Author's Note- Wow, it's been a while, hasn't it? School has decided to be brutal this year, but hopefully this chapter is as good or better than the previous ones. Once again, reviews and constructive criticism are apreicated.

Disclaimer- I do not own Fire Emblem, nor any related characters, events, etc., except for the few original characters that may, and eventually will appear over the course of the story.

Ewan, Enthusiastic Student

Chapter 4- A Friend In Need

"He's breathing. His recovery is a steady one. He should be fine in a few moments."

"Well, of course he's recovering. It doesn't take a genius like me to figure that out."

Ewan was still dazed from his encounter with the thief. He could hear these voices right by him, but couldn't tell whose they were. Though his eyes were still closed, he had deduced that one voice was that of a young man, the other voice a young woman's. His frail body was bruised all over, but Ewan was glad just to be alive. He truly felt that his life was over, that everything would end with one quick slash from the thief's gleaming dagger.

"I truly am grateful we found him before it was too late."

"Well, it was thanks to me that we did find him. Without me, he would be here without anyone to help him."

Ewan had no clue if he was back in Port Kiris, or somewhere else altogether. He could only tell that he was lying on soft grass, and that there was a cool breeze in the air. Crickets could be heard chirping nearby, so Ewan assumed it was almost if not already nighttime. The student tried to figure out the identity of the two speakers, but he felt too tired, too weary too try. Instead, he kept his eyes closed.

"We should not argue over who saved him. Instead, we should hope and pray for his well being."

"You're right. Then again, so was I. Really, I did find him lying unconscious in those trees."

Then the mage opened his eyes. Of the two people that stood before him, one was a tall young man with long robes of white and light blue, with a mess of curly brown hair like brambles of a forest. The other was short compared to the young man, and she wore robes of dark blue and purple, contrasting to her partner's light-colored garments. The two turned to him when he opened his eyes and sat up.

"Ah. Ewan, you're finally awake," the young man said in relief.

"Artur? Lute?" Ewan looked from one to the other in surprise. "What are you two doing here?"

"We found you lying unconscious nearby," Artur explained, in a gentle voice that suited a man of the cloth, "You were bruised all around, and Lute and I helped to heal your wounds."

"Yes," Lute started to say, speaking with a tone of confidence, "You know, if it weren't for us, you would still be there, injuries untended."

"Lute, please…" Artur tried to stop her, "He already knows what could have happened to him." The acolyte turned to Ewan, a reassuring smile on his face. "Ewan, we truly are grateful you are alright. But, if you don't mind me asking, what happened?"

Lute nodded at Artur's request, also curious of the turn of events that led to their not-so-lighthearted reunion. Ewan, still weary and shaken from the thief's attack, continued to sit up on the grass and he told his story to the two friends. He told of his departure from Caer Pelyn, of his meeting with Balor, of his arrival at Port Kiris, and of his encounter with the thief, who tricked him and threatened him with his life.

Artur sadly shook his head to himself, as if in disbelief. "Horrible…"

"As terrible as that situation is," Lute began, "we should remember that there are many people out there who are sadistic to anything that moves." Her eyes became stern, almost cold, as they gazed at Ewan's own innocent eyes. "And it is never too wise to trust strangers, Ewan. I thought you were smart enough to realize that."

"What about Eirika?" Ewan asked his fellow mage. Eirika, the leader of the group who vanquished the Demon King, had gained many allies throughout her journey, many of whom were strangers to her and her brigade. "She allowed us to travel and fight with her, didn't she? And we were only strangers to her at the time."

"Eirika also had companions of her own when she allowed us to join her entourage," Lute told Ewan matter-of-factly. "If we chose to go against her at any time, then her comrades would have simply subdued us. You, on the other hand, are traveling alone without proper precautions." The purple-clad mage pointed to Ewan's belongings piled on the ground nearby. "You did not bother to bring any light magic, nor did you choose to bring a healing staff for your wounds."

Ewan pondered to himself for a moment about Lute scolding him. Her words seemed icy to the core, but he knew that she had good intentions for reprimanding him. "Almost like Sis…" he thought, "except she's my age or even younger, though she really does sound a lot older than she is." He looked at Lute again and saw her still sternly looking at him, and he caught sight of Artur praying to himself under a nearby tree.

"Teacher Saleh hasn't taught me the use of light magic," Ewan explained, "At least, he hadn't taught me yet. And I thought that those vulneraries would be enough to heal me, especially since I didn't expect to have to fight anyone on my journey."

Artur, with a calm and devout presence, walked up to Ewan and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Ewan, even with the monsters of Fomortiis purged from this land, we can only pray that humans do not continue to seek violence among themselves." After saying this, the young acolyte handed Ewan a white and gold tome. "You may need this."

"But, this is your Lightning tome, isn't it?" Ewan asked. However, Artur smiled.

"Yes, but I do not wish to fight unless truly necessary. However, you might need this in case any more thieves decide to attack you."

Ewan smiled and nodded, in awe at the extent of Artur's benevolence. He also looked toward Lute, the mage prodigy whose words were as true as the cycles of the moon. These two had saved his life, and he knew now that they were truly his friends.

