We Do Not Own Fire Emblem or any of its Characters. Our tactician name is Ada and affinity is fire.
Every writer is a fustrated actor who recites his lines in the hidden auditorium of his skull.
-Rod Serling
Writers would be warm, loyal, and otherwise terrific people…if only they'd stop writing.
-Laura Miller
By My Troth I Love TheeBy Potter29vo and Michelle of the Night
Chapter II: Bluer than Blue
The very next morning, Priscilla found herself finished with the balcony except for one thing. Lord Hector wanted bells on the ceilings for some reason but she couldn't complete this task. She was never good with heights and it wasn't her fault as well. She grew up as a "princess" and some traits were still with her. Priscilla just stared miserably at the ladder then to the ceiling. This was not going to be easy.
Luckily, Priscilla caught sight of Serra running in the room. Serra must be done with the bailey already since it wasn't that hard of a job and she must be off to take a nice long bath before lunch. Priscilla, on the other hand, still had this to do and the whole dining room to do. Serra wasn't afraid of heights from what Priscilla can recall as she called for Serra to come. Serra might be a bit loud but her hearing was really good, even though she act dense all the time.
"Serra, please help me." Priscilla begged as Serra looked at the tower and then the pile of bells that were supposed to be hung up already.
"Priscilla, do not worry. This is simple." Serra replied as she grabbed a bunch of golden bells and climbed up the ladder with ease. Serra hung up a couple of them before going down and hanging up some more. Priscilla stood there and watched as the pile of bells emptied little by little.
After the very last bell was hung, Serra climbed down steadily and gave a gesture to Priscilla. "Priscilla, finish up the dining room. I will meet thee there after I put this ladder away." Serra had a little smirk on her face when she said the words "ladder away". Priscilla wondered why but found it better not to ask as she left for the dining room.
Serra grabbed the ladder and held it in her arms. The ladder was awfully easy to carry and very light as well. This would be the perfect weapon to use on a certain someone. The door swung open and Matthew came walking in. Serra's little smirk widened as she walked towards him.
"Matthew!" shrieked Serra that made him jump two feet into the air. Serra started walking shakily as if the ladder was terrible heavy. "Matthew! Help me! This ladder is making me lose balance!"
Serra carefully aimed the ladder at Matthew as she pretended to fall right in front of him, holding the ladder in front of her. Matthew's eyes widened as he ran away just in time to dodge the little move. Matthew knew what Serra was up to. Serra pretended that she lost balance again and started swinging the ladder all over the place.
Matthew barely ducked the second attack and jumped over the third one. He was getting really annoyed now. He felt lucky for being so fast as he ducked again from another swinging attack.
"Watch out Matthew! I am going to accidentally drop this ladder on thee!!!" Serra shouted as she started chasing Matthew with the ladder all over the balcony. Serra finally got Matthew to stop running by trapping him against a wall. Serra swung the ladder one more time, knowing she will hit Matthew this time for revenge.
But at the very moment, the door in between them open and Lord Hector was the one who got hit by the ladder right in the face. Serra dropped the ladder and ran after Priscilla to the dining room while Matthew sneaked away to the bailey without Hector noticing. Lord Hector was about to chase after Serra when he tripped over the ladder near his foot. Now, he was not only angry and hurt, he had to put the ladder away as well.
Priscilla headed for the dining room now and was setting everything up when Serra entered the room with a happy smile on. Even though Serra didn't succeed in hitting Matthew, she at least got Hector a small present in the face. Serra helped Priscilla quickly while the cooks brought endless dishes of honey butterscotch. Lord Hector loves his butterscotch and there was nothing Priscilla or Serra could do about it. Let the Marquess have what he wants.
Serra insisted on a long hot bath that Priscilla had to finish her job quickly. She was thankful that Serra was helping her or else, she would never get this job done in time. With the teamwork of the two healers, they finished in no time and headed off towards the bathrooms. Serra caught sight of the steward, who was also the Head Bishop. Serra rolled her eyes as the Head Bishop gave her an angry stare.
"Did ye do mass this morrow Serra?" The Head Bishop (or Steward) asked suspiciously as Serra turned a bit pale. It wasn't her fault that she did not do mass that morning.
