only solution to peace through fighting. So when the postponed marching practice on Tuesday ended, Panne found herself trying to shake one of the stupid boys that had decided to follow her. Once he was out of sight, she slipped into a gas station and nodded confidently," I should be safe now... There's no way he could track me out—"

"Hold."

Panne jumped in surprise, nearly knocking over a display," Gah! You are no ordinary man..." She had been so crafty, how did the percussionist find her? She growled," Enough of this game. Tell me what you want and leave me be!"

The boy, Lon'qu, took a step back," Do not come near me!"

"Stay away from YOU!? What do you think I've been trying to do all day, you ignorant man-spawn?"

He pulled a small pouch out of his pocket," I found this bag. It's full of weeds...or something."

Panne blinked," That's my bag."

"I know. You dropped it on the field."

The brown haired girl crossed her arms in annoyance," Is that why you chased me all over town? Why didn't you just tell me?"

Lon'qu shrugged," Yes, well. When I saw your face, I became paralyzed with fear. And then you fled before I had a chance to explain."

"Bah, this is insulting," She scoffed," I don't want them, or the bag. They are yours now. Don't follow me this time, man-spawn," With that, she spun on her heel and exited the establishment, leaving him to himself.

Lon'qu huffed and made his way towards the bus station," Blast. What am I supposed to do with these? Hmm...I wonder if they taste good?" This was a bad idea, yet it was so tempting. Eventually, he pulled a weed out and nibbled on it, only to spit it right back out," BLEGH! ...A poor idea."

"What was a poor idea?"

Dammit. He was waiting for the later bus again, wasn't he? Lon'qu swore under his breath and tried not to acknowledge the petite pink haired girl next to him. She watched him curiously as he avoided her stare," Um, Lon'qu?"

"What?"

"Were you just eating a dandelion?"

He cringed and tossed the bag into the garbage next to him," The odd girl in the braids dropped the bag, and I went to return it to her."

Olivia tilted her head cutely," I thought you didn't like women. Vaike said that-"

"That oaf doesn't know the difference between a potato and a sports car," Lon'qu rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably," And going off of what you said earlier...Er, I don't... As a rule."

She smiled softly," You don't actually dislike women at all, do you?" Her grin widened on realization," You just get nervous around us!"

The percussionist forced out a fake laugh," Are you saying I'm scared? Of women? Absurd! Because I'm not. Well, mostly not," He cringed at the look the pinkette was giving him,"...Well, perhaps."

Gods, what had he just said? She would never let him live this down. She'd run around the school, telling everyone that the strong police apprentice of Regna Ferox was frightened of the opposite sex," Hee hee," He perked up, confusion filling his body as Olivia tried to stifle her giggles," I would never have guessed! Hee hee hee hee!"

His cheeks flared up in mortification," Why are you laughing?"

"Don't you see? This means we're exactly the same! We both get embarrassed, and we both have a hard time around people!" She beamed," I-I'd like it very much if we could be friends."

"Me?!" He gaped," Friends with a woman?! Are you mad?!"

Olivia flinched slightly," I know...it's just that...You're the only person I can talk to without stuttering. It's nice. But if you want me to leave you alone-"

"Wait," Lon'qu blurted, cursing himself as he did so. As much as he hated to admit it, his gynophobia wasn't as bad around the dancer as well. While it did scare him allowing someone close, he could help but agree with her. The feeling was...nice," I would wish to be friends as well if you weren't a woman."

A pout formed on her lips as she evaluated the situation," Hey, I've got an idea!" Without warning, she reached out and held his hand in hers.

He winced and tried to pull away, but the fragile looking girl had a surprisingly firm grasp," Wh-what are you doing?! Release me! Release my hand, I say!"

Olivia wasn't ready to give up yet," Breathe, Lon'qu. Let the tension flow from your body...," Her cheeks turned slightly pink," I know you can do it, Lon'qu. I believe in you!"

He felt his own face warm up," O-Olivia..."

"No one is more resolute in purpose than you. You just have to believe."

"...V-very well... Just let go of me!"

Olivia looked down at their interlocked hands and pulled hers away in a flash," Oh, gosh! Sorry! I didn't mean to be so...um...sweaty. Yikes this is embarrassing. I left a big red handprint on your wrist," She hesitantly reached out, silently asking if she could examine it. He answered with a huff, which gave her the okay. Her fingers delicately circled his hand again and lightly rubbed the spot she had gripped," Um, does it hurt?"