Having nowhere in particular to go, and needing some support, both for healing and morale, Ewan joined Lute and Artur on their way to Port Kiris. They had come from the Za'ha Woods, a dense forest which was a good distance south from the seaside city. Ewan, still weary from the thief's ambush, walked at a slower pace than Lute and Artur, almost limping and struggling to keep up with them. He was also in deep thought, as his mindset towards others was undoubtedly changed after the whole incident.

"Balor," he contemplated, "Don't tell me you are like that man. I trust you, Balor, I know you're different."

Lute and Artur both looked back, concerned about their redhead comrade.

"You, Lute, were ruthlessly honest to Ewan earlier." Artur explained.

Lute smiled. "Thank you."

"No," Artur moaned, placing a hand on his forehead. "That was not a compliment."

"Of course it was!" Lute stated, "I try to be an honest person, and if I was "ruthlessly honest", then I have reached my goal."

Artur merely sighed before telling her, "Just don't be so hard on him next time. What if you were in the same situation as he was?"

"I would simply outwit the poor thief. He, nor any other thief, would be able to harm me because-"

"Because you are superior," Artur finished her sentence for her. "Right?"

"Yes," she replied with a dignified tone. "That, and because I have you at my side."

The young monk was caught off guard by this compliment, and smiled at her, his cheeks a little flushed.

Lute continued, "Together we use both anima and light magic, so no magic-using enemy has a full advantage over us!"

Artur was a bit disappointed at Lute's comment, but nonetheless flattered that she considered him a valuable ally. He looked around him; the sky had transitioned from the orange glow of a sunset to the purple darkness of twilight. Stars had began to twinkle in the sky, as if winking and sending good fortune to him and his partners. A cool wind began to blow, but the warmth of friendship kept them going until they reached Port Kiris.

"What is your reason," Ewan started to ask, breaking the silence, "for going to Port Kiris anyway?"

"I am on a pilgrimage," Artur replied. "Lute is with me by my request."

"I will help dispose of any spiders that we happen to come across," Lute clarified, "Of course, I will attack them with love." Ewan smiled uneasily at this sadistic-sounding comment, but Artur ended his uneasiness.

"What she means is that she used to help me get rid of spiders. When she protected me from those humongous baels, she did it out of love for me. That is," Artur added quickly, "out of love for Eirika's whole group as well."

Ewan decided not to ask any more about their journey; he started to think uneasily about Artur's fear of spiders and Lute's idea of love. Nonetheless, seeing two friends after having your life threatened is never a bad thing, so with this Ewan happily continued walking, confident that fortune would smile on him and his allies.

A good half an hour had passed before the group reached familiar sight of Port Kiris. Night had already fallen, and no one seemed to want to walk around in the dark. The rooms of many nearby houses were lit, and it was easy to hear the voices of many talkative women, gloating men, or excited children. Even when the sun was gone, Port Kiris seemed to resonate with excitement and livelihood.

"So, what now?" Ewan inquired. "It's getting late."

"We have to find an inn to spend the night in," Artur explained to the quizzical mage. "But where?"

"There." Lute pointed to a three-story building in the distance. "It looks like a place that can hold a lot of people, so I would not be surprised if it was an inn."

When the three arrived at the building, they realized that it was, just as Lute predicted, an inn. They walked in and saw a relatively empty lobby, save for the manager behind the desk and a lone customer. The customer was surprisingly young; not much older than Ewan. She was about as tall as Artur, but she had flowing pink hair and wore a white cloak over a faded pink shirt and skirt. It was more than this unusual choice of clothing that immediately caught Ewan's eye.

"So that will be fifty gold for one night's stay. Is that okay, Miss Lorian?" the innkeeper asked the young lady.

Lorian smiled and cheerfully replied, "Yes, fifty gold. Thanks, Mr. Anthony!"

"Anytime, lass," the innkeeper told her, as she started to count the money to pay for her night's stay. In the meantime, Artur had been conversing with Ewan about their destination.

"Tomorrow we are boarding a boat for Cataris Island," Artur told Ewan, who still had other things on his mind. "Not many people visit there, but it is an ideal place for people who are on pilgrimages."

"So that means you, right?"

"Exactly. It was said that a very renowned bishop lived there and much of his knowledge is kept there in secret."

"Interesting…"

"Can I help you?" the innkeeper interrupted the conversation. Lute hastily replied for the whole group.

"We would like to rent three rooms for the night."

"Okay then, fifty gold each," demanded the innkeeper. Both Artur and Lute were prepared with their payments, but when Ewan searched his robes for his satchel of money…

"Oh no! My money was stolen!" Again, the red-clad mage started to panic. He did not want to abuse the generosity of his friends, nor did he want to have to sleep in the outdoors.

"Here's his money, Anthony."

Ewan looked to his side and, to his surprise, saw the girl Lorian handing Anthony fifty gold coins. The pupil remained speechless as she turned and smiled at Ewan.

"Well, lad, looks like Lorian here saved you, huh?" Anthony started to laugh heartily as if he had never laughed before. After he stopped laughing, Anthony retrieved three keys from under his table and gave them to his newest customers. "You're all paid for. Your rooms are numbers eight, nine, andten on the third floor. Enjoy your stay!"

Artur and Lute had already taken their keys and headed up the stairs to their respective rooms. Lorian, too, had taken her leave for her room. Ewan, however, was too confused at her sudden but appreciated gift. Now he felt that he had found another potential ally, and possibly something else altogether.

"She's generous and gorgeous! Wow, what a combination!"