Birth and Re-Death
Chapter 14: Vaike's Quest to See Some Chest
"Did you at least check to make sure Arcturus isn't around this time?"
"GAH! Oh, it's you, Randall. What are you doing here?"
"Good question, Vaike. I was about to ask you the same thing."
"Well, I mean… isn't it obvious?"
He has a point. He's crouched behind a bush, peering over a hillside to get a good look at the little pond that's being used as a bath at the moment by, if I had to guess, Sully. I take a quick look over the bush myself. Yup, that's some red hair. For decency's sake, I look away the moment I've confirmed for myself who it is, crouching beside him.
"Isn't this a little beneath you, Vaike?" I ask, turning back to him. "I thought Robin had already caught you spying on Sully before. Shouldn't that have been enough of a clue?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" He scowls.
"Well come on, I thought you're supposed to be Teach. You know, the big man who doesn't back down from anything. But now you're slinking around like a creep instead. What gives?"
"And what do you propose I do, then, Mister Knows-It-All?" Vaike crosses his arms, clearly not fond of that wound to his pride.
"I guess that's up to you. I just think it's pretty lame to be sneaking peeks is all." I shrug.
"Well anyway, what are you doing up here then? I bet you came here to sneak a look too, and you're just upset that I got here first, so now you have to save face and pretend that I'm the only one," Vaike retorts.
"What I'm doing up here is none of your business, but I'll at least tell you it's not to gawk like a middle schooler," I say.
"...What's a middle schooler?"
God damn it, every time. "Like a kid, Vaike. Like a kid who just became aware of what girls are."
He looks stung again. "Well, that makes two of us then, because I'm not convinced that's not what you're here for too."
Looks like I don't have a choice. I have my pride to protect, after all. "Alright, fine. I'm up here location scouting, if you must know."
"Location scouting? What, like looking for the enemy or something?"
"No, not like that. I just want to find a really nice place to," I wonder why I find this so embarrassing to admit, "to stargaze from. I was thinking I would come back here when night falls. It's probably going to be a really clear, nice night."
He narrows his eyes. "Stargazing, huh? That doesn't sound much like you, Randall. At least, not something you'd care that much about. Unless…" I watch as, in slow motion, the dots connect in his head. "Unless you're gonna bring a girl up here!"
I cringe at the volume. "Not so damn loud, Vaike! Do you want the whole world to hear?"
"So, dare I guess who you're thinking of bringing up?" He gives me a sly grin, using his hand to pantomime little hair drills next to his head.
I feel a little color filling my face. "Is it that obvious?"
"Please. I've been calling it since Stahl and I tricked you into joining her for a bath."
"Oh, is that what you call that incident?" I ask incredulously. "You know she was ready to kill me back then, right?"
Vaike sits back on the grass. "Randall, lemme clue you in. She's liked you from the beginning. If it had been Stahl, or Frederick, or especially the Vaike, she'd have held a grudge like no other. The only reason she got over it so quickly is because it was you."
I'm taken quite aback. "You really think so?"
"Would Teach ever lead a student astray?" He winks.
"Huh…" Maybe it's not as much a longshot as I've been thinking.
"You boys sound like you're having a pretty good conversation."
Oh, shit. While we were talking, it seems Sully heard us and got the drop on us, so she now stands on the other side of the bush, glaring at us from above.
"Oh! Oh, hey Sully," I say more than a little awkwardly. "How, uh, how long have you been there?"
She shrugs, but it's a calculated movement. I now notice she's holding her lance. The woman even brings her weapons to the bath? "Long enough, I suppose. I guess my question would be, how long have you two been here, and what do you think you're doing?"
"Uhh… location scouting?" I offer. She rolls her eyes.
I've never seen a redder Vaike. "W-well, if you must know, I, uh, came to, uh…" he stammers.
"Oh, this'll be good," she says, leaning on her lance.
He stands up. I do too, but now that the bush isn't there to cover her, I mind my line of sight carefully. At last, Vaike speaks. "I–I mean, after hearing Randall's story, and how he's looking to take the next step forward, I just thought… I mean, I was inspired, you know, to…" He squeezes his eyes shut. Oh boy Vaike, what are you going for here? Please try consider the context.
"To…?" Sully asks expectantly. She adjusts the grip on her lance.
