Apologies for the wait everyone. I think after the weight of the previous two chapters my mind needed a bit of a break to refocus. Thanks to everyone for their reviews the past two chapters, your reactions to what was one of the most critical moments in the story have been very encouraging!


Chapter 40: Animal Magnetism

My legs are growing weak.

My lungs are burning.

The weight across my back feels heavier by the second.

I still don't have a damn shirt.

And there is an angry mob chasing me.

I find myself in these situations far too often these days.

Well, maybe not this exact situation. Running for my life from a small army of enemies trying to kill me has come up more than a few times in the past year. But I'm not usually carrying somebody while doing so. And I'm usually fully clothed, so thanks for that Henry.

Good news though: I was right when I thought I could pick the Dark mage up and toss him around without any problems! The kid really is light, though after all this time carrying him he's starting to feel… less so. If we get back to the Shepherds in one piece Stahl and I are going to need to get some food in him. No way can a person weigh so little without some serious malnourishment going on.

"Over there! He ran down that alley!"

"Careful! Don't get too close or he'll tear you apart!"

"I've got him!"

No footsteps close by, so I take that as a cue to throw myself to the side. An arrow flies past where I was just standing. They're getting smarter about this, the bastards. It takes effort to push myself off the wall I've fallen against, and I manage to book it around the corner before the next arrow can hit me.

"You holding up alright, Henry?" I ask the mage draped across my back.

"This is really uncomfortable." Henry mumbles. I'm about to apologize when he continues in a sing-song voice. "Love iiiiit."

Poor kid pushed himself too far earlier. The guards we had captured were already a strain on his magic output before that vindictive asshole of a King came marching down the main drag with his entourage. Thanks to him showing up unwanted Henry had to work twice as hard, and the soldiers followed us twice as fast. My head start turned out to only be enough time to pick the kid up and go. Terrible results for a plan that was aiming to crush their morale entirely. That'll teach me to aim too high with the Butcher persona.

"Are we gonna die here Ben?" Henry asks quietly, clinging to my neck as I climb onto a crate and use the height to scramble over a wall. He barely needs my help to stay on my back honestly, for such a frail kid he has a hell of a grip.

"Fuck that." I reply immediately, voice strained from exhaustion and strangulation both. "You said you wanted the best death ever, remember? I can't let you die here, this death sucks ass!"

Henry chuckles weakly at that, "It is pretty terrible. No explosions. And I didn't even get to kill anybody."

"Yup. So cool it with that fatalism bullshit and let me get us out of this shit." I say, still not at all sure how I'll make that happen. Well for starters… "Nobody's on us right this moment. Hang on, I'm going to climb a roof."

Climbing a roof is far easier said than done, especially since I'm exhausted and have Henry hanging off of me like dead weight. I've barely dragged myself over the edge when I hear voices and footsteps approaching. Henry lets go of my back and rolls away onto the roof as I stare down cautiously. Several guards with torches are looking around in the alley below. None of them are looking up.

Basic stealth trick. Nobody ever thinks to look up. It's a big part of how ninjas got away with so much shit back in the day. And if Gaius' stories are to be believed, a big part of how he gets away with half the shit he pulls as well. Sumia's one of the only people to have caught him pulling his rafter maneuvers, and that's because as a Pegasus Knight she's trained to always look up for trouble.

These assholes don't have that kind of background. So after looking around at ground level for a while they quickly move on none the wiser. Unaware that their prey is practically within arm's reach.

I watch them round the corner, then sit back with a grin, resting my head and staring into space. That should buy us some breathing… time.

Something is blotting out the stars directly above us.

I throw myself at Henry, dragging the mage to the side just as the talons of a wyvern slam against the roof where his body would have been. I barely manage to stop from sliding off the damn roof, and look up to see a snarling face full of scales and teeth bearing down at me.

"Oh come the fuck ON!" I yell in frustration, "ONE MINUTE. CAN I GET ONE FUCKING MINUTE!?"

"Should have thought of that before you came into our city, Butcher!" The wyvern rider calls triumphantly, "I'm gonna have your head on a spike in King Gangrel's throne room within the hour! I'll make General for sure with this!"

