It's been a while since we updated this one, huh? What's up guys? How about another chapter of Songstress? Lots of you have asked for a continuation for a while; even more have made pairing suggestions. All I can say is that after this part things will take a very interesting turn. Some of you are going to like it and others not so much. But we're going with it all the same.

Let's begin shall we?

Vulnerability (Black Eagles X)

"Look at the size of this place..." gasps Edelgard.

Myself and the princess enter a dining hall with a high cieling; the door squeaks closed behind us. The air in here is thick and musty; a chore on the chest.

Thankfully we're alone in here - for now. A blessing which sees my noble comrade sheathe the knife she carries and pass it over, the tension in her shoulders easing a fraction. "Keep it close," she advises. "There might be more."

"Don't need to tell me twice." Tasked with the responsibility of safeguarding our only weapon, I buckle its sheathe to my hip.

A single huge table spans from the doorway where we stand to the other end of the chamber. A sparse smattering of candles atop its length provide much-needed light. Chairs line the table's sides, with a narrow gangways left open to provide safe passage.

"Sure is spacious." A quick sweep of my finger over the tablecloth brings away a thick layer of dust. The placemats and cutlery are equally grubby. "Dirty as all hell though. When did it last see a duster? It's gotta have been a while." Even Hilda's notoriously messy bedroom never became this dust-laden.

"Likely a very long time," Edelgard agrees, moving ahead. "All the more reason we investigate," she urges, waving me over. "Quickly, while the coast is clear."

Cautious of her safety, I remain close. "By your side, My Lady."

Three stained glass windows at the far end of the room depict saintly figures. The central window shows Goddess Sothis in adorned in elegant white robes (a woman I'm familiar with thanks to the church library) though I'm totally unacquainted with revered individuals in the windows to her left and right. A sage-like follow with a bald head, and a regal knight brandishing a huge shield. Very fitting for the zealous individuals who locked us in here.

Wooden crates stacked at the table's right-hand side stop further traversal, while two hulking suits of armour platemail block passage over on the left. A crude but effective method to pen us in. There's a hefty iron door beyond the improvised barricades; barred shut and blocked off with an oaken cabinet.

"Dammit," Edelgard mutters.

"We could climb on the table," I suggest. "Nothing's stopping us."

"I wouldn't recommend we do that. It will cause noise. As would shifting the armour. The risk is too great."

"Then we crawl underneath instead."

"A good idea," Edelgard kneels and lifts the tablecloth. "...No," she sighs. "Perhaps not. It's too dark."

"I'll help. Hold on." I collect a candlestick and hold it toward the unknown void. The underside of the table is cramped and dusty; a pair of bloodied bear traps await our escape attempt. Their teeth are razor sharp, daring us to delve within.

A bitter laugh and a roll of the eyes on my part. "Between this and the boxes, someone would prefer we stay put."

Edelgard massages her forehead with her thumb and forefinger, groaning with great annoyance. "...I concur. But this won't stop me. I'm a von Hresvelg. We do not roll over and accept defeat... under any circumstances."

Invigorated by her determination, I pat the noble lassie on the shoulder. "That's the spirit, milady. We'll keep looking."

"Right."

Edelgard points past me. "Over there." I trace her line of sight. Two tall cobweb-covered bookcases are propped against the left side wall across from us - a large gap between them. "Can you check the books, Rolan? While it won't aid our leaving, I would hope there's a useful journal or tome within."

"To find out where we are, at least?"

"Correct," she nods, brushing past and returning the way we came. There are a pair of wooden draws beside the doorway we first emerged from. "In the meantime, I'll look for anything of use over here. You never know," she finishes, her lips rising into a tired smile.

"Of course," I answer, bowing my head. "I'll have a look."

Walking around the table, I stop before the bookcase. I set down the candlestick on the table behind me. Blowing off the dust kicks a plume right into my face. Caught unaware, I shift a hasty hand over my mouth and cough into my palm.

"Did you find anything?" Edelgard pauses her search and peers over, alerted by the noise.

"No," I rasp, my throat horse and irritated. "...But this place needs a sweep." Wafting the air clean, I get to reading.

Skimming the book spines paints a very clear picture. Most top shelf tomes discuss faith and warfare. Several volumes in particular reference chapters in the Church of Seiros' history; including military campaigns and the like. Professor Byleth taught us about these in class. I remember her having a great deal of fun reading them. It was as much a learning experience for her as it was us; and a happy memory of my time as a Golden Deer.