"Uh, Vaike?" I warn, eyeing her lance carefully.
"To ask you ou– Oof!" Vaike is interrupted with a swift smack upside the head with the bottom end of the lance. He falls to his side, clutching the side of his face.
"Absolutely not, you lecher! You seriously thought the best time to ask me out would be immediately after I catch you spying on me?" she shouts.
"Yeah, okay, looking back on it, that might not have been my most sound call ever," Vaike admits, still cradling the wound but standing back up. "But I'm serious! Go out with me!"
"I can't accept any man that feels the need to skulk around like a pervert! No way!" Sully retorts, threatening another blow. To his credit, Vaike doesn't flinch. "Ugh, just get out of here, the both of you."
I'm already leaving, but I hear that suicidal idiot say, "I'm sorry Sully, but I can't do that." Is this his attempt to get serious?
"This time, it'll be the business end," Sully says, turning the lance point on him. "Unless you get gone, and fast."
Without a second's hesitation, he says, "Yes ma'am," and starts booking it down the hill with me. So much for 'I can't do that,' then. "Let's go, Randall."
Vaike heads straight for his tent, blowing right past everyone who tries to say something to him.
Nearby, Robin looks on with mild surprise. On seeing me not far behind him, she stops me.
"What's up with that?" she asks.
I wave a hand. "Oh, just Vaike finding new, creative ways to get himself killed."
Her brow furrows. "...Sully?"
I nod. "Sully."
Her shoulders drop a little. "Ugh, that idiot. I've been trying to tell him, Sully would probably actually say yes if he knocked off all the kid stuff and actually grew up a little."
"What makes you say that?"
"Well, she's said as much herself. She's just confused as to how he can be so bold and fearless on the battlefield, yet balk so consistently when it comes to women."
"I don't know if it's women in general. I think it might just be her. You gotta admit she's kinda scary," I remind her.
She strokes her chin thoughtfully. "That's true. Oh well. He'll just have to give it some time to cool off, and give her a proper apology."
I narrow my eyes. "Wait a minute. Are you playing matchmaker with those two?"
"What? No. No! I just, I don't know, I want to help my friends out! It's pretty obvious those two would be great together, don't you think?"
"I guess? They definitely work better together in the field."
"Exactly! So I'm just trying to help everyone's chances on the battlefield." She grins sheepishly.
"...Uh huh."
"A-anyway! Did you find a good spot for stargazing?" she asks quickly.
I plant a finger on her lips. She gives me an annoyed look. "Don't say that so loud. I don't want her hearing until it's time." She attempts to bite my finger, so I pull it away quickly.
"I still think you're worrying too much," she says.
"I'm a worrier, okay?" I don't even know what people normally do for dates around here. We can't exactly go to the movies, and this far between towns there's no place to take her for a dinner or anything like that. I hope Robin was right before…
One hour-ish earlier…
"Hey there Tarantino," I say cheerfully, clapping Robin on the shoulder.
She yelps in surprise, nearly spilling her ink on the map on which she's drawing up plans for the continued march east.
"I still don't know what that means," she says.
"Back where I came from, he's a storyteller renowned for his bloody, gory narratives. Thought it fits you pretty well." I shrug.
"What? Why?" She looks almost hurt.
"Uh, because on the day I met you, you blasted a man's face into an electrified pulp? And in every other battle I've seen you in since then, those unfortunate enough to be on the business end of your magic usually end up a sort of red mist."
"Most of the fights you have seen me in have been fending off Risen invasions, and those turn into mist no matter how you kill them!" she protests. "Besides, you're the one who stabbed a man to death with a healing staff!"
In a panic, I plant a finger on her mouth to shut her up. "Damnit Robin, that's supposed to be kept on the down-low, remember?"
Her eyes widen. "Oh, no! You're right, sorry." She reddens with embarrassment. It's a little adorable, if I'm being wholly honest.
I look around to make sure there aren't any nooks someone could be listening from. I turn to her and quietly say, "I should warn you, Frederick has been drumming up a little suspicion about us on that point. He actually saw us leave town that night, and he saw us come back all bloodied up, but he missed what happened in between. I think he's afraid we might have had something to do with the attempt on Emmeryn's life."
Robin is quiet for a moment. "I can't say his suspicion doesn't make sense, honestly."