"Congratulations." I say drily, not paying the man much attention. Between the rider and the wyvern itself, the big fire breathing lizard is definitely the bigger threat. Though it doesn't seem to be quite so interested in eating me now… If anything it seems confused.

"What are you waiting for Bloodbath, kill him already!" The man urges, and I feel immediately furious and nauseated.

"That is. The SHITTIEST name. I have ever fucking heard." I snap, glaring at the rider, "Where do you get off naming a wyvern something stupid like that you fucking twelve year old edgelord wanna-be badass. I half want to go back on that no kill rule just to teach you a lesson. It's practically- no, you know what? I'm calling it. This absolutely qualifies as animal abuse."

"You won't think it's so shitty when Bloodbath is bathing in your blood!" He responds indignantly. And without a trace of irony.

This may be the worst human being I've ever met. Which may be why his wyvern looks so unwilling to follow his commands. It just stares at me. Almost as if… as if it recognizes me.

And then I notice the scar on its chest from that time it took a spear to the lung and suddenly I recognize it too. The red wyvern I helped save in Breakneck Pass.

I don't even think about it from there. I just start singing.

Ooh ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh oo-ooh oo-ooh

Don't worry

The wyvern's eyes widen a little. The rider's eyes narrow. "Wait, what the hell are you doing?" He cries indignantly. "I'm about to kill you, dammit! The least you can do is stop singing and die properly!"

"Oh come get me yourself, you blowhard." I roll my eyes. "Do your own dirty work instead of making the wyvern do it."

"His name is Bloodbath!"

"Nope." I look the wyvern in the eye. "That's a stupid name. You need something more… dignified."

"Are you trying to name my wyvern!?"

"Got it." I snap my fingers. "Robert. That's the name of the guy who wrote 'Don't Worry', that song you seem to like. Bobby for short."

"His name is not Bobby, it's Bloodbath! How the hell do you expect me to strike fear into the hearts of my foes riding a wyvern named Bobby!?" The man screams in frustration, unstrapping his legs from the wyvern's saddle and climbing down, brandishing an axe. "Enough of this farce! Bloodbath, let's deal with this bastard!"

Robert looks at the rider, waving his axe around and foaming at the mouth with rage. Then turns to me. I look Robert in the eyes, turn to the rider, then look back to Robert and raise an eyebrow. Robert snorts a plume of smoke, picks the rider up in his jaws, and tosses him off the roof. He lets out a very manly shriek before bouncing off a stack of barrels and laying in the alley in a silent heap.

"Geez, I hope you didn't kill him." I mutter. "Been making a point of not killing anybody tonight. Trying to do a whole… a whole thing here."

The rider lets out a low groan.

"Oh good, he's fine." I reply. "Well. Thanks for that, Robert. I think I'd better get going though. Somebody probably heard the racket he was making." I pat the wyvern gratefully on the neck, and turn to get Henry.

Robert seems to have problems with that. I've barely taken two steps before he's stuck his big scaly head in my way. I stare blankly at him for a moment. Robert rolls his eyes (which just looks weird on a wyvern) and nods towards his saddle.

"Wait, seriously?" I blink in surprise.

Robert gives me an exasperated look, as if saying 'I just threw my old rider off a roof for you, get on already.'

"Hell yes!" I grin at the unexpected good fortune that I've suddenly found myself with. "Hang on, just let me grab the kid."

Robert snorts impatiently, nudges me firmly towards the saddle, and picks Henry up by the robes with his jaws. "Oh. Yeah, that works too."

It takes a bit of effort to climb into the saddle properly, and longer than I'd like to strap my legs up properly. Once I'm strapped in Robert deposits Henry in front of me. The boy pulls his cloak from his shoulders and hands it to me as he gets situated. "You'll want this when we're in the air, trust me." He says. "Flying can get really cold, especially at night. Why'd you take your shirt off anyways? Sure wasn't smart of you!"

"You lit it on fire, asshole." I reply irritably, fixing the cloak to my shoulders.

"Nya ha hah!" He chuckles weakly, leaning back against my chest as I take Robert's reigns. We don't have a good way to secure him at the moment, so he basically just has to rest against me while we fly.