"But I had to decorate the-" Serra was interrupted by the Head Bishop's hand gesture. The Head Bishop looked at Serra from top to bottom, shaking her head in disappointment. Ever since Serra was a cleric, she never really got along with the Head Bishop since they were like opposites. Serra was loud and never really concentrated on her praying and was always carefree. On the other hand, the Head Bishop was quiet and prays 4 times a day. She was never carefree and was always too serious for Serra.
"Serra…ye in big trouble thee know that? Nichole told me everything and I am very upset with thee. She is thy chambermaid and swept thy solar room every day so she should know. Now, there are guests coming over today, ye are free until tomorrow. Ye will make it up tomorrow." The Head Bishop continued doing her financial work while Serra rolled her eyes again before the two left for the bathrooms again.
On their way, they found Florina in the courtroom with some servants. Florina, as the lady of the house and the wife of the Marquess, had to command the maids and servants to clean the room for her. But knowing Florina, she did not enjoy this job at all. She wanted the servants to be happy and work on whatever they want to work on instead of helping her. Florina pretended to command the servants as Serra and Priscilla walked up to her.
Florina gave Serra and Priscilla miserable looks. "I do not like doing this. Commanding servants are not my specialty."
Serra just merely shook her head and placed her arm over Florina's shoulder in a friendly kind of way. "Florina, it's every girl's dream to command a group of people to dost their work for them."
Florina shook her head in disagreement. "Nay, not my… d-dream. My… d-dream is to be the best…Pegasus…knight." Serra looks like she was about to burst out laughing at this answer, but Priscilla thought it was a wonderful dream. Maybe it's because they had different point of views on every thing.
Serra gave a little shrug. "If thee hate doing this so much, then let thy sister Farina dost it. I know she would have enjoyed doing it as much as I dost." Florina shook her head gloomily.
"That…doesn't… work. I…t-tried once but my love…Hector…caught me and he said… that was neglecting my…d-duties as a lady of Ostia. Being…a…lady of Ostia is not easy as…it seemed." Serra tightened her grip around Florina's shoulder and gave her a little hug in a comforting way.
"I never knew being a lady of Ostia was so hard. Being a lady is never easy, at least that's how I felt about being lady as well." Priscilla suddenly started talking that it shocked both Serra and Florina. Priscilla had been awfully quiet a moment ago that they didn't even noticed she was there in the first place. But nevertheless, Florina nodded in reply as the three headed off together.
They were walking through the hallways when they met the pink-haired young girl under the name of Nichole. Nichole was Serra's chambermaid as well as one of Erk's students. When Nichole saw Serra coming through the hallway, she tried to sneak away into one of the men's room when Serra already caught her ear really hard.
"Good morrow Nichole, ye blabbermouth." Serra greeted harshly, not letting go of Nichole's ear.
Nichole started to cry as Priscilla ran over to help her. Priscilla gave Serra an evil glare for hurting such a young girl as Serra sighed. Serra knew Nichole way too well. Priscilla gave Nichole a sweet smile as she said, "So thou art Nichole, care to join us to the bathroom?" Serra's jaw dropped open as Florina jumped.
Florina, shakily, walked over by Priscilla's side. "Y-ye have…been…a…lady… so…thee…should…know…chambermaids…not…allowed…in…ladies'…room…" Priscilla, of course, knew about this but ignored it.
"Florina, ye forgot that she is also Erk's apprentices from what Serra had told me earlier and that she is allowed in the ladies' room." Priscilla argued as Florina backed down as Serra gave an evil glare at Nichole. Now, all four were heading off to the ladies' room.
Inside, they all undressed quickly and joined in the wooden tub which was filled with warm water with the scent of flowers. The scent was coming from the rose petals filled on top of the water. The four ladies enjoyed the little warmness of a morning bath as Serra suggested that everyone talk about something to pass the time. Of course, Serra was still on Nichole's case and urged that Nichole talk about something first.
Nichole thought hard before she came up with something appropriate to talk about in front of the older females around her. "Ever heard of why my teacher Erk got his name?" Serra's eyes immediately widened with interest as Priscilla tried hard not to show her interest. Priscilla did wonder about that sometimes, but thought it was too personal to ask Erk about.
