Note: Chapter 1, finished! Thanks to Toastyann and Meowsap for your reviews, and the people who took time to read!
Hm. I think I might've made the character's out of character here. If I have, sorry! I probably need to play the game again. Oh, and which would be better in your opinion, EphraimxTana or CormagxTana?
Oh yeah, I'm not very confident with my writing skills, so constructive criticism is gratefully welcomed. –offers chocolate block-
I don't own anything.
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2 Months has passed. The Renais Castle. The Frelian prince and princess have decided to stay here for the time being, as the Renais castle was closer to the intelligence stops than the Frelia Castle. After a long, tiring period of vigorous work, the crowned heads are finally being allowed temporary rest.
"Brother! Have you seen Tana's armor anywhere?" Eirika called out, her voice resonating off the walls of the large corridor.
"How should I know where a girl keeps her belongings?" Ephraim's grumbled response was heard wafting from inside his study. Then a pause. "…What? Tana's armor? What is she planning to do?" His head popped out from behind the wooden door.
The now-official Queen glanced at her brother distractedly. "Oh, she wants to spar with me. Although the fact that we wield different weapons makes things a bit…" her voice trailed off as she looked again at Ephraim thoughtfully. Ephraim stiffened, cautious now.
"You…wield lances too. How about y-"
"Ah! No, I'm…uh, too busy." Ephraim retreated hurriedly back into the study, shutting the door with a firm snap behind him.
Eirika laughed, guessing her brother probably remembered the last time Tana had persuaded him to spar. The over-zealous Pegasus rider had, in her attempts to impress the crown-prince, hit too wildly, causing the unprepared Ephraim to topple over her in an attempt to stay upright. This, of course, had resulted in a furious accusation from Innes, who had just so happened to come around the corner, followed by a gaggle of servants. The news was all over the castle within a day, and Ephraim was grounded for a month.
"Once bitten, twice shy, Ephraim! I'm sure you won't abuse Tana again."
"I was not abusing her. She merely unbalanced." The door had reopened, and Ephraim looked out at Eirika, quick to correct her. "And her brother was coincidently walking by just as it happened. He did not need to overreact."
"Ah. Well, it's a shame you are so afraid of Innes. Tana would have been delighted to spar with another lance wielder." Eirika sighed whilst shaking her head, as if disappointed at a King's lack of valor.
Well, that stung Ephraim's pride. He glowered at his twin, grabbed his cloak from its hook, and strode past, heading towards the practice grounds.
A smile tugged at the corner of her lips. Men.
She was about to head off to her next task, when she noticed a sheaf of papers sitting on Ephraim's desk. Even from the doorway, she could see it was post-war reports, unopened. Deciding that this was probably more important, she walked into the messy room and sat down at the desk, flicking open the envelopes. Her eyes scanned the pages slowly.
More villages found burnt…2 squadrons of knights placed in bandit area, total of 103 bandits killed and captured, count still rising…rebuilding of various farms, doing relatively fine…crop prices already rising…more bandit groups sighted…
Her eyes skimmed all the way down the page and onto the next, leafing through the next few reports. Sighing, she placed the new pages onto the growing pile of reports next to an almost empty inkwell.
"My brother works too hard. I'm glad he has a chance to relax for the moment."
"As am I, my Queen." Eirika spun on the spot, her body almost leaping out of her skin. There, a look that could almost pass as amusement settling on his face was a knight. A certain red haired knight.
"Seth! Y-you…gave me quite a fright. I was just…just sorting through these reports." Waving a hand vaguely at the pile, she smiled weakly at the Silver General.
"I noticed. The king will surely thank you for your efforts when he is back." Seth gave a small smile back and bowed, his crimson red hair falling forward to cover his face.
Eirika frowned. No matter how much she had pestered him, he still clung resolutely to these 'official procedures'. She opened her mouth to tell him, again, what she thought of these formalities, but was stopped short when Seth rose, frowning.
"My liege, where are your escorts?"
A sigh of exasperation escaped Eirika. "Seth, I don't think I need escorts here. I'm well protected enough without more people breathing down my neck."
"But, if you pardon me for saying so…no castle is protected enough that a well-trained assassin cannot find a way in. And with everybody busy with rebuilding…enemies hit you where you think you are most safe, my liege. And that's--"
"In my own castle? Surrounded by some of the best knights in Magvel? Besides, you know full well I can defend myself." She cut the knight off, knowing where this conversation could lead to.
Seth made an uncertain sound, and Eirika, though loath to admit it, could see the knight still looked at her as if she was a frail, defenseless princess, a child in need of protection.
The thought pained her; she knew Seth would never look down at her as inferior, but at the very least, he could see her as a friend…after all, and he had been looking after her since she was a youngster.
I guess old habits die hard…
"And if it ever comes to that, my brother is across the room from me, and you know he is a good fighter." She added, in a tone of finality.
For a few seconds, there was silence as Seth struggled to find a drawback to her arguments. Finally, he gave up and sighed.
"Princess, at least let me…or another know where you are going, so we do not worry if you cannot be found."
"I will, thank you for your concern, Seth." She smiled warmly at him, grateful for his concern. He bowed, mumbling something about it being "his duty".
There was a heavy pause.
"Lady Eirika? " An uncertain voice crept in from outside, snapping the tension like a string. Seth stood to attention abruptly, and Eirika could have sworn she heard a soft sigh of relief seep from the paladin. A man dressed in a servant's worn attire stopped at the door and gave a deep bow.
"My lady, sanction to speak?" Eirika nodded, and the man continued. "You have visitors, my liege. A Sage and a…young girl. There was also an unrecognizable individual…"
"Wait, Lady Eirika, I should go and see if they are unsuspicious before you meet them..."
Eirika gave a thin smile at them, and walked out, dogged closely by Seth. She had an idea as to who these visitors might be…but why would they be visiting her? The Sacred Stone was safe, there had been no recent sightings of fiends in dangerous numbers, and everything was going relatively well. So, it must be a purely social visit, Eirika concluded, relaxing.
She walked out onto the cobblestone entrance path, and the nearest knights, who had been busy staring at something near the gates, noticed her, each falling into a practiced bow.
Her way cleared, the Queen could finally see her visitor's faces as they moved into the courtyard.
And they looked anything but social.