I give Robert a nudge in the side with my boots, and he takes off. We fly low over the city, gliding almost silently. Flying too fast would draw the attention of the other wyverns out looking for us, and the wyvern seems to understand that. We head towards the river in silence, then start making our way north. If any riders see us they don't seem to notice we don't fit in, and nobody follows us out of the city. I guess the thought of fugitives befriending one of the wyverns hunting them is too far-fetched to occur to them.

And before long, the city of Dolgrim is just a faint silhouette behind us. We're safe. Robert picks up the pace, and we eagerly put as much distance between ourselves and the city as we can.

"You know something." Henry says after a while, barely audible over the rushing of air in our ears.

"What?" I ask loudly.

"Robert is a good name for a wyvern."

"Better than Bloodbath, that's for fucking sure." I reply.

Henry cackles at that. "Even I wouldn't name a wyvern Bloodbath."

I laugh along with him, relieved to finally be safe, if only for a while.


Despite my paranoia that the world is going to fall apart around me once again, the flight back to Regna Ferox goes pretty smoothly. I don't have a lot of supplies in my bag, but what I do have proves enough to last the dramatically shortened travel time that having a wyvern provides, the three of us making the return journey in only a few days. I bypass the Longfort's walls, and touch down a distance from Auream Dominus, the capital of Western Ferox. It's the closest major city to the Ferox-Plegia border, and was to be where we would return triumphant with Emmeryn, had the plan not been doomed from the start.

I send several green flare spells into the air. The first time I've done so since we first set up the stupid system. There have been woefully few times where the signal for things going well has been useful.

Still, when they see a shirtless armed man, a dark mage, and a wyvern approaching the gates to the most prosperous city in Regna Ferox, the guards and citizens are not at all happy. This is because I, in my infinite wisdom, somehow failed to remember that Robin and Miriel didn't work out the signal flare spells until shortly after we left Regna Ferox. So the local city guard? Not exactly up to date on the whole 'green is good' thing.

There's a few tense seconds as I see Henry and the guards gearing up for a fight. And just as I worry arrows and black magic is about to start flying… Nowi lands in between our two groups in dragon form, with a very frantic looking Gaius clinging to her neck.

"BEN!" Nowi yells excitedly upon seeing me, shrinking into her human form and running over. "You're alive!"

"What the hell Nowi!" Gaius shrieks, falling out of the air behind her. I send him a sympathetic look, but am unable to do much more than that before Nowi is on top of me.

When Nowi gets excited enough she sometimes starts acting like a particularly large squirrel, clambering circles around whatever has her attention. In this case this amounts to me suddenly having an armful of hyperactive Manakete, only to have the girl hanging off my neck before I can properly adjust. Robert catches me with his nose before I can fall over, and by the time I'm back on my feet Nowi is sitting on my shoulders running her hands through my hair. Since my hair has been getting increasingly tangled from all the flying I've been doing, this results in a lot of painful tugging on my scalp.

"Hey Nowi." I say with a wince as my head gets tugged back and forth. "I'm alive, yeah."

"And clearly got up to some crazy shit while we were gone, judging by the company you're keeping." Gaius replies, grinning up at me as he picks himself off the ground. "Just what I'd expect from you, Chuckles."

"Right!" I look over to Henry and Robert, indicating the two of them. "This is Henry, formerly of the Grimleal, and Robert, one of those wyverns that nearly ate me that one time. They helped me escape from Dolgrim."

"Hi!" Henry grins cheerfully. "Nice to meet you!"

Gaius' grin falters a bit as he takes in Henry's smile. "Uhh, yeah, feeling's mutual. Probably. Ben, can I talk to you for a second?"

"You don't have to worry about being discrete." I say flatly. "I know he's a creepy bugger. He knows he's a creepy bugger. We all know he's a creepy bugger."

"Nya ha hah!"

"He seems alright to me." Nowi says, now hanging upside down from Robert's neck. "You have a very nice smile Henry."

"Why thank you!"

"So, is everyone back now?" I ask Gaius. "I figured with the wyvern we'd be well ahead of you guys getting back."