"That's what I was thinking. But what can we really do?"
"Just have faith in Chrom, I guess. He's not about to turn on us without evidence. That just doesn't seem like the kind of person he is. We also need to keep an eye on Virion. He might seem like a moron sometimes, but he's sharper than anyone gives him credit for. Unlike us, he's actually worthy of a little healthy skepticism."
I raise a brow. "What makes you think I'm not colluding with the enemy behind your backs?" I ask.
"I mean, are you?"
"Well no, but why are you so convinced of that?"
She smirks. "It's not your style. Plus, if you had wanted Chrom and the others dead, it would have been as easy as just not helping us back in Southtown."
If only you knew. "Actually, I bet the four of you could've handled it."
"Well, when we had to go it without you, it sure wasn't easy."
"What?"
"Oh, I meant when you were training with Maribelle, and we had to make the trip to Ferox. I just got used to having a second healer around, is all."
"Oh, okay. Anyway, I did actually have something I wanted to ask you about."
"Sure, what's up?" she asks, taking a seat and gesturing for me to do the same.
"What do you know about dating around here? You're the only other one who came to the Shepherds totally clueless about their culture, so I'm wondering what your thoughts are."
"What about it? That's pretty vague."
"Look, it's still a little embarrassing to talk about it much, but I was thinking that maybe I might try asking Maribelle on a date, and I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing."
She looks surprised. "Oh, you're serious about that? I thought you were just having a little fun at her expense. I know that's all I was doing."
I frown. "Yes, I'm serious about it. Why does everyone seem to think I was just kidding around?"
"Who's 'everyone'?"
"Well, you and Lissa, in any event. Am I so hard to take seriously?"
"No, no! I didn't mean it like that! I'm just a little surprised." She raises her hands conciliatorily.
"Anyway, what should I do? Stahl and Kellam made it seem like dating is a pretty protracted thing, but other sources led me to think people just go for the big 'I do' right away."
"Well, I definitely haven't heard anything like that." So it looks like I can finally put that misconception away, then. "As for what you should do… hmm…" She considers for a moment. "I guess it's a little bit simple, but have you considered just asking her to go stargazing? I think the weather should hold up."
"Stargazing, huh? Doesn't sound too bad."
"I think so, anyway. Some of the closest moments I've had with people around here have been under the light of the stars."
The look on her face catches my eye. "Ooh, close moments, eh? Been having some nighttime fraternization with the captain, mayhaps? Finally gonna get him to see you as a woman?"
Her face scrunches. "No way, he's more like an awkward, annoying big brother than anything. He walked in on me taking a bath the other day, did you know that? He was so embarrassed I thought he might pass out. Oh, I guess I wasn't supposed to tell that story to anyone. Oops." She closes her eyes to refresh her mind for a moment. "But no, I meant other people."
Seems she doesn't want to share. "Alrighty, I'll take your word for it. I guess a night alone under the stars could make for a nice romantic setting. Certainly better than that Plegian hellhole we were cooped up in… It's just a matter of asking her, right?"
Picturing the actual act of asking her out sends me back into a spiral.
"Gah, but what if she says no? What if she thinks I'm creepy or something after I ask and she turns me down? I mean, she probably will turn me down, after all. She's rich, and important, and she's an expert healer, and let's be real, appearance-wise, she's waaay out of my league, and–"
It's Robin's turn to shush me. "No one is out of anyone's league. You're worrying too much. I'm sure she thinks you're great."
"Every friendzone ever starts with 'I think you're great, but…'" I deadpan.
"Without the 'but,' then! You'll be fine!" Robin retorts.
"Gaaah," I make worry noises. "Oh shit, I should find a nice spot to stargaze from then! I'll see you later, Robin!"
She giggles. "See you later!"
I see Maribelle enjoying a solitary evening cup of tea not far from the mess tent. I'm surprised she's so committed to tea that she brought the supplies for it on the caravan, especially since it's a pretty nice-looking set. She's facing away from me, which is good, because at the moment I'm a panicking mess.
"Robin, I really don't think I can do this," I hiss quietly.
"Oh come on, you found the perfect spot, it's a gorgeous night, just go for it!" she says, trying to push me forward. I resist her push and stand firm.
"But what if she says no?" I ask.
