Mark stumbled back and forth through the plains. He squinted, holding his hand to block the sun. There was nothing but plains for miles. When he said he wanted to see the world, he meant it, but this was just stupid. Surely there was more to the world than this? All he did was head north-east out of Etruria and after one or two mountains, this was all he'd seen. He was getting pretty tired of it too. His pack weighed heavy on his back, filled with a bedroll, several bookshelves worth of books, one fire tome, and a sword for defence.

"I shouldn't have… forgotten that water…" He panted to himself, staring at the endless blue sky. His vision started to blur in and out. He contemplated the endless blue above and endless green below. It would make a lovely painting, like the ones his father used to make. He held a hand out towards the horizon in an attempt to grab it. The simple action ruined his delicate balance and sent him face first into the grass. He groaned lightly and rolled to his back. Clouds passed by aimlessly, not caring about the fact that he was dying. Mark held up his hands, watching as they added a new player in the painting. He swayed them back and forth watching as they left patterns in his mind. Eventually his hands fell to his side, unable to maintain their position. He sighed.

"Alright, time to get up I guess." He said. And waited. For several minutes. "Alright." He corrected himself. "Looks like I'm staying here. His vision blurred once more, slowly going back to normal. He was hungry, dehydrated, suffering from minor blood loss, and to top it off he had a headache. That was the worst thing, to be honest. He hated headaches more than anything. More than his hunger. More than his thirst. More than the sealed wound in his side. He should check up on that actually. He casually leaned forward and pulled the knife out of his side, examining it. That bandit sure got him, didn't he? Mark blinked twice at the knife, as realization hit him. He looked at his side, the wound now gushing out blood. Mark layed there for a moment, before looking back to the sky and laughing at his idiocy.

"Well." He said, to no one. "What a way to go, huh? Can't say I ever saw this coming." He stared at the sky. Hardly even able to move his eyes anymore. He stared. And stared. And eventually reached a state where he felt like he was simply going to bed. His eyes closed. He felt the light breeze of the plains caress his face, sending his mid length brown hair in a light frenzy. He smiled. This isn't so bad. He thought. I'm just going to sleep. From the blood loss I've achieved at this point, I'm not going to wake up either. He yawned. Oh well. He thought, using the last of his strength to shift his pack to be a pillow. Just before he fell asleep, he felt shade suddenly greet him. He lazily opened his eyes to see the shadow of a long haired individual against the sky.

"Oh, hi." Mark said without enthusiasm. "Are you here to take me to… heaven…" He smiled, laughing slightly, coughing, and going under.

When he woke up, the sky was gone. Instead, there was the tan ceiling of a hide tent. He blinked a few times before looking to his side. No one there. He looked to his other side. No one there. No one in front. No one in back. He was alone in this little room, resting on a bed. He looked down at his side, noting that his wounds were bandaged. He leaned back against the soft pillow someone had put behind him. He smiled contently and fell back asleep. He slept what seemed to be an eternity. When he awoke he was in the same place. He frowned a little bit. How boring. He thought. I really hope the afterlife isn't just one lonely room. That would be so sad. This time, he heard a ruffling to his side. He turned his head. Standing with his back to him was a person in a tael piece of clothing. Long green hair tied in a single ponytail reached the person's waist, where there was a sword strapped to their side. They had a rather nice waist too. Looking up, he saw earrings. Huh. He thought. There aren't supposed to be any Sacaen people here. At least, according to that one book. Though, it was somewhat outdated. Plus, the nomads move constantly. Then it hit him. It didn't matter. This was the afterlife. It's not like the plainsfolk were denied access to the afterlife. He laughed a little to himself for his stupidity, but it came out like a pained wheeze. The person turned around.

Now determined to be female, for obvious reasons, Mark looked plainly at the woman standing in front of him. Yup. He thought to himself happily. This is most certainly the afterlife. There's no way someone like her would be this close to me while I'm in a bed otherwise. The look on the woman's rather pretty face turned into a radiant smile.