He rolled his eyes and watched as their bus began to pull up," It does not hurt, but the experience was nonetheless terrible," Something about watching her face fall made his insides clench up in regret," However, I hear what you say, and I...I am willing to comply."

The pink haired girl's face darkened a shade," I...Uh...yeah, I'd like that. Thank you."

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Lissa kicked her legs back and forth as she waited outside of Plegia Academy. She had decided to accompany her older sister as she went to a meeting with the principal of the school, but was told to wait outside until it was done.

Eventually the school bell rang, and although she was sent a few threatening glances, nothing bad happened until Gangrel approached her," Well look who it is! The littlest Exalt. I heard that you almost got killed at the train station attack. It's a pity that your family didn't even obtain a scratch."

Lissa's insides clenched up in fear, but she put on a brave face," If you had been there, you wouldn't be making jokes. Robin got a concussion and Frederick almost got shot-"

"If I had been there," He interrupted, uninterested in the injuries obtained by non-Exalts," I'd make sure the terrorists would find your family."

Her eyes widened in horror," H-How could you say something so terrible?!"

Gangrel darkened," Your family is so insolent. It is unfair that while you are gliding by in life with your murderer of a father cozy in his jail cell, my parents are sleeping for eternity in their graves. And don't tell me that your mother was murdered; she probably committed suicide after years of living with people like-" He jolted forward suddenly and flipped around, surprised to see a certain white haired boy. His hand flew to the back of his neck in horror," What did you just do to me?!"

Henry tapped the needle in his hand and smiled," I injected you with a fun poison that will kill you if you don't soak the place it was injected in with rat meat. You have about..." He glanced at his watch," Half an hour to do this? Maybe less. I'd start running if I were you."

Gangrel growled, cursing himself for allowing the psychotic boy to do this to him," You're going to regret this, Crow."

"I don't think I will."

The red haired boy growled to get his point across before bolting from the scene. The things that he had said rolled around in Lissa's head, along with the fact that her new friend had just committed an attempt at homicide," You poisoned him?!"

"Nya ha, of course not silly! I just poked him with a needle," He assured cheerfully," I could've if you wanted me to."

The blonde relaxed. Although Gangrel was a horrible person that had been bullying her siblings for years, she believed that no one deserved to die. She shook her head no," As nice as your offer is, I don't believe that murder is the right path to go down. What you did there was pretty impressive though! Is that how you got your reputation?"

Henry nodded happily and plopped down next to her on the grass," Yup! While I can't actually do anything to people, playing with their mind is a lot more fun! Luckily for me, people tend to overthink things, and that causes them more trouble in the long run," He explained," Basically, my "dark magic" is the power of phycology."

Phycology, huh? It freaked out Gangrel, who was practically unshakable. Could it help her with her pranks? She giggled, imagining all the possibilities," You're going to have to teach me a few of your tricks."

He shook his head," As fun as that sounds, the things I work with are pretty dark. The human mind is more twisted and morbid than anyone could ever imagine," Henry brightened back up," I could teach you some of the lighter stuff I know, though! It'll be fun!"

Lissa clapped her hands enthusiastically," Yay! I'll be learning the lighter version of phycology to play mind tricks on people! Hey, that's kind of like light magic, then, isn't it?"

"I guess it is!" He chuckled.

"Lissa?" The two teenagers turned to face Emmeryn, who greeted Henry with warm smile," Is this your friend?"

The sixteen year old beamed and stood up, dragging the white haired boy up with her," Yup! This is Henry Crow! He helped me back is Rosanne when..." She coughed awkwardly," When I twisted my ankle."

Emmeryn lit up," Oh, that was sweet of him to do! My name is Emmeryn, and as you probably know, I'm Lissa's older sister. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Henry grinned," Ditto!"

"Well, Lissa and I had an agreement that if she came along with me to my meeting, I'd buy her ice cream," The woman said," Would you like to come along?"

The boy's smile grew even larger than it was before," Sure! I'd like that very much!"