"Not all of us, no." Gaius shrugs. "We got back first because we were transporting wounded. Nowi and I stole a couple of sleds so we could go ahead with them. Nearly got caught by one of the Plegian bigshots, this guy named Mustafa. But when he found out we were transporting wounded he let us go by and went after Blue instead. And when we got to the extraction point it was a straight flight home by griffin."

"Right, they can make the flight without rest stops." I nod in understanding, "So… you two, and I'm assuming Maribelle and Lissa?"

A look of… something passes over Gaius' face, too quick for me to identify. "Yeah. Yeah, they're both here."

"Are they alright?" I ask intently, focusing my gaze on Gaius. When he turns away my voice sharpens. "Gaius. What happened?"

"What happened?" Gaius smiles bitterly. "You know what happened, Chuckles. From what I've been told you were right in the thick of it. Just…" He sighs. "Princess isn't taking it too well."


I'm both surprised and unsurprised to find Maribelle standing outside Lissa's door. It's something of a relief, honestly. I'd trust Maribelle to scare off trouble more than any guard. She'd send any Feroxi packing. Especially as she looks now, back straight, standing next to the door with her parasol planted point down on the floor in front of her like a claymore, expression grim.

That severity is only lessened slightly when she sees Gaius and I approaching. "Goodness, Ben!" She says, eyes widening as she spots me, "When I heard what had happened I feared the worst for you. However did you escape that disaster?"

"Oh, you know. Made some friends, stole a wyvern…" I shrug with a grin, "Had myself a merry little adventure."

Maribelle gives me a relieved smile, but her eyes remain saddened. "Well, glad as I am to see you alive, I'm not sure your presence will be appreciated any more than my own. My darling Lissa is… very distraught. And rightfully so."

Gaius chooses that moment to speak up. "No harm in checking, right Twinkles? It could do her some good to hear he's alright."

Maribelle looks to Gaius consideringly. "I… suppose not. Very well. One moment." She turns away from us to knock on Lissa's door. "Lissa dearest, Ben is here to see you."

There's a muffled gasp from inside, a loud thump, and the rapid sound of footsteps against the floor. The door opens just a crack, enough for me to see Lissa's eye, bloodshot from all the crying she's been doing, peering out through the gap. I give her a small smile, and her eye bulges. The door is suddenly flung open, and Lissa throws herself into my arms, hair hanging down and wearing only a nightgown.

The look Maribelle gives me is murderous, but I pay her little mind, focusing only on the princess clinging to me and sobbing into my chest. She's right to be upset of course, this is a scandal waiting to happen. The Princess of Ylisse caught embracing a mere knight (more like a knight-adjacent, really) who she isn't in a relationship with, without even being properly dressed? Frankly if I hadn't grabbed a shirt on the way over this situation would be completely unsalvageable. Still could be bad if the wrong person were to show up right now.

Gaius seems to recognize this too, looking between the two of us and Maribelle nervously, before urging us into Lissa's room. "Sorry to interrupt, but I think you two need to take this reunion out of the hallway where anyone could see it."

"Gaius!" Maribelle shrieks indignantly.

"Twinkles, let's go watch the hallway and give these two a minute to catch up." Gaius says, taking Maribelle firmly by the shoulders and leading her away. "I'm sure Chuckles is going to be the perfect gentleman, isn't that right Chuckles?"

"Of course!" I reply, feeling mildly offended that they could possible think otherwise.

"It's not about Ben's character, it's about what is proper!" Maribelle protests, even as she allows Gaius to move her down the hall. "This is a matter of defending my precious Lissa's honor!"

"Which we'll be doing, by making sure this little meeting remains discreet." Gaius says in a calming tone.

That's the last thing I hear before Lissa closes her bedroom door, leaving the two of us alone together in a dark room, with only the barest gap in the curtains to light the room. And suddenly I'm as worried as Maribelle was. If somebody found out about this it could go… so badly. Like, 'Forced marriage to protect the honor of the Princess,' badly. Noble types have a reputation for getting extremely worked up about stuff like this.

And yet, I still allow myself to be led by Lissa, until the two of us are sitting side by side on her bed. The Princess holds me once again, practically gluing herself to my side. It is with a great deal more hesitation that I return the embrace this time.