The next row down (and the one underneath) contain texts on Adrestia's historical events. Most of these I've never heard of. Some drone on in fancy wording about uprisings and unrest, while others give details on laws and customs. An interesting read, surely, but nothing helpful right now.

Three shelves have been checked and two remain. And that's when I see a book which feels out of place. "What do we have here?"

Interested, I remove it from its cubby corner.

Every book I've seen so far has been heavy; bound in fancy brown leather with titles and dates etched into the spines or covers. This book is different; smaller for starters. The front lacks a title and is tattered, close to falling off. Flicking through its washed-out pages shows scruffy handwriting and blotchy stains. Many parts can't be read on account of being so messy. A diary, I'll guess.

A handful of pages (far further in) can be read without issue.

I lean up against the bookcase, using my finger as a guide to follow the lines.

'We took the Hresvelg girl. Her protectors didn't put up much of a fight; there wasn't time. I sold her clothes and trinkets. They amounted to a nice handful of coin - the proceeds will be donated to the Western Church coffers. Sir Gregory came by earlier, carrying a young man about Hresvelg's age over his shoulder. Said we should lock him up too, interrogate him. I put him in the store room, beside her. I'll sell his clothes and belongings in the morning. The knife should be worth a pretty penny. Until Sir Gregory returns my orders are to watch them. Not that they'll escape. The only route of escape is through a secret door behind the left-hand bookcase in the dining room - even if they somehow get loose. Every other route is locked or rigged with traps.'

Answer provided, I re-join Edelgard. "I found it." She's busy rooting through draws.

"...An old book?" the princess raises a brow, distracted from her quest for worthwhile items.

I reopen the diary to the correct page and place it into her hands. "Yes. It belonged to the guard who watched us."

Edelgard's eyes blaze over the page in a hurry. "...A secret passage." Reinvigorated, she aims her sights upon the bookcase. Leading the way, she hurries on over. It doesn't take long for her to start pulling out books, glancing at their contents and piling them up. "Rolan," she continues commandingly, drawing me to her side with a sharp finger snap, "this shelf does not appear nailed down. I'll empty the books while you move them."

"Not just yet; safety takes priority." I lean against shelf, using my weight to hold it steady. "We wouldn't want it to topple."

"A keen observation." Edelgard continues unloading books and stacking them beside the suits of armour. "Thank you."

The books are soon removed. We work as a team to relocate them across the room and out of our direct path. "Done," I pause against a dining chair for a quick rest. Our first is task complete; a tall stack of books sits behind the dinner table. "Next comes the shelf." I roll up my sleeves. "Looks heavy."

"I'm sure we'll manage." Edelgard's positions herself to the right of the bookcase.

Ready, I take up my place at the left. "Have you done this before, My Lady? Manual work."

No reply at first. Edelgard appears a bit unsteady, nervous even. "Very little until I enrolled at Garreg Mach," she replies - quite matter of fact. "It's uncommon for Adrestian nobles to entertain physical labour. Outside of combat training, of course."

Thankfully I'm no stranger to hard jobs. Waking at dawn to kneed bread and haul bags of flour saw to that. "I imagined as much," I answer with a chuckle, earning a small frown from my companion. "Lift with your legs, not your back, and you'll be fine. At the count of three, alright?"

"Very well," nods Edelgard, bending her knees a fraction. "On your word."

"Three... two... one... go!"

With a united heave and all-important cooperation, we succeed in shifting the bookcase. My heart is left pounding afterward, but Edelgard is nearly unphased. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she pumps a victorious fist. "Good work."

"You're strong, milady. Very strong..." I present her a thumbs up, smiling exhaustedly. My body is heavy with fatigue.

"One must persevere to reach their goals," Edelgard tells me with strength and pride. "A lesson soon learned as a daughter of royalty."

Propped against the wall, I take a well-deserved breath. "I gathered." Righting myself, I shake my head clear. "Let's go then."

A door waits where the bookshelf once was - just as the diary said. Its face is varnished black and its handle made of weathered bronze. Upon closer inspection there is an insignia not unlike that belonging to the Church of Seiros on its front.

"I'll lead." Edelgard grabs for the handle, eager as ever to take command. "Stay close, would you?" It could be my imagination, but I swear her cheeks are a bit pink - flushed even. "Actually, Rolan... may we pause? Just for a moment...?"

"Is everything alright?"

"Fine. Just fine. But I'd prefer you remain behind me; in truth. So I might safeguard you. I do not wish to see a friend in danger."

The admission throws me off guard. There's a flutter in my chest, if only for a second. "You want to be friends?"

"I had hoped so..." Edelgard sounds reserved but hopeful. I'd go so far as calling her gentle. "...Considering our situation."