"Randall, if you don't ask her on this date right this minute, I'll make you ask Frederick on the date instead."
"I mean, he does seem like a man who'd enjoy a nice night under the–"
"Hey Maribelle!" Robin shouts, then before Maribelle has time to turn, she dives into the mess tent and out of sight.
Maribelle looks my way, eyebrows raised. "Randy, is that you? I could've sworn I heard a woman's voice." Oh, we are off to a great start.
I take a few stiff steps toward her. "I'm still not quite used to you calling me that, haha."
"Well, you did say you preferred it, after all. Is that no longer true?"
"No, it is! Just taking a bit of, uh, getting used to." I notice a small crate nearby, and I pull it over to the tiny table she's sitting at. "Mind if I grab a seat?"
"Of course. What's on your mind?" she asks.
"Oh, um, not much. How about you?" I ask, putting a huge amount of effort into preventing my voice and my legs from shaking. I would literally rather be facing down an angry Aversa at this point.
She gives an exasperated expression. "What isn't on my mind lately? There's so much going on, what with the war starting in earnest, and the attempt on the Exalt's life. It seems you and I have been spending more time trying not to get killed in bloody combat than we have doing just about anything else."
"Yeah, that seems about right. But then again, that's kind of what makes this march almost a relief in a way. Sure, we have to repel some Risen here and there, but comparatively speaking, I'd say we've had a lot of time to think and breathe lately." Yes, that's good, keep that rolling.
"I would agree. Aside from how tiring it is to ride day in and day out, it's not been wholly unpleasant. Though I suppose you footsloggers are a good deal more tired by day's end, am I right?" She smirks.
I shrug. "I can admit it's a little taxing. Nothing too terrible though."
She cocks a brow. "Oh really? I distinctly recall you saying something to the effect of 'My legs have become spiritually one with the overcooked pasta Sully made for dinner last night' to Lissa earlier this week."
I feel myself redden considerably. "I mean, that was just joking around. But anyway, it's been nice to have time to get all my thoughts and stuff squared away in my head, you know?"
"I suppose?" she half-asks.
"And one thing I've been kinda thinking about is about, you know, um." Where am I going with this again? Come on, it's on the tip of your tongue, you've been thinking about it all day. You went up to the hill, blah blah blah, to find a place to look at "Stars! Yeah, I've been thinking a lot about stars."
You should probably just go ahead and kill yourself and take another stab at this.
"You've been spending the daytime, while the sun is out, thinking about… stars," she says, giving me the side-eye.
"W-well yeah, when they're not out to look at, you can only really think about them, not see them, right?" I think I feel an eyelid twitching.
"That is true, I can't disagree. Why are you thinking so much about stars, though?" She seems genuinely curious. Either that or genuinely concerned. It's kinda hard to tell.
"Because… because…" An image of Vaike getting hit in the face with a lance flits across my mind's eye. "I gotta go. Later!" My legs stand up and start walking briskly away from the table before my brain has caught up to what's going on.
"Um… bye?" she says to my back as I make a hasty retreat.
Meanwhile, Robin is still near the entrance to the mess tent, no doubt eavesdropping on our conversation. My mouth also starts moving without the brain's say-so. "Oh good, Robin, you're still here. Let's go look at some stars! Apparently I've been thinking about them a lot!" I borderline shout. I grab her by the wrist and lead her away from where I left Maribelle sitting with her tea.
Once we are a good distance away, Robin shakes off my hand. "What the hell was that?" she asks with something between incredulity and utter hilarity in her voice.
My head is in my hands. "Oh my God I have no fucking clue."
Hilarity wins out, and she starts laughing despite her efforts to hold it back. It only makes her snort, which itself makes her laugh harder. "Well hey, the night is young. You could give it another go."
I glare at her. "You kidding? I should probably avoid talking to her for the next like week or so after that display."
She shrugs, still grinning like a jackass. "Half kidding, I guess. But hey, at least you got started before your nerve gave out."
I resist the urge to smack my head against something. "Uuuugh, now what? I feel like a total idiot." I take a seat (well, really it's more like I fall ass-first) on the ground.
"Well, I wouldn't say you looked like a total idiot…"
"Robin, you're gonna catch this backhand here in a second."