"Oh, you're finally awake!" She said happily, putting down the bowl of soup she was holding. She kneeled by the bed and examined Mark's face. "I've got to say, I was worried I was going to lose you there! What's your name?" Mark creased his eyebrow in confusion. Lost him? How does one get lost in the afterlife? Well whatever, he could figure it out later. Mark smiled and opened his mouth to speak but couldn't. The smile on the woman's face slowly faded into a more grim expression.

"I guess you aren't fully healed. That makes sense. You were near dead when I found you." She stood up and went back to the soup. Well, I'm all dead now, hahaha! Mark wanted to quip, but his vocal chords refused. Man, why did the afterlife suck so far? He'd done nothing but sleep and stare at a wall. Now when there was a beautiful woman next to him he couldn't even lay on the charms. Figures. He thought. I wonder if this has to do with that tomb I raided? The woman came back with the soup and held the spoon to his lips. He ate it begrudgingly. It wasn't quite the rich food he was used to, but it would do for now. There were probably restaurants in the afterlife he could get better meals at.

"That should help your voice recover. You should be able to talk in a few minutes. Special Sacaen recipe." She said smiling, standing up and drinking from a different bowl she had poured for herself. The remained in silence until Mark suddenly began to cough violently. He shot up and doubled over, spitting up mucus. Eventually it stopped. He breathed raggedly, staring at his bedding.

"What… the hell…" He said weakly.

"See? I told you it would work!" The woman said proudly. "So, let's try again." She brushed her clothing to free it from wrinkles, and then did a gesture with both hands that Mark didn't recognize.. "I'm Lyn. I saved you from dying in the plains, and this is my home. What is your name?" She waited. Mark blinked.

"...Saved me from dying?" He said. His spirits slowly fell. He was really looking forward to that whole afterlife gig.

Lyn looked at him confused. "...Yes? It was the right thing to do, and I really don't mind you staying here or anything, really, it's no trouble-" Mark held up a hand in thought and Lyn quietly faded into silence. I'm not dead! Mark exclaimed in his head. DAMMIT. He grimaced. Lyn leaned in.

"Hey are you alright? Are you in pain?" She asked. Mark shook his head, sighing.

"No, no, I'm alright thanks to you." He brushed his hands off on his bedding before extending a hand. "Hello Lyn." He said, smiling. Maybe this won't be so bad. He thought. "Thank you for saving me. My name is Mark, and I am a travelling scholar and tactician by trade." Lyn's eyes widened in excitement.

"You travel?" She said happily. Mark frowned a little. I'm a scholar and a tactician, and she decides to hone in on the fact that I travel.

"Well, yes, but I still have quite a lot of this world to see. I was hoping to make it to Ilia through Sacae but…" Mark looked at his bandaged side. "Well, looks like that's going on hold for a little while."

Lyn stared at him thoughtfully. "Ilia…" She pondered. "That's where Florina is from! I've always wanted to see it. It has that… thing right?" She held her arms out wide, bewildering Mark as to what she could possibly mean.

"You're uh… Going to have to be a bit more specific there Lyn." Mark said flatly. Lyn put down her arms and creased her brow in frustration, turning to her side in thought.

"You know, what's it called? It's supposed to be cold and white and-" Lyn clapped her hands together and looked back at Mark having figured it out. "Snew right?" She said happily. Mark stared at her blankly before it hit him.

"You… you mean snow?" He said, cracking a smile and trying his best not to laugh.

"Yes, that!" She said, eyes twinkling with wonder. "When you're better will you… take me with you on your travels? I-I know that's a lot to ask but I've always wanted to see the world, and you seem nice so… what do you say?" Mark didn't reply. "I can fight too!" Lyn offered further. "So, I can stop wounds like that from happening again. Please? I really want to see the rest of the world! Theres… nothing left here for me to see." She looked down for a moment before her head rose again in determination. Mark stared at her, suddenly fully sobered and serious. Lyn seemed to notice this change in him, because she leaned in a little closer to get at his face.