"Tell us, Nichole." Serra commanded, leaving her full attention on Nichole now.
Nichole gave a big smile, as she washed her hair a little bit before speaking again. "I begged master Erk a million times before he told me. He told me that when Lady Louise and Lord Pent found him, he was under the name of Berkley. Lady Louise thought it was fine name, lengthy and handsome. But Lord Pent found that not true, he insisted on cutting the name down to only a few letters." Serra edged closer to Nichole in excitement.
Priscilla decided to say something this time. "Please do continue…"
Nichole washed her arms carefully, loving the water the ladies provided her with as she began talking again. "Lady Louise suggested the name "Berke", and it wasn't short enough for Lord Pent as she next suggested the name "Berk". That was short enough for Lord Pent but the name had an awful ring to it. So again, Lady Louise suggest "Erk" and Lord Pent claimed that was a short enough name and besides, they could not call him "Ek" or "Er". From that day on, his name was Erk." Serra could not contain her laughter any longer.
"By my troth! I could use that to blackmail him!" Serra cried out that made Priscilla shivered a bit. Priscilla did not like blackmailing but she knew that Serra must be joking. Florina joined the giggles as she never thought of why Erk was named "Erk" in the first place.
All the girls finished up their little time in the bathroom as they wore new clean clothes for the ball coming up. Nichole was delighted when Serra told her that she could join them for this party since she is Erk's student. Serra was still giggling at the info she barely got about him. Priscilla face darkened when she heard the name "Erk". It was almost time she saw him again, but she couldn't keep the anxiety inside her. She could not believe how much she missed him in a day already.
She had stayed up last night, thinking about him and her Lord brother. Another reason was she was not used to the bed at all. It was not as comfortable as the one she had at home at all. Maybe she should tell Sir Oswin to get her a new one, one as comfortable as the one Serra had. Of course, Serra must have complained about the bed a million times before it was changed.
Priscilla told Serra this as Serra laughed, "Well, duh. He always had this dislike for me. I always needed to be discipline, blah blah blah. But thee on the other hand is this sweet girl that used to be a princess is more than worthy to change thy bed to thy liking."
"I supposed…" Priscilla started saying. Serra was right, she might as well complain about that later.
Meanwhile, Lord Hector put the ladder away and headed for his solar room to dress up. He hated formal clothes but it was necessary according to Oswin and he had no choice. Lord Hector knew that he would be seeing his good friends Lord Eliwood and Lyndis again as well as the rest of his group today. He was delighted but scared at the same time. It had been almost one year and a half now and he wondered if any of the members changed in any way.
Hector walked to the kitchen and started counting the honey butterscotch around him. After a while, Hector counted all the honey butterscotch and was now red-eyed. "ONE HONEY BUTTESCOTCH IS MISSING!!! WHO STOLE THE BUTTERSCOTCH FROM THE BUTTERSCOTCH OVEN!!!"
Serra, Florina, Nichole, and Priscilla heard the noise as they shrugged and continued walking. Nichole caught sight of some other student she knows as she ran after him. He barely noticed of her, running towards him as he immediately dashed off and made a sharp turn out of sight. Serra couldn't help but laughed at this. It reminded her so much of Erk and herself.
Erk was sitting on the caravan with Pent, Louise, and James. James was one of his smartest students and offered to help him with the journey back to Pent and Louise. Erk was really nervous in going back to Ostia again. He was always running back and forth there so he could teach Nichole, his female student, and Shadow, his other male student. Erk always took the two with James all over the place to teach them about nature without staying for long in the castle of Ostia itself.
But now, he must stayed there. One reason was because Nichole begged him to and he couldn't say "nay". Second of all, both of the girls he known for a long time were there. One was Priscilla, which lost her will to live since of her brother's departure or at least, that's what rumors say and the other one was Serra, his former lover. He never forgot her, he found out. Whenever he waited in Ostia for Nichole and Shadow, he tried to look around for her and greeted her. But she seemed to never be around, and always running after Oswin or something.