I wouldn't have thought Adrestia's future empress a compassionate sort. Before joining the Black Eagles she had an aloofness about her - an invisible wall which kept people (aside her classmates) at a distance. At least, that's how it felt. What I've seen while captive is surprising. When taken from her duties she's a different person in lots of ways. I'm a little nervous as to her reasons. "Is this an order as house leader?"

"A request. From a woman who keeps the company of few friends..." There's a hint of pain in Edelgard's voice. Releasing the handle and stepping back from door, she extends a hand for me to grasp. "...I struggle to trust those around me. But you've proven worthy, by helping in my time of need. So I must know before we travel any further. Is your wilfulness to support me a facade?" She looks me dead in the eye, her cheeks a dark crimson. "...Or is it genuine?"

"It's real," I answer plainly, free of doubts. I meet my eyes with hers to prove the point. "This is who I am. I'll help anyone - so long as there's something about them I like." I take the hand offered, joining her fingers with mine. "And you have a really powerful aura."

"An aura?" Edelgard squeezes my digits with affection. A surprisingly earnest showing. "Me?"

"Darn right. A special something; charisma. It makes you respectable, and pretty damn scary." If she desires my friendship I'd better air my grievances also. "If anything I've worried about your motives; the powerful folks usually trod on us commoners." I take a step nearer. Where I expect Edelgard to recoil she shivers at our closeness. "...Can I trust you, Your Highness?"

"So long as you're loyal," Edelgard whispers in a subdued manner. "Remain loyal and I will treat you with care and respect, always." Coming to her senses, she snatches her hand and retreats. "F-Forgive me... Being isolated and alone makes me feel...dismayed. I usually have guards nearby, or Hubert." Turning from me, she grabs for the door handle again, exhaling to soothe her shaken nerves. "A lapse in composure. Nothing more."

A lapse I found lovely, though I'll not admit it. "A lapse. Of course." I smile weakly. "Let's be off then. Lead the way, My Lady."

"R-Right." Edelgard pulls wide the unknown door. I fall in behind her.

A single lantern atop a wooden side table grants just enough light to cut through the murk. We're faced with what appears to be a cramped pantry; the stink of damp and mould are almost eye-watering. Soaking wet sacks labelled 'flour' are stacked up against a blackened rear wall, beside loose piles of bruised; worm-ridden red applies.

"Over there," points Edelgard. To the left of the flour stacks is a bolted window shutter.

"Finally." Relief washes over me. "Let's get outta here."

Edelgard forges onward while I close the pantry door. When I return she's sliding the bolt loose and releasing the shutter latch; there's a calm breeze once the window is open. The beginnings of a sunrise greet us on the horizon, and a two story barn constructed of wood can be seen off in the distance. Best of all, we're at ground level. There's no issue of heights or falling to consider.

"I'll check we're clear," Edelgard begins, lifting a leg onto the windowsill. I avert my eyes out of respect for her lack of undergarments. "Follow my lead."

I climb through the window once Edelgard is through. A fine enough escape point, though I would've preferred to use the door.

Freed at last from our trappings, we crouch low and carefully sneak further from the building using the tall grass as cover. The further we get the more obvious it becomes that our prison was a small ministerial building. I'm not a man of faith, true. But I know a church when I see one. There don't appear to be any more guards on patrol, either. Clearly that damned Gregory didn't want to advertise suspicion by posting large numbers of soldiers.

Gaining distance (and the rising sun) reveals more in the way of surroundings. There's pastureland with cows to the west of us. A long road forks from their enclosure to a clustered collection of houses. At least six of them; smoke rises from their chimney stacks. We're not in the middle of nowhere at least. I'll accept small blessings given recent events. Anything is better than being lost in the wilderness.

Pausing, Edelgard sees fit to talk after a long while of silence. "We must weigh our options." She looks ahead to the now not so distant barn. "Do we hide for a while, or carefully enter the village in hopes of finding help?"

Something tells me keeping quiet and out of sight is a good idea.

"The barn. We can't be sure if these people are connected to the Western Church or simple townsfolk."

"A fair deduction." Edelgard rises from the grass. I'm taken aback for a moment. Dawn's fragile rays bathe her in a most gorgeous glow; her ivory skin shimmers. She's outstanding to behold, even when adorned in rags. "What is it...?" she asks cautiously, having noticed my less than subtle admiration. "Is there something wrong?" Buttoning my borrowed and bloodstained jacket, she shyly hides her eyes from mine. "...Do speak up, Rolan."