She raises her hands in preemptive surrender. "Hey, it'll be fine. You were right; just give it some time to cool off and it'll all work out just fine. I still think that if you were to actually ask, she'd say yes. It's just a matter of getting it more or less right when you finally do."
I sigh. "Yeah, maybe. I still don't know what to do with myself now, though. I haven't embarrassed myself that thoroughly since I was a teenager."
Her expression softens a little. "I'm sure I had plenty of mortifying experiences myself back before I met the Shepherds. And frankly, between you and another young man who tried his luck today, I'd say you came out slightly less burnt.
That draws a laugh out of me. "Also fair." I take a few deep breaths. "I think I'm fine. Probably. Aside from the nagging urge to hurl myself off a cliff, but I'm sure that'll pass too."
"Well, we'll see. In the meantime, come on." She extends a hand to me.
"Come on what? I already said I wasn't going to try again tonight."
"Not that, dummy. But I want you to show me the place you picked out." She smiles genuinely.
I take her hand and allow her to help me up. "What, the place I was gonna take Maribelle?"
"Yeah! Just because the actual date part didn't work out, doesn't mean you didn't pick a good spot for it. And the stars aren't in any hurry either. Come on, it'll take your mind off it."
I consider for a moment. "You know what? Alright. It'll be better than stewing in misery, in any case."
She frowns. "I'm glad my company is marginally better than embarrassed solitude."
I wave a hand. "Whatever, you know what I meant. Come on, it's not too far from here."
To my credit, I will say I did pick a pretty badass spot. The far side of the hill is secluded in spirit without actually being too far from where the gang set up camp, and while it's flanked by a few stray trees here and there, the spot I chose is in the middle of a small clearing, so the view of the sky is top-notch. It's also a really nice night, so the sky is clear and the air is mercifully cool for this time of midsummer. The perfect setting for a date.
If only the company were as perfect.
"So okay, we could take the main road through this pass here, but that would force us to deal with watching ourselves on multiple fronts, since there's high ground on the north side of the pass, and steep slopes to the south. We'd be dealing with a potential pincer ambush, jamming us between a figurative rock and a hard place, and aside from putting Sumia or some of the Exalt's pegasus guard in the air, we'd have no way of checking it out while keeping on the move. Of course, we could do that, but if a supposed ambush party were to have archers in their company, they would be sitting ducks and we wouldn't be able to help them, stuck in the bottom of the pass. So I've been looking through some alternate routes. Well okay, maybe more than 'some' now that I think about it…"
"I still can't believe you brought your map with us."
"Randall, not all of us can afford to laze around and romance duchesses all night. I need to decide on a final route for us soon, since if the weather holds up again we should get to the entrance of this pass sometime tomorrow."
"I know, I know. But like, you're killing the mood here a little."
She looks up from the map for a moment. "What, are you trying to create a mood here?"
I pinch the bridge of my nose. "Not what I meant. You wanted me to show you the spot I'd picked out, but your face has been jammed into that map pretty much the whole time we've been here."
"Hey, at least I'm including you in my strategizing. It's a sign of trust!"
"Can't imagine why you'd want me involved."
She shrugs. "You've got an instinct for this stuff, I can tell. Maybe not as strong as mine." A pause. "Yes, definitely not as strong as mine. But a second opinion helps, and I can barely drag one out of Chrom to save our lives. He prefers to leave it all to someone else."
"What makes you think I don't?"
She taps her temple. "Woman's intuition. Anyway, if you're so hell-bent on me staring at the stars, then help me pick a route for tomorrow!"
I sigh. "Fine. The way you describe it, the risk involved in just going for the pass involved a lot of ifs. I think we'll be fine just going through. It's not a really long pass, regardless. Let's just go for it."
"You think so?" she asks, starting to roll up the map slowly.
"Yes, I think so. Now look! I swear I just saw a shooting star!" I point frantically at the sky.
"Really?" She looks up too. Finally.
We both sit silently, staring at the sky and daring it to drop another one.
Waiting.
Waiting.
"Aha! There goes another one! Fuck yeah! Didja see it?" I ask.
She giggles at my excitement. "Yes, I saw it."
"Now make a wish!"
"Huh?"
"Oh. I don't know about Ylisse, but back where I'm from, when you see a shooting star, you're supposed to make a wish on it."
"Really? Why?"