"Are you sure you're alright? You look sick all of a sudden." she offered. Mark stared at the blanket that covered his legs as his mind went back down tormented roads.

"I DENOUNCE YOU!" Mark had shouted at his parents, throwing his father's latest work, a commision for the Lord Yerion on the northern border. "You have betrayed me, our family, and all of Etruria! How could you!" Mark shouted further, tears brimming in his eyes.

"Do you think we'll allow you to continue living here with that insulting tongue? What I did was for your own good! You cannot comprehend the situation!" Mark's father said sternly. He too, was on the brink of tears.

"I don't care if you won't let me live here." Mark had said. "Because I…. I want to see the rest of the world!" Her had turned away from his parents, and quietly finished. "...There's nothing left here for me to see."

"Hey!" Lyn said, waving a hand in front of his face. Mark breathed in sharply, snapping back into the present. Where was I? He thought. Oh right. Lyn.

Mark sighed and smiled weakly. "I don't think so Lyn. I'm kinda making the trip to prove a point. If you really want to come that badly, ask your parents to take you sometime or something." He meant it as an offhand rejection, but Lyn's whole posture changed at the end.

"My parents are dead." she said flatly, staring at the floor. Mark waited for more context. But it didn't come.

"...Oh. I'm sorry." He said. Now he just felt like an asshole. "I-I suppose I could take-" Just as he said that, Lyn's head snapped up and she looked to the wall. Was she trying not to look at him, thinking he was lying? Was she about to cry or something? Mark scooted forward a little and continued. "N-No really, I'll take you with me if-" Lyn, without looking, shot up a hand and clamped it over his mouth. Mark swallowed hard for a variety of reasons. His eyes fluttered towards Lyn as she slowly rose from the bed and grabbed the sword by her side..

"Stay here." she whispered. "I'll be right back."

"What's happening?" Mark asked. Lyn looked at him, a clear look of fright in her eyes.

"Bandits. Not uncommon around here. Just wait. You're in no condition to fight." Lyn turned to the opening, took a deep breath, and walked outside. Mark stared at the ceiling for a while. Should I really do nothing? I've done a lot of fighting, I could at least use magic. Mark swallowed hard and rose from the bed, pain shooting through his side. He took a couple sharp breaths before finishing his ascent. He reached into his pack, propped against the wall, and pulled out his fire tome. He hobbled out into the blinding sunlight.

Lyn was a little ways away, hiding in some tall grass. About two hundred yards or so off, there were two men with axes walking towards the tent. They seemed in good spirits, joking and laughing with eachother until they reached a giant white building. One of them gave a signal to the other, and then walked into the white building. The other one kept coming towards the tent. Mark hobbled to Lyn and collapsed next to her. She almost impaled him with her sword before she saw who it was. Mark smiled meekly.

"...Hi?" He said nervously. Lyn huffed a little before helping him up into a crouch.

"Why did you come outside?" Lyn said.

Mark held up his tome. "To help!" He said cheerfully. He pointed to his side, and then the approaching bandit. "You helped me with a pain in my side, I can at least help you get rid of a pain in yours." Mark winked. Charms back in full swing, he thought to himself. Lyn stared at him for a moment before actually breaking into light laughter, holding a hand over her mouth to stop the noise.

"Alright then." She said. "You said you were a tactician right?" Mark nodded. Lyn gestured to the bandit. "Then go ahead and tell me what to do. I put myself in your hands." Mark thought for a moment.

"Ok." He said leaning closer. "Stay here, attack him on my signal."

Lyn nodded. "What's the signal?" she said, as Mark turned and crawled away through the tall grass.

"You'll know." Mark said as he left. Mark continued until he was to the right and behind of the bandit, careful to have only moved when the wind was blowing, so that moving grass wouldn't cause suspicion. Just as the bandit got to where Lyn was, Mark hopped up standing fully, and set his hand on fire with a giant ball of fire.