"I thought you were dead." She says quietly after a while.

"It was… a close thing." I reply hesitantly. "I almost didn't escape."

"I didn't know what to do." Her voice shakes as she speaks. "I was already so scared for Emmeryn, and then they told me she'd died, and that you ran in to save her, and… and…" More tears. I hold her close, stroking her head soothingly. "I thought I'd lost both of you, and it hurt. It hurt so much I didn't think I could bear it."

"I'm sorry I scared you." I say. "And… I'm sorry I failed you. I'm sorry Emmeryn isn't here." Sorry I couldn't find a better way, a way with less risk.

She shakes her head, still nestled against my side, before pulling away and looking up at me. Her eyes gleam in the darkness. "I'm just glad you're okay." She stares up at me, hands against my chest, then reaches up to wrap them around my neck. "Ben, I…" I've barely had time to register what's happening before she pulls and kisses me tenderly on the lips.

It proves a far more difficult mental struggle than it really should to pull away. Lissa is a beautiful girl, after all. And it's the first time a girl has kissed me in years. Reason wins in the end though, and I do end it. Hold her at arm's length. And stare blankly as my brain tries to process things.

"Lissa, I…" I stammer, mind racing to come up with something, anything to say. "You are a wonderful, beautiful girl, but I… I am-"

"I'm sorry!" Lissa cuts me off with a distressed cry, starring up at me with a horrified expression, "I shouldn't have done that! I was just… I've liked you for the longest time, and I was so happy to see you that I just… That was so dumb, I can't believe I did that, you must hate me right now!"

"Never." I assure her firmly, feeling back in my element as I console her. "Lissa I could never hate you. You're one of the first friends I made in this world. You mean the world to me. And… I'm truly honored that you would feel that way about a guy like me. But I just… can't return your feelings."

"I know." She says quietly, face shiny with yet more tears. "I've known you didn't feel that way about me for a long time now. That you didn't see me that way no matter how much I wanted you to. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have… I don't know why I did that."

I have something of an inkling myself, but the current situation isn't really good for a discussion like this. "Lissa, do you want me to leave the room? Maybe get Maribelle?"

Her eyes widen at that. "No! Please don't leave, I'm sorry! I don't want you to be mad at me!"

"Hey." I cut in firmly. "What did I just say? I don't hate you, and I'm not mad. I'm just worried that I might not be the best person to talk to right now. You're clearly very emotional right now. And that's okay. But I think in a situation like this I'm not the one you should be talking to. Right now I think you need a friend more than you need a crush."

"It's not… you are my friend! We're friends! I just…" Lissa groans. "No, you're right. I'm being dumb."

"We are friends." I reassure her. "That hasn't stopped. Isn't going to either. I care about you a lot. Just… not in the way you were hoping. And I'm sorry for that."

"It's okay." Lissa sniffles. "I… I feel awful. I don't know why I did that. I've been so sad, and upset ever since what happened… And when you came back it was such a relief that I just… I feel so lost, Ben. Ever since this war started it's been worse and worse, like everything I know and love is falling apart around me. My home, my people, and now my… family…" She pauses here, body shaking with barely contained sobs. A part of me wants to embrace her, just to give her some comfort, but I recognize what a terrible idea that would be at the moment. Instead I just watch quietly as she continues,"And… you've been there for me through so much of it. Like this… super steady person I feel like I can always lean on. And I think I just… relied on that. And wanted to keep you as close as possible. Closer than I knew you wanted."

"I understand." I nod, squeezing her shoulder reassuringly. "And for what it's worth I think it's very mature of you to realize that. But you should remember that I'm not the only person you have to depend on. There's the rest of the Shepherds. Gaius. Frederick. Robin. And Chrom of course. You two are going to have to depend on each other a lot from now on."

Lissa nods resolutely. "You're right. I shouldn't be beating myself up like this. I have to be strong for my brother."

"I think you're plenty strong already." I nod. "And you're allowed to be upset right now. Just… remember that you don't have to do it alone. Really, as far as Maribelle's concerned you're not allowed to do it alone, she'd never stand for it."