My heartbeat pounds unexpectedly, while a jitter claims my stomach. "No, you're fine milady. I-It's better we get moving." The corners of my mouth lift into a glassy smile. I'm not one for honeyed words and scoundrels charm. Focused instead on the barn, I walk onward with spirit.

Despite my efforts to get ahead, Edelgard matches my pace with ease. She's at my back; her breathing signals how near she is.

Frustrated by my flighty affections, I ball my hand into a fist. And release. Ball. Release. Ball. Release.

And still my heart races. Races in ways it shouldn't. Races for a woman whom I wish it wouldn't.

The cold distrust I grasped so tightly has melted; replaced by respect and admiration. My haunting fear of unknown intentions has lifted like a thin morning fog. Where I want to keep my distance, I cannot. I feel safe so long as Edelgard is near me. Protected and secure. Our current danger is my motivator. It needs to be; it has to be. To find appeal in a princess for any other reason is stupid. Nothing good will come of it.

A barn is the last place I would hide under normal circumstances. But unusual happenings make for equally unusual comforts. Edelgard took it upon herself to climb a flimsy wooden ladder and huddle into the loft space's furthest secluded corner. Tucked behind a hay bale and a trunk of old farming tools, she'll be hard to spot at a bat of the eye. Even if somebody finds her, no farmhand will believe she's of noble origins while dressed in rags and a ruined jacket.

Sitting next to her, I rest my hands in my lap.

There's silence between us for a long time. I welcome it.

Between lugging a bookcase and the adrenaline birthed by overpowering a six foot tall knight, I'm spent. An unwilling yawn falls tumbles from my mouth. I'll deal with what I have - a warm bed or the privacy of a locked door be damned. My eyes close; I can't fight the urge to rest any longer.

There's shuffling off to my right. Edelgard lulls her head against my shoulder, causing me to open an eye out of surprise. "Permit me to share your warmth," she speaks softly, an element of sincerity present in her request. "What I'm wearing is far from comfortable."

There's no way I can let her shiver in those god-awful scraps.

Driven by kindness, and my heart athunder all the while, I wrap an arm around Edelgard's slender middle and hug my body to hers.

I feel her shiver against me, a grateful sigh following. "My thanks."

"Anytime, Princess. Anytime."

Edelgard clutches my shirt, nestling into the nape of my neck, snuggling nearer until she's halfway sitting in my lap. Far nearer than I can handle.

Her body is trembling. So is mine. Despite my best efforts, I've gone from half-asleep to wide awake in a second flat.

Overpowered and at her mercy, Edelgard's rapid breaths cause my head to spin.

"I've never felt so vulnerable... until today." Her confession is quiet but alluringly laced. "It's disgusting... And yet, I enjoy it. Needing someone."

A sentiment I understand. I'm the worlds worst for struggling with problems even when they're beyond my ability to handle. But somehow I know that isn't what Edelgard means. Her tone of voice is buttery smooth; similar to Dorothea's when she sneaks into my dormitory after dark.

I open my eyes to find the future empress staring into me - her two pools of crystal blue submerging my will. She raps desperately; beads of sweat slither down her forehead. Crawling into my lap, she leans nearer and nearer, our noses touching. She grabs for the collar of my shirt, her lips brushing against mine.

"Rolan," she utters, her voice a hauntingly blissful echo. "I'll never be allowed to feel this way again. Not once we return to Garreg Mach..."

"Normal I'm guessing? Like the rest of us?" I coil my arms around Edelgard's shoulders. She purrs at my fingertips stroking her skin. "No guards... No duties."

"Yes..." she confesses, "It's liberating... but also frightening."

Overtaken by passion, I see clearly at last. "Then allow me to protect you."

"Don't let go of me," she whispers into my ear. "Please..."

I do not love Edelgard von Hresvelg; my longing is different. I'm attracted to her power, her persona.

And while I want to hate her royal standing, I can only admire her, dote upon her orders, and lust after her radiance.

I'm a Black Eagle - now more than ever. And my house leader has made a request of me. A request I cannot refuse.

"As you wish."

Edelgard presses her lips to mine - an offering I accept gladly - for it will only come once in my lifetime.

Slipping my outstretched palms beneath her tattered clothing, I sink my nails into the clammy skin of her back, moaning into her, indulging upon all she is.

True to my word, I'll do everything I can to ensure her safety. And more. We'll uncover a road to Garreg Mach together... after some much needed respite.

To be continued...

There you have it! Did you enjoy it? Would you like to see more in future? Feel free to leave some feedback and share your thoughts. As always, keep on supporting Fire Emblem and I'll see you in the next chapter. Thanks again!