Maybe he was jealous of Oswin, always by Serra's side. But sometimes he had to remind himself that he had feelings for Priscilla now. Serra was his past and Priscilla was his future. He could never forget this. His feelings for Serra were merely a crush and nothing more. For Priscilla, it was love. Lord Pent was right. You have to like before you could tell love. You have to feel the assumption of love before you could actually tell the real thing. And for Priscilla, it was definitely love.
James could see the look on his master's face and could tell that he was thinking really hard again. "Master Erk, something on thy mind?"
Erk liked James and would love to be honest with him. But James never really did endured love and it wouldn't be much help. Erk gave a glance to Pent and Louise. They were talking among themselves. "James, I guess ye wouldn't know much about love, do thee?" James looked confuse when Erk asked this question.
James merely shrugged. "Master, I might not have endured love but I am entitled to someone already. Our parents had a very good bond and we were to get married when I am a bit older and wiser. Master, are ye fond of some beautiful lovely lady?"
Erk knew all about James and since he had been honest with him, he should at least return the favor. Maybe James would understand what he is talking about. "I had found one beautiful lovely lady, but there is this other lady in which I used to like. The problems I had with the former lover never ended." Erk tried hard not to mention their names as he continued. "The trouble is I need to resolve these problems, but what if the one I love misunderstood these situations and took it as real love?"
Erk knew that sound awfully confusing, but James seemed to understand this really well since there was no sign of uncertainty on his face. James thought for a moment before answering. "Well, master, if the one ye love could not understand thy problems with your former lover, then it wasn't meant to be. From what I heard throughout my life, love was not only to give but to be received as well. If she understood thee, she will know what thou art going through. Love is not always easy to give and not always easy to forget either."
Erk's eyes were now wide opened now. "Wow…James…how do thee know so much about love?" James's face reddened slightly.
"Arianna tell me lots of stuff. Maybe I invite her over sometime. She is quite skilled in light magic." Erk could not help but show a bit of admiration to James now.
Hector was now storming through every single solar room, looking for the missing honey butterscotch while all the chambermaids and servants watch him silently. At least, the place was well decorated and nicely done. Oswin and Matthew were waiting in the front of the castle, waiting for the guests to arrive. The first to arrive was Kent, Sain, and Wil. Knowing Kent, they had to arrive on time or at least earlier.
Oswin shook Kent's hand as Matthew greeted Sain and Wil. People started arriving soon after the first four. The next group consisted of Lord Eliwood, Marcus, Harken, Isadora, Lowen, Rebecca, Dorcus, and Natalie. Then, the Sacaen group arrived as well. This included Karla, her husband Bartre, Karel, Guy, Lyndis, and Rath. And then some other people like Heath, Fiora, Lucius, Dart, and lots of other people. Lastly, Erk, Lord Pent, Louise, and James finally came.
There were only some people that didn't come. One was Renault, who disappeared after the battle like he never came in the first place. Another was Nino and Jaffar, but everyone knew what happened to them with the bounty hunters. Lastly, Vaida didn't come since she needed to head back for Bern and take care of some business. Almost everyone else did though.
James was standing quietly by Erk's sight when he saw two familiar figures. It was Nichole and Shadow. Nichole was delighted to see James while Shadow was trying to catch his breath behind her. James smiled to himself. Nichole must have caught Shadow again.
Shadow took a deep bow at Erk as Erk nodded for him to raise his head. Nichole took this opportunity to greet Erk. "Hey master! How art thou doing? Just letting ye know, I told Serra how thee got thy name!" Before Erk could do anything to Nichole, she already grabbed a hold of both James and Shadow as they sped off towards the castle. Erk knew Serra would use this piece of information to blackmail him later on. Speaking of Serra, he could not deny it any longer. He had been avoiding her for too long already. It was time to work things out.
Despite the lack of contact, Erk knew where Serra's room is. It was kind of funny how he still remembered the little things about her. Serra opened the door to her solar room as Erk turned bright red. Serra was wearing a long slender dress with a dark shade of pink. She was really striking, but that wasn't the reason why he was reddening. The reason was because one of her two thin straps was slipping at the moment and it was showing a lot of skin. Also, it was a little too easy to look down her chest.