"That's true." Lissa says with a bit of a giggle. "I should talk to her."

"I think you're right." I smile at her. "She'll liven up this dark old room far better than I can. You wait right here, I'll have her over in an instant."

"Thank you." She says softly, watching as I make my way to the door. Just as I'm about to leave the room she calls out again, "Hey, Ben?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think I'm going to find somebody someday? Like… can I find someone who looks at me the way you look at Cordelia?"

I stare blankly at the door for a moment. Turn back to Lissa. Smile warmly as I say, "I'm absolutely certain you will. It's just a matter of time." Then I leave the room. Tell Maribelle that Lissa wants to see her. And leave Gaius to stand guard by the doors, citing a need to eat a proper meal.

And once I've walked away, around several corners and down several hallways and well out of earshot, I stop. Clap a hand to my head. And let the befuddlement I feel at Lissa's heartfelt question wash over me.

"The way I WHAT?"


With my arrival in Auream Dominus, the Shepherds present are left with little to do but wait for news. I choose to distract myself during this time by working to ensure Henry and Robert are taken care of. Surprisingly Robert proves to be the bigger problem in this regard. I expected Henry to be a problem with all his… Henry-ness. But instead they get all worked up about the big scaly puppy. It strikes me as a bit ridiculous, since he eats about as much as a griffin and only takes up a little more space. But they all act like he's some kind of monster.

Which is laughable, especially when I make a show of giving him generous amounts of scratches in the middle of the courtyard where everyone can see him. He'll flop around on the ground, tongue lolling out, eyes closed blissfully as I rub at his neck and belly, and they'll stare in horror as though I'm about to be eaten. And when Nowi or Lissa join in (because Robert is a ladies man), they freak out even more.

I find out during one of these pampering sessions that Nowi can actually talk to wyverns. She informs me then that Robert actually really likes the shortened form of his name. So now I make a point of swapping between the two. When the wyvern is being a dignified animal of exceptional power and poise, he is Robert. And when he is a big old softie scaly cute guy, he is Bobby. We both find this arrangement agreeable, though Nowi has made it clear that by my rules he should just be Bobby full-time, as far as she's concerned.

It makes for a good distraction, dealing with wyvern business. Not counting Henry, there are six of us Shepherds stuck in Auream Dominus, and the only one dealing with it well is Ricken, by virtue of being asleep ninety-nine percent of the time. So everyone is throwing themselves into the wyvern thing as a way to feel useful. Lissa, Nowi, and I spend time with him. Gaius sneaks him treats from the kitchens. And even Maribelle makes a point of bullying the local bigshots into taking care of his shelter and dietary needs.

"I can't say I'm particularly fond of wyverns, personally." Maribelle admits to me one day, when I question her on her motivation, "But Robert here seems to be a particularly well behaved sort. He's very gentle with dear Lissa, after all. And I'm quite sure we owe him for saving your reckless hide in Dolgrim." She finishes her speech by giving him a tentative pat on the nose, fighting a smile when he grumbles affectionately in reply.

Wyvern watching proves to be the most useful thing most of us get up to. Maribelle busies herself with healing of course, and to everyone's relief Lissa joins her after a few days. But the rest of us don't have that luxury, and quickly grow agitated with waiting. Nowi and Henry become absolute terrors, the latter gleefully enabling the former in her wild roaming throughout the city. I stop their most extreme shenanigans, but otherwise leave them be, mostly because for Henry acts of vandalism are a dramatic step up in terms of morality.

Gaius is somewhat better, throwing himself into training with me as a way to keep himself busy. He claims it's enough to keep him from feeling antsy, but I do notice several sweet shops find themselves robbed over the course of several days. Maribelle no doubt noticed as well, judging by the long looks she gives him whenever the topic comes up, but chooses to leave him be. Call me crazy, but I do believe he's growing on her.

Finally, after a week, we receive word that the Shepherds have reached the Longfort. They arrive well ahead of the bulk of the army, which is still days away at least, but since the retreat path follows the main road, rather than a path through the desert, travel went much quicker. They wait there only long enough to get fresh horses for the cart, and then continue to hurry to the city.