"HEY, BASTARD!" Mark shouted at the top of his lungs. He must've guessed the name right because the bandit turned to him. "YOU LOOK A LITTLE COLD!" He held the fire ball up higher. The bandit growled at him and fully turned around. Mark smiled. Bye. He thought. Lyn rose, directly behind the bandit, never having moved. One swift stab later, and the bandit was lost in the grass. Mark smiled and extinguished his hand. He made his way back to Lyn, who looked a whole lot less scared now.

"Perfect." She said, glaring at the bandit. "This is for everyone!" She said a little louder. Mark cocked his head to the side.

"Everyone?" He asked. Lyn nodded.

"I'll explain later. What's the plan for the next one. Same thing?" She asked. Mark nodded and got back into position.

A few minutes later, the bigger bandit came out of the white building and called out for his now deceased pal. Confused, he started coming towards the tent to investigate. Perfect. Mark lay perfectly still, watching the bandit closely, waiting for his chance to distract. Eventually, he rose up.

"HEY UGLY!" He shouted, holding another ball of fire. This time, the bandit turned and immediatly charged Mark.

"Who do you think you are?" He shouted angrily. "You think you can stand up to Batta the Beast?" His axe gleamed in the sunlight. Mark felt a couple beads of sweat go down his face. This was not the optimal situation. Lyn never got the chance to strike due to this guy's berserking nature.

Not good. Mark thought. He fired off the ball from his hand, and Batta dodged it easily. NOT GOOD. Mark thought now, more urgently. He stood still, unable to move quickly because of his injuries. He noticed Lyn running up silently behind the bandit, sword at the ready. Mark fired off fireball after fireball, only once hitting him. It hit his shoulder, and he simply grimaced and shrugged it off. Mark had one last plan.

"Try me then." He said, assuming a hand to hand combat position and smiling his best cocky smile. Just as Batta got into melee range, Mark dodged the only way his body could: falling in place. Mark fell backwards. Please Lyn. He thought before hitting the ground. Make it to him in time. Batta swung and missed, a look of confusion on his face from Mark's odd dodge. It bought just enough time. Lyn let out a cry and stabbed Batta in the hip. He turned and swung with inhuman reflexes, catching Lyn on the side of her thigh. She cried out in pain and fell to one knee. Batta laughed and raised his axe. Mark quickly fired off a small fireball that hit his wrist, causing him to drop his axe and grab his wrist in pain. He bent over forward and let out a cry. Now in range, Lyn dealt the finishing blow, right into his chest.

Batta slowly looked down at his chest. "Wh-What? How… How did you…?" The life slowly left his eyes as he slumped onto Lyn, who grunted at the weight. Mark crawled over to the two of them and, using the rest of his strength, ripped Batta off of Lyn. Crawling to her side, he turned onto his back and stared at the sky with Lyn by his side. They both panted heavily.

"That was…" Lyn started. "...close." She said after several more breaths. Mark nodded in agreement. They stayed like this for maybe an hour or so, not speaking, and eventually regaining control of their senses.

"So…" Mark said, exhaling deeply. He turned to her. "You said you wanted to travel?"

AN- Hey there, Matt here. This is going to be a little side project of mine that I'm only going to do whenever I feel inspired to do it. Luckily I feel like writing a bunch for this right now and nothing but time so expect at least I'd say 8 chapters before school started again (Late August) and probably a few Song for Peace and War chapters as well. In fact that one should come again pretty soon. Anyways, as you can tell this is for FE7, which has always been my personal favorite. In this, even though he is technically the "playable character" Mark is in no way meant to be me or like me. My biggest goal for this fic is to explore the ways the Mark could have been deeper invested in the story of FE7 than he already was. Essentially I'm going to give him plot relevance on par with at least the likes of Oswin or Nino. As such, expect some cannon changes, some tragic tales, and overall a more in depth look into what Mark could have been if he wasn't the silent lovable guy he was. He wasn't in the character selection thingy for the description, so I've used "OC" to represent him. See you all again soon. ~Matt.