"Nice top. Oops…I mean dress." Erk could not help himself but blurted out this comment. It did not come out right since Erk was not even staring at her dress. Serra noticed this as she quickly pulled up her strap as her cheeks grown red as well.
"Sorry, I was busy getting ready when thee knocked suddenly." Serra explained quickly as the two tried to avoid eye contact.
"Oh I'm sorry." Erk apologized quickly as he avoided eye contact as well. Their first meeting in a long time and Erk's first comment didn't come out right at all. "I just came to ask thee to hurry for dinner. I heard the specialty include honey butterscotch and chicken breast. Oops…I mean the white meat of the chicken." Now his face was really red now as he stared down at the floor in embarrassment.
Serra tends to ignore the misunderstanding. "Erky, I have to finish up. Wait for a moment." Serra immediately slammed the door as Erk waited patiently outside.
Serra straightened her dress three times even though she knew it was already straight enough. Today, Serra decided to leave her hair down and straightened it a bit. Serra brushed her hair multiple times before admitting that her hair looks ok. She kept on glancing at the small mirror on her cabinet every few seconds as she get everything ready. Serra cursed at herself for being so nervous now. Is it because she still had feelings for Erk? Serra could not get herself to admit this, as she looked through her many pairs of shoes in the boxes.
Even after Oswin warned her about the boxes, she did not listen and still kept them in the corner. Serra examined the first pair of shoes. It was way too simple for her taste as she looked at another. Serra totally forgotten about the cockroach problem so when she lifted another box, another baby cockroach come crawling out. As if planned, Serra screamed the minute she saw the tiny creature.
Erk heard Serra's scream from inside as he rushed in the door. Erk saw Serra shivering on the top of her desk. It's funny how girls always end up on top of a desk or chair when they caught sight of a cockroach or a spider. Erk could not help but stare at Serra instead of the cockroach. She looked dazzling now with her hair down and everything. "Serra…what's wrong? Ye lost thy shoes?" Erk asked in a sarcastic voice as Serra shook her head madly and pointed at the cockroach on the ground.
Erk stepped on the beast and gave Serra a curious look. "Serra, I killed the monster for thee." Erk said as he gave the same bow as Matthew's yesterday. Serra was quite irritated as she raised both her arms in a wanting way. Erk stared at the gesture and knew that she wanted him to help her down. Erk walked closer to Serra as she slowly wrapped her arms around his neck. Serra giggled to herself since Erk looked awfully handsome today in his formal outfit and all.
Erk placed his arms around her hips and held her tight before lifting her off the table. The assumed action would be to put her down, but something stopped him from doing this as the two stared at each other. It was really awkward just staring at each other since they haven't met in a long time and they had been avoiding each other for some time and especially after the lack of eye contact in the beginning.
If Nichole didn't run in and said, "Master, art thou going to put lady Serra down now? Now or never", Erk and Serra might have stayed in that position forever. Erk turned scarlet once more before placing Serra on her feet. Serra grabbed a pair of white heels and finally recovered her posture as she grabbed a hold of Nichole's ear.
"Nichole! What did I tell thee from entering my room without permission?" Serra demanded as Nichole struggled to get away. Nichole finally got away after much struggle as she giggled.
"How come master Erk doesn't need permission to go in thy room and heroically rescue thee from the table?" Nichole asked in a teasing way as she ran away before Serra could grab a hold of her ear again. Serra was now pissed as she placed her hands on her hips.
Erk tried to sneak away from Serra because he knew her too well now and he knew that staying around when she is mad was not a good idea at all. Serra turned her attention back to Erk as she quickly grabbed his shoulder. "Erky, how nice of thee to escort me to the courtroom!" Erk gave a small sighed as the two walked down the hallway.
They were halfway there when Priscilla finished getting ready, and left the door. When she left the room, she immediately bumped into Erk and Serra. Now it was Serra's turn to turn red as she said quickly in her defense. "Priscilla, don't misunderstand. We're just friends. Friends hold to each other's arm, don't they?"
Priscilla did not look angry but rather glad. "Of course I believe thee Serra. Erk, how come ye didn't tell me that thee came already?" Priscilla asked with a sweet smile on. Erk knew Priscilla was charming and calm person and would not think of anything wrong between him and Serra as he gave a sign of relief.