When they arrive in Auream Dominus they're greeted by the Shepherds in the castle courtyard. And all of them look completely stunned to see me. I guess word never reached them.

"Good to see you all." I say, raising a hand in greeting while leaning against Robert's head. "Hope the trip back wasn't too dangerous." There's a whole lot of blank staring, before Noire comes flying out of the group and runs at me with enough force that she practically bounces off me. Robert braces me as I stagger backwards, barely catching the girl despite her slim frame. I return her embrace easily, patting her gently on the back as I reassure her, "Whoa there! It's alright, I'm okay. Sorry for worrying you, kiddo."

It's Robin who finds his voice first, still staring at me in shock. "Ben? How did, where did, I don't… how?"

I nod towards Robert with a grin, "You didn't think I was hanging around with this guy just to impress you, did you?"

"I helped too!" Henry chimes in from where he's standing with Nowi and Gaius.

"Right, this is Henry. He helped me escape the courtyard by turning on Gangrel and his guards." I gesture to the dark mage. "He's, uhh… He wants to be a Shepherd, apparently."

"We can discuss that later." Chrom replies, giving me an intense look. "Ben, I need you to tell me something. You saw what happened in that courtyard better than any other. Was Emmeryn…?" He trails off, eyes filled with a newfound sense of desperation. A faint glimmer of hope that has likely only resurfaced with the discovery of my survival.

My face twists as I realize what he's asking me. "I'm sorry Chrom. It's as you saw. I could do nothing to stop her fall. And… with all the guards, and the fire, I couldn't possibly carry a corpse out of that courtyard. My recklessness bore no fruit."

"I see." His face falls, and he nods sadly to me. "Do not blame yourself. This is Gangrel's doing."

"What about Libra?" Stahl chimes in. "He went in there after you."

"We parted ways in the slums of Dolgrim." I shrug. "As far as I'm aware he avoided the soldiers and made his way out, but I do not know when or if he will return… Our failure weighed heavily on him."

"You're sure?" Noire asks, looking up at me anxiously.

"As sure as I can be." I reply, "I raised hell all over Dolgrim trying to draw their attention my way, and we all know that's one of the things I'm best at."

"That's certainly true." Chrom replies with a weary smile. "I suppose we can only pray for his safety now. Well then… let's get inside, Shepherds. Lord knows we could all use a chance to rest after what we've been through."

The others let out a weary assent, unable to muster any real excitement. They've been battered down by battles, exhaustion, and the weight of failure. My reappearance isn't going to change that, and I wasn't for a moment expecting otherwise. The most I get is a few relieved smiles, and the odd clap on the back. I decide to stand back and let the others move on past me, figuring I'll just stay out of their way as they move to their rooms.

Sumia steps up after a moment or two, bringing Noire inside. She gives me a smile as she coaxes the teenager away from me, speaking in a soft voice, "Good luck."

"What?" I look after her in confusion, watching as she hurries away with Noire. She ignores my response completely, even as I call after her, "Sumia what are you… and she's gone."

There's a sudden smacking sound from behind me, followed by an alarmed cry. I look back to see Cordelia standing not far from me, glaring behind her at a beaming Sully. The cavalier flashes me a thumbs up and jogs inside, leaving the two of us alone in the courtyard (and just when did Robert wander off, anyways?).

I stare blankly at her for a while, watching as she stares at the ground fidgeting. After a while spent in silence I figure I'll have to be the one to say something. "It's good to see you again."

"I thought you were dead." She replies almost immediately. "If I hadn't spotted that flare, I might have given up hope."

I hadn't been sure the flare had even worked… "I'm sorry for worrying you." I reply softly.

When her gaze finally rises to meet my own a warm feeling washes over me. "Don't apologize. I'm just glad to have you back. After all that I've lost…" She beams at me, even as tears pour down her face, "Thank you. Thank you for coming back to me!"

I don't even think about it. I just march forward and take her into my arms. "Always." I reply without hesitation. "I swear, I will always return to you. No matter what happens you can count on that." She looks up at me, smiling as though a weight has been lifted from her shoulders. Her eyes transfix me, in the way they have since the day I met her. And I realize that despite the similarities to my recent conversation with Lissa, there's something here that I just didn't feel before. It hits me with stunning clarity that this is exactly what Lissa was talking about, and that I am an utter moron for not putting the pieces together ages ago.