I pause a moment. "I don't really know, actually. It's just a thing we did. Oh, and you can't tell anybody what you wish for, or else it'll never come true."
She laughs. "I doubt mine would come true regardless."
"Ooh, sounds juicey. What is it?" I ask.
"...You literally just said that you're not supposed to tell anyone," she deadpans.
"Well yeah, but if you don't think it'll happen anyway, what's the harm?"
"Well it might, though! I don't want to mess up my chance," she says, grinning with me at the childishness of it all.
"That's fair, I suppose. Keep your wish, then."
We sit for a while longer, basking in the light of the stars. I wonder faintly if folks around here bothered to think of constellations too. Maybe I'll have to come up with some myself.
Beside me, Robin yawns.
"Well, I'm sorry for being such dull company," I tease.
She rolls her eyes. "I'm just getting a little tired, is all. I do like it out here though. You picked a good spot, Randall. I'm sure she'd have liked it."
"I thought coming out here was supposed to take my mind off that whole disaster for a bit." I scowl.
"Well, did it?"
"...Huh. I guess it did."
"Well there you go. That's all I promised, after all." She looks pretty smug over there.
"In that case, thank you for that, then," I say.
"Anyway, we should get back. It's getting late, and we've a long day ahead of us tomorrow."
"Good idea."
I stand up and turn to help Robin to her feet. As she stands uphill from me, she's almost as tall as me. Noticing the same thing, she takes a step back and cranes her neck back. "So that's what the top of your head looks like. I had only heard rumors."
"Oh, come off it. Let's go."
"Fine, fine."
The walk back is uneventful, and by the time we get back to camp, it looks like pretty much everyone has gone to bed already. We come to a stop in front of her tent. Robin turns to face me.
"You know, considering it wasn't even supposed to be me joining you, I still had fun. Sometimes I need someone to remind me to take a breather. I get so into my planning and all… I guess I just wanted to thank you."
I cock an eyebrow. "I'm not sure if it counts, considering you did a fair amount of planning our march regardless."
She pouts at me. "Fine then. Good night, Randall."
I laugh as she ducks into her tent. "Good night, Robin." She might not have me under some socially-stunted spell like Maribelle, but I appreciate how easy she is to be around. I can see why someone like that would be able to support everyone in the army.
I still think she's playing matchmaker with some of these pairings, though.
The next day around noontime, the group reaches the entrance to the pass. I head up to the front of the pack to get a better look, and as everyone starts heading into the pass I realize why it looks so familiar here.
"Hey captain, what's this pass called again?" I ask Chrom, who also makes a habit out of walking near the front of the group.
"I think it's called Breakneck Pass. Let's hope the trip doesn't live up to the name, haha."
"Haha, yeah."
Oh fuck. I really should have paid closer attention to that map.
The rumor has been spreading around the caravan all morning. Someone saw someone who said they saw Robin and Randy coming back to camp well after dark, just the two of them, talking and laughing. Not that it bothers me, of course. Each of them can associate with whomever they please at whatever time they please, and it's no business of mine. I do wonder what he was going on about yesterday evening, though. Was he perhaps…? No, best not to dwell on it too much. Gods above, this march really does give one's mind too much time to wander…
The rumor has been spreading around the caravan all morning. Someone reported that an associate of theirs spotted Robin and Randall skulking about after dark, far away from anyone at camp, and that they were speaking in quiet, conspiring tones. This bothers me greatly. I will need to take greater care to keep an eye on the pair of them in the future. After all, if knowledge of the eastern palace falls into Plegia's hands, this entire expedition will have been for naught. For the time being, the pair of them are on probation as far as I am concerned. As much as I am loathe to go against milord's wishes, there are times when he is simply too trusting not only for his own good, but the good of the halidom at large. Fortunately for him, he has his steadfast knight to keep watch over any shady characters in our midst. I must protect Em –ahem– Lady Emmeryn at all costs, on my honor as a knight.
A/N: You know I'm getting into this story when I actually, physically stressed myself out writing that scene with Randall and Maribelle. Asking girls out is a nerve-wracking business, even in a fictitious setting where you dictate the outcome apparently! Hope you guys had fun with this one. It's unlikely I'll have another one up before Christmas, so Merry Christmas to all you lovely readers! As always, comments and critiques are welcome. See you next time!