"Priscilla, I'm sorry. It was just Serra's room was closer." Erk explained as Priscilla nodded in understanding. Priscilla was wearing a nice dark green dress with small jewels on the bottom. "Priscilla, ye look dazzling." Erk commented slowly after examining her dress. This was a better way than what he told Serra at least.
Priscilla blushed as she thanked Erk for the compliment. Serra left the two alone as she headed down the hall alone. She accidentally dropped one of the feathers from her necklace when she left. Priscilla watched Serra while Erk carefully picked up the feather. It was one lovely soft feather he ever touched as he carefully stuffed it in his pocket quickly. Priscilla turned back to Erk as the two headed for the courtroom.
Everyone talked among themselves as they eat the delicious food before them. Erk was trying one of the famous chicken breast as the image of Serra popped into his head. The one when she barely opened the door and he made that really weird comment. Erk shook his head quickly to get rid of that image as he ate his food in silence. Priscilla knew something was bothering Erk as she watched him carefully with her eyes.
Sain suggested with that there should be a nice ball for everyone to dance to. Everyone started muttering in agreement as Shadow left to find the orchestra to play for them. When the orchestra finally came, they started playing fast music for everyone to dance to. Everyone got up to their feet with their dancing partner and started dancing to the music.
"Erk, want to dance?" Priscilla offered as Erk watched Lord Eliwood dancing with Lady Lyndis. Lady Lyndis, like always, was not wearing fancy dresses like the other females. She was wearing a plain shirt and skirt, but Lord Eliwood didn't seem to mind as the two sway to the music. Lyndis seemed to be looking for someone else, though, in the crowd of dancers. Erk looked up at Priscilla finally.
"Sorry, Priscilla. I don't know how." Erk answered simply as Priscilla placed her comforting hand on his shoulder.
"It's ok, Erk. I'll find myself another partner." Priscilla reassured him as she left and look for a partner. Erk really wanted to dance with Priscilla, but he knew he would just embarrass himself by not dancing.
Erk watched lots of people dance as a few females like Fiora or Rebecca even asked him to dance. Erk just politely rejected them as he sat by himself, drinking some of the wine left on the table for him. Erk couldn't help but feel guilty as he watched Priscilla danced with Sain, who looked like he was going to collapse any second. Erk then caught sight of another who was not dancing. That particular person is Serra.
Erk felt a bit nervous about walking over and keeping Serra company since Serra was one of the members of the old Lord Hector's team that was not so "great". Everyone always thought of her as an annoying immature girl that never helped anyone at all. But that is because no one took the time to know her. Erk thought this at first too, but now he changed his view towards her.
Serra was drinking some water since she knew she would get in trouble if the Head Bishop knew she was drinking wine again. Serra felt someone next to her, as she was about to throw the glass of water at him or her, but stopped when she saw Erk. Serra looked at him for a few moments just in case she got drunk off of water or something.
"Serra, ye don't mind me sitting here do thee?" Erk asked politely as Serra shrugged. Serra didn't want Priscilla to think that she was trying to hit on her lover or anything even if Erk is her ex-lover. "Boyfriend" was such an odd word to call Erk since they never fully went out or anything. But inside, Serra knew she needed some kind of company even if it was from her ex-lover.
"Erky, thou art here to escort me back to my room already?" Serra asked in her usual cheerful voice. Erk knew her too well now after being with her for a while that she was really miserable on the inside no matter how she acts on the outside. Erk didn't take that little act.
"Serra, thou art all by yourself. Is it because thee couldn't dance or is it thee just want to be alone?" Erk asked. As predicted, Serra immediately overreacted.
"What do thee mean I could not dance? Let me show thee." Serra immediately grabbed Erk's hand and pulled him towards all the other dancing partners. Erk was struggling to get away from this because he did feel bad for rejecting Priscilla earlier. Besides, he couldn't dance and would just embarrass both of them.
"But…Serra, I can't dance!" Erk argued but Serra wasn't listening or she was just ignoring his words. Sometimes he could not tell if she was dense or she was acting dense.