I'm in love with her. Damn me for taking this long to realize it, but I love Cordelia. I've been in love with her for a long time now. Maybe not first sight, but… months at the very least. I couldn't even say when it started.

The realization fills me with a sense of warmth that I haven't felt since the last time I held my kids. I find myself thinking of the future, a possible future in which I'm with Cordelia, and the kids, and we can be happy together. A family, one that hasn't been torn apart by the threats that Severa, Diana, and Lumír were forced to suffer through. One where I can give Cordelia the life she's always wanted, her dream of love not lost to one bad night in a tavern.

And then, as always proves the case in my life, that sense of hope gives way to doubt. And I find myself remembering all the reasons that I'm the last person who should even be thinking of giving her such a life.

"Ben, is something wrong?" She asks, staring up at me with concern. "You seem troubled."

"It's nothing." I reply immediately, giving her a half-hearted smile, "My mind just keeps straying back to everything that's happened."

"I see." She replies, stepping away to take me by the hand. "Would you like to talk about it?"

Would that I could. Unfortunately my unique perspective on the Emmeryn situation makes opening up little more than a pipe dream. The only people who I can confide in either hate my guts right now… or are Henry. Though all of this is rather moot since bringing up what happened was just a deflection.

"Maybe not right now." I shake my head, pulling away from Cordelia completely and nodding towards the doors. "For now let's just head inside. If we spend too much time out here alone people will talk."

Cordelia frowns, but nods along, following me inside. She was hoping for more. From the disappointed looks on many of the Shepherd's faces as they watch us enter Basilio's main hall, she's not alone in that regard. I suppose Lissa wasn't the only one to catch on, then. There are lots of people rooting for us to end up together. Including Cordelia herself. And damned if that doesn't make things more complicated.

"Couldn't confess, huh?" Gaius says in a low voice as I come to a stop next to him at the back of the room.

"It's that obvious?" I mutter, leaning against the wall and watching dully as Cordelia crosses the far side of the room. She stops next to Sully and Sumia, talking quietly with them. I barely supress my flinch when Sully glares at me across the room.

"You kidding?" Gaius snorts, "I figured you two had a thing for each other the night we met. Standing there flirting, all the while Red has her spear up to my throat. Only reason I wasn't making fun of you two was I figured Red might stick me."

"Good to know." I grumble.

"Ahh, don't worry about it too much." Gaius grins, clapping me on the shoulder, "You'll get your chance. Just… don't go waiting too long. After all, who knows what'll happen between now and the day we finally take Gangrel down."

Right. The war isn't over. Just because I saved Emmeryn doesn't mean I'm done fighting. The Mad King is still alive… and all evidence seems to point to him gunning for me. If I wait, I may never get the chance to say what needs to be said.

Before this war ends, before I end up dead… There's something I need to tell Cordelia.

Not that I love her though, as much as I'd like to think my love fuels the decision I'm making in this moment.

I need to tell Cordelia about her fellow Pegasus Knights. And that I knowingly let them die. That I had the chance to prevent her suffering and failed to act. I need to come clean about the same failure that has haunted me for months now.

I need to tell her the reason I don't deserve her love.


Ben doesn't get to be happy after what he just pulled. Bad Ben, trying to kidnap and exile your politician friend, bad! No redhead for you!

Seriously though, for those of you who may be frustrated seeing Ben turn away from not one but two possible relationships in this chapter, I am sorry. I don't want you to feel like I'm taunting you with that stuff, as I know the subject of who Ben will end up with remains a matter of great debate amongst readers. That said, I have no intentions of sacrificing my personal morals for the sake of rushing that topic along. A big part of this story is going to revolve around Ben working to resolve the hurt he has caused people as a consequence of his approach to life in this world. His approach to knowing the future. And letting Ben just confess his love to Cordelia and live happily ever after with her in spite of the things he has and hasn't done would run completely counter to that.

Don't lose heart friends. The story is far from over.

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