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Gaius's life had taken a turn for the...well, weird. He supposed that it had all started when he joined a band that was lead by the most popular boy in school and an amnesiac with a mysterious past. He had heard stories about the trouble those two had gotten themselves in, and from what he's heard, they were probably smitten with each other. Unfortunately, him and his big mouth had attracted the last girl that he wanted to talk to, and now she wouldn't leave him alone. His "friends" were starting to get ideas no matter how much he tried to steer them away from it. Gaius feared that if he didn't stop them soon, something bad would happen.

He had decided to clear his mind after band practice by doing some good old fashioned bee watching. The thought of honey made his mouth water, and the serenity of the environment lured him into a sitting position in a climb of dandelions. He watched a fat bee hop from flower to flower, anxiously waiting for it to lead him to it's hive full of honey.

"Oh, there you are, Gaius!"

Gaius perked up, thinking that he had heard something, but brushed it off. He was probably just imagining things. His focus was immediately diverted back to the chubby bee, which had finished collecting whatever bees collected (Honey? Pollen? He honestly didn't care) and was starting to make it's way to a small woodland area. Bingo. He slowly crept onto his feet, poised to tiptoe after it," Easy... Eeeeeeasy... Alllmost theeeere..."

"Gaius? Gaaaaaaius!" Said boy quirked his eyebrow and turned around, both surprised and mortified to see Sumia running towards him," HEY! GAIUS-OOMPH!" Her foot caught on something and sent her flying on top of him. She had somehow knocked her head straight into his chest, dragging both him and herself onto the ground.

Gaius felt his cheeks grow hot when he realized that she was underneath him with her long hair fanned out around her head. Her brown eyes glimmered with embarrassment, but they kept flickering towards his face, trying to see any traces of anger. He was too focused on the fact that her breasts were squished underneath him and the way the sun shone off of her surprised chocolate brown eyes. He couldn't help but think that all of this would be far less distracting if this wasn't the girl he was pretending to have an affair with.

He was yanked out of his trance when a loud buzz shot past his ear, heading straight towards the clump of trees. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the girl opening her mouth to apologize, so he quickly slapped his hand over it," SHHHHH! Quiet down! Can't you see I'm busy here?!"

He could feel her grimace from underneath his palm," Ohm, surruh..."

Unfortunately for him, the (somewhat cute, now that he thought about it) girl had distracted him long enough for the bee to fly away. Gaius groaned and pushed himself off of the brunette," Aw, horse plop. It flew away."

Sumia, although frazzled by the experience, sat up and smoothed her hair," Huh? What flew away?" She tried to ignore his are-you-that-dense look and changed the subject," Hey, what are you doing, anyway?"

"I'm bee watching," He cast a forlorn look towards where he figured the fat bug disappeared to,"Or at least, I was."

The clarinetist looked flustered at first, but the first thing he said seemed to have caught her interest," Oh, I didn't know you liked insects!"

Gaius snorted," I don't. I was just trying to figure out where that little fellow lives."

"You mean its hive?" She pondered the possible reasons to why he would want to find an object full of murderous bugs when it hit her," Ah-hah! NOW I get it!"

Gaius tilted his head in confusion, wondering how stupid this girl really was,"...What do you get?"

"You were spying on Chrom and Robin!"

"...What?"

Sumia clapped her hands excitedly," I thought that I had gotten my hopes up for nothing in the mall when you ditched me, but it looks like I was wrong! You want Chrobin to happen just as much as I do!"

"I have NO idea what you're blathering about, Stumbles," He had know idea how watching bees had morphed into spying on their drum majors, and was still a bit confused on what the two had to do with pirates...or was it a ship of some sort?

"Hey! You should help me get them together!"

Gaius had little to no interest in any of that girly romance crap, and unless he wanted to get involved, he had to dive out of there fast," Uh...wow, look at the time! I gotta fly."

In the blink of an eye, Sumia's expression changed from enthusiastic to depressed," Oh. I'm sorry. I was just getting ahead of myself again. I know that I'm a burden to be around," She let out a shuddery sigh," Heck, I'd be lucky if a boy wanted to go on at least one date with me, because no one else would-"

Before she could process what was happening, she felt him grab her chin and tilt it up so that she was facing him," Don't say that and don't believe it. Don't go out with the first guy that asks you out unless you know him first. There is the right guy for you out there, but there is also the wrong guy," Gaius's face softened," Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"What is going on here?"