"I'll show thee, it's easy!" Serra insisted as she placed his left hand on her hips and hold onto his right hand tightly as the two started dancing slowly. Erk was relieved that the orchestra was now playing slow romantic music even if he didn't like romantic music much. He usually trips on those fast music.
Erk found himself tripping over Serra's heels twice but no one seemed to notice but Serra and Nichole, who were now currently dancing with an exhausted Shadow. Erk spotted Priscilla, who was now dancing with Lord Hector. Priscilla gave Erk a weird look before turning her attention back to Lord Hector. Erk wanted to reach out and asked her to dance with him instead. But this could never be done since he was who he is, and he would have never done that. Besides, Serra was his partner for now. Priscilla felt rejected on the inside as she watched Serra melting in Erk's arms, but she knew the first thing in a relationship is trust.
After another romantic dance, the two headed out for the bailey. The breeze was cool and the sky was clear. Erk was really dizzy from the dance since he was just following Serra around while not trying to trip at the same time. Erk also felt sick to his stomach for not being with Priscilla instead. If he loves Priscilla so much, then why had he spend his whole day with Serra?
Priscilla had finally finished up the dance with Eliwood as she sat down in her seat. Erk and Serra were not in the room anymore as Priscilla took a sip from her wine. She watched everyone dancing when Florina came up to her in tears. Priscilla immediately jumped up to her feet and gave Florina a tight hug.
"Florina, are ye ok?" Priscilla asked in an older sister kind of way. Why did she not come to Fiora or Farina about this? Priscilla decided not to ask such a question at this moment as she smoothened out Florina's hair.
Florina tried to hold back her tears as she spoke softly. "My sisters are miserable. What should I do?" Now, Priscilla knew why Florina could not speak to them. She could not speak to them because it's about them. Priscilla hugged Florina tighter.
"Tell me what happened."
Florina looked up at Priscilla with shiny tears in her eyes. No one seemed to notice that Florina and Priscilla were not dancing anymore and were together. Florina looked around quickly for any sign of Hector before speaking. "Dart loves my sister Farina, but my sister Farina loves Kent instead. Even more complicated, Kent is in love with my other sister Fiora, who instead is in love with Lord Eliwood. To add to that, Lord Eliwood do not love my sister but Lyndis instead. Lastly, Lyndis do not return Lord Eliwood love, but had given that love to Rath."
Priscilla's eyebrow raised a bit. This was indeed a problem. Priscilla could not think of a single thing to help Florina out as she just kept the silence and patted Florina on the shoulder. Florina finished sobbing as she headed back to her room. Priscilla decided to head for the balcony for some fresh air.
On her way there, she bumped into Erk's first student under the name of James. "Lady Priscilla, is it? May I have a word with thee?" James asked politely as Priscilla nodded.
Before Erk knew it, Serra and him were kissing. It must be all that wine he drank earlier. But while that small kiss, Erk could only think of Priscilla. What would it be like kissing her instead? Erk and Serra pulled away from each other at the same time and started laughing.
"Erky, I don't think we have that special spark for each other anymore." Serra stated in a playful voice as she started giggling to herself. Erk found this really funny as well despite what happened before.
"I should go find Priscilla now." Erk announced as he got up as Serra did as well. Serra followed Erk inside.
"Erky, I will always have a special spot in my heart for thee. But I will always love Saint Elimine and that's that." Serra decided to tell Erk that at least. Erk gave her a weird look.
"It's hard to forget old lovers."
"Verily so." Serra gave Erk a small smile before she gave him a small peck on the cheek as she headed back to the courtroom to find Matthew. Erk was about to follow Serra inside when he caught sight of Priscilla next to him.
"Priscilla, I'm sorry for today…" Erk was about to explain the whole thing when Priscilla grabbed a hold of Erk's hand. Priscilla did not look a big upset.
"It's ok. I know everything. James told me everything. It will take some time to work things out with Serra, but as long as we're together, we could work out anything. I will try to work out my feelings for my lord brother as well. He might be dead for all I know, but he is always in my heart." Priscilla said softly as she placed her head on his shoulder. Erk found this small time with Priscilla the best part of his day today. No, he wasn't over Serra yet. But yes, he loves Priscilla. Working the last things out with Serra would be a bit hard but as long as Priscilla is by his side, there will always be a better future for the three of them.
Potter29vo: The part about Serra being miserable in the inside was a bit of a tie-in to my one-shot: "You Don't Understand Me" except that was Erk/Serra not Erk/Priscilla. I have to put that in this story because it makes lots of sense. Thanks for all the reviews.
SweetMisery: You're right, they usually do not talk like that in the game but I am looking at another POV instead of what the game provide us with. Besides, in my opinion, it's interesting to read medieval dialogue. Thank goodness I didn't use that type of language for anything besides dialogue or else, I will have a lot of extra work to do. Even though I am prepare to do extra work to figure out the very life style of people at that time. For example, how you call bedrooms "solar rooms" and the garden "bailey", weird huh? And the thought of NO TV makes me dizzy. Thank you!
Serra9: As you could see, we put Nichole in for reviewing all of my stories. Thank you for all you had done for my stories!
Knight-Lord-Eliwood: Yeah, I was wondering about that too. Why are there so few Priscilla/Erk stories out there? Thank you for your support and review. It's people like you guys that make my time at a happy one. I love writing and I do not want to stop. Be sure to make me continue whenever I want to stop (which is not going to happen in a loooong time)
Davis3: Yeah, I do all the writing. Michelle does all the thinking. I am specialize in romance so I need her help on the comedy. If this reminded you of Shakespear, then I am doing a good job then. About the Erk/Serra and Erk/Priscilla, I understand since I am a true Erk/Serra fan while Michelle prefers Erk/Priscilla. So I am trying my hardest to try to keep this an Erk/Priscilla story. And I always do not want to choose Florina/Hector over Florina/Heath. Thank you for reviewing this story and my own.
R Amythest: Thank you for the advice, I will try to keep Michelle from overdoing the participation thing. I'll stop her for now. About the medieval language, I reduced it a little. About the game script, I'm sorry for not mentioning before that this is after defeat of the Black Fang. But I guess after reading this chapter, that probably answered that. Thanks for reviewing this story and my own.
Potter29vo: Anyways, I hope I put enough "modern" problems in this chapter. I just love adding modern problems without actually using modern technology like cell phones and television. The messed up relationship was just on the top of my head when I was bored in the theatre waiting for my mom. Babysitting your younger cousin was no fun! It's not going to be a main part of this story though since this is going to be based on mostly Erk/Priscilla. Also, I haven't found out what they call bathrooms back in those days so I have to use the word bathroom for now. Also, I haven't done much research on the designs of dress during those days so I just stick with modern ones for now. Anyways, sorry for the late update since I was on vacation and I do not trust Michelle with this story. Before I know it, it will be all comedy. Sorry for all the Serra/Erk scenes in this chapter for all the Priscilla/Erk fans out there. But I am just exaggerating the fact that it is always hard to forget old lovers. Now, must go update other stories!
Michelle of the Night: Urm, now my turn to answer some of the reviewers I know. I guess Minnie (you finally post your nickname) is more popular than me. If there are any reviewers I do not know, Minnie will answer them too since she loves typing so much.
Rednal29: I thought I made it kind of obvious who the father is, but I guess this chapter answered it for you. And you're right, I should state it more clearer next time or else some people might complain. You check every day? Thank you!!! I updated, at last, thanks to you and Zero84. Anyways, James is in for being so supportive with my Nino story. Thought I put a bit of Arianna in it.
Zero84: I hope I answer your question about the Erk name thing. I do wonder sometimes and we thought of a way to answer it for you. It might not be the real reason but this is one way I guess. You check every day as well??? Now I feel really guilty, better update before you guys come after me with torches. As you can see, I did add your "Shadow" in this story as well. You got your username back? That's great news. Thanks for being so supportive!
Cardmaster372: Hey! Thanks for your encouragement and review.
Michelle of the Night: Since Minnie said that she doesn't trust me with this story alone, which is really offensive (lol), I updated my other story at the time. Under Minnie's request, I had to stop the participating thing but having three students for Erk is all I need. Thanks. Sorry if I am not updating my other stories really fast because I don't spend my whole day on FFN unlike someone I know (Minnie).