He automatically released her face and stood up to address their female drum major," Nothing, I was just-"

"You were just leaving," Robin narrowed her eyes at him," Right?"

The ginger tensed," Yes, ma'am."

Sumia was still in a daze when Gaius left, so she barely noticed Robin bend down in front of her," Sumia? Are you alright? Did he do something to you?"

She managed to shake her head," No, not at all! He was giving me dating advice...or something. I dunno, it was kind of out of the blue."

Robin furrowed her eyebrows. Dating advice? That didn't sound good. Was he trying to make a move on her innocent and horribly naive friend? She decided that she would have to get to the bottom of it before anything bad happened," Uh, Sumia? Don't hang around him for now, okay?"

"Why not?"

"I don't think he has good intentions."

She looked baffled at the very thought," Gaius? No, he doesn't want me to date anyone at all-"

"That doesn't make me feel better, Su," Robin replied softly," Come on, let's go home."

Sumia didn't look ready to drop the subject yet, but she didn't object. Robin, on the other hand, was formulating a plan to get Gaius alone so that they could have a little chat.


Okay, so I put Robin in at the end because the next chapter leads from where I left off with this one. While writing this chapter, I knew I definitely needed Nowi and Ricken in (they were one of the first couples I S supported, other than Tharja and Frederick and Chrom and Robin). Also, for both my sake and yours, imagine Gregor is a lot younger. I also put in Panne with Lon'qu (due to request) to help him develope more relationships with people other than Olivia and Robin (am I the only one that thinks it's funny that I've only had him sort of befriend girls so far? Bwahaha.) Oh, and I unintentionally decided that phycology is the equivalent to dark magic in this story because Henry uses it to scare off bullies and Tharja uses it to try to help her daughter. I also REALLY wanted Henry to meet Emmeryn because of reasons that will come up later in the story. Finally, The Sumia and Gaius scene...I wrote it about four times until I decided on the final product. It was tough to decide on how quickly I wanted their relationship to develop. Alright, it's review time!

Radio-Blaze: Thank you! I'm glad you liked that chapter, because I wasn't sure if it would be too action-y or not. I also love platonic Robin and Frederick, so there will definitely be more of that later in this story! I always love when people love Chrobin, and I'm happy you liked the Stahl Cordelia fix too!

Amy47101: Yup! I've got some StahlXCordelia coming in (I also put in some NowixRicken for you). That's a cute idea about Severa too! I like Olivia and Henry's A support too, because he breaks his shell a little bit because she is in danger. It's too cute! I will explain who I ship with Olivia when the time comes, because Inigo becoming the product of them is freaking ironic. I think that the two games will be separate ones, and I'm watching the game and praying that all the cute boys are not related to me. I won't tell you because it's a big reveal! Don't worry, it'll be worth the wait (don't hurt yourself too badly, lol). I know! I was just as surprised that we had the same idea! I'm working on developing the heck out of Lissa's kid, and she's going to show up a lot more than you think. I know exactly what I'm doing with Say'ri and Tiki, I just hope that no one blows up on me for it. I totally agree, though. Yen'fay needs to support with Say'ri and Emm needs to support with her siblings. I think the idea of Emmeryn and Gangrel is cute and I would totally put it in this story if a) Emmeryn is 28 and Gangrel is 18 and b)...about Emmeryn...(awkwardly looks away) Spoilers. Thank you, and I hope you liked this chapter as well!

myra-is-a-tactician: I hope you liked what I wrote! I don't ship them romantically (ironically, if you've read my other comments about who my older brother ships, PannexLon'qu is his ingame OTP) so I am going to give them a friendship setting. Because of this, if you have any suggestions you want about how they become buddies, I am toatally willing to comply. Thank you!

The weasel is MINE XP: BAND BUDDIES! I'm happy that you'd like the story even if you weren't in band (even though there isn't too much band in it at the moment...oops). Luckily, I've already started writing the next chapter, so it will definitely be up next Saturday! Thank you, I'm glad you like it!

Thank you guys for commenting! I haven't mentioned it, but I have over 100 pages of this fanfiction posted! I'm not even at the halfway point yet either, so we've got lots of story left! As always, you can suggest characters and I will try my best to fit them in as soon as possible! Hold on to your hats, because in two chapters, this story is going to get (even more) serious. Thanks for reading!

-Uprisingdragon