Though the immediate area around Zofia Castle was ravaged following the extended conflict between the Deliverance and Baron Desaix's army, the castle interior was still as regal and stunning as all the stories described.
Mila's blessings in the southern kingdom of Zofia raised a people on peace, prosperity and luxury. Their capital reflected just that, featuring an endless red river of carpet running through the ornate, eggshell tile flooring of its Central Hall. Torch-lit marbled columns lined the chamber's walls, each brandishing a teal-blue banner that hosted the nation's golden emblem: A curled tree reminiscent of the Earth Mother's gifts.
Almost no sounds beyond the cackling of torches filled the near-empty room; so large that it passed the point of reverberation. The soft surface of the carpeting also absorbed most footsteps, as it did with the pair of girls making their way inside.
To the left was a taller girl in shimmering white armor with only her shoulders and part of her thighs exposed. Her casual gait betrayed a proper, well-mannered upbringing; yet she still gazed all around the room with a childlike splendor that left her constantly brushing the shoulder-length scarlet hair out of her face.
Her partner was clearly meeker. Each step taken that briefly exposed her slight, pale build underneath a floor-length pink gown was cautious, and the excitement of being in this new locale was harder to pinpoint thanks to her flatter expression. That said anyone who knew the girl would recognize that the small, constant smile she displayed was an indication of her being utterly entranced by every novel sight.
"I can't believe such a regal place could exist outside of a storybook, Celica." The smaller girl's soft-spoken voice had true joy bubbling just under the surface.
"It's certainly a far cry from the Priory. I'm surprised we were able to just walk in." Celica looks down at her friend, Genny, and smiles sweetly.
The two share a brief giggle.
A priestess to the Goddess Mila from the Novis Priory on a southeastern island, Celica had taken her band of travellers quite far in search of the Earth Mother. It was rumored that her disappearance had given way to the turmoil currently plaguing Zofia.
Their group split up upon arrival. While Celica and Genny took to the hallowed halls of Zofia Castle, the magically inclined Mae and Boey searched its hidden crevices for treasure and supplies. Meanwhile, their swashbuckling guardian Saber and indebted partners (loyal to the knight Valbar) took up residence in the surrounding town's tavern.
Standing before the gap between each column in the Central Hall through which the girls walked were identical suits of armor, dark grey and blue. Many of the suits were missing weapons, since strewn across the castle's courtyards by the fallen bodies of the cutthroats who stole them. The Deliverance had seen to the end of Desaix's unruly soldiers when defeating the usurper Baron and his captain, the equally despicable Slayde.
A young boy examined one of the shining pieces of plate-mail near the far end of the hall, where a grand staircase raised the red river of carpet up toward an ornate throne room. Given the dearth of others in the room, he immediately caught the girls' attention. His brown-and-beige outfit, light in both color and fabric, barely reflected back in the shining metal. However they reflected better than his flat brown hair, which he seemed obsessed with constantly teasing and adjusting using the exposed fingers of his leather gloves.
Genny is hesitant and falls a step behind her friend, hiding sheepishly under the fluffy wool of her soft, curly hair — a hotter shade of pink than her gown.
Celica, on the other hand, finds her gaze inexplicably drawn to the boy. Her left arm held up the other, letting her gnaw idly at her rightmost thumb.
"There's something awfully familiar about him," the redhead mumbles into her hand. Eventually she stops entirely, and Genny almost bumps into her.
"Is there…?"
The sheepish girl peeks around both of Celica's shoulders, not quite catching onto the resemblance.
Then Celica figures it out. Her eyes widen with a gasp so intense you'd think she hadn't gotten access to clean air in months.
Immediately she was off, running toward the boy so fast that her white cape flapped like a flag in a maelstrom and showed off the pink fabric underneath.
"Celica?" Genny stutters before running after her.
As Celica moves off of the carpet, her boots start to clack loudly against the tiled floor. That sound brings the brown-haired boy to attention, and he swings around prepared to draw a blade off one of the straps holding his outfit together.
Yet the priestess' smile is so warm that he figures she couldn't possibly be a foe, and thus loosens his stance.
"Excuse me!" Celica calls out before slowing to a stop in front of him. She starts panting lightly. "This might sound crazy, but is your name Tobin?"
His eyebrow raises, and the boy is stunned silent as he glances between Celica and Genny, who finally manages to catch up and stand beside her. The reaction is enough to confirm her suspicions, but Tobin makes things extra clear by nodding.
"Yeah, that's me." His general shock gives way to a cheeky grin. "Word sure travels fast, huh? Didn't expect to have groupies so soon after liberating the castle."
Celica's giddy expression falters, and then she glances back at Genny. The sheep-haired girl shrugs.
Her confusion only lasts a moment, and Celica turns her attention back to Tobin.
"No… It's not that," she says with a bit of a chuckle. "I can't imagine you'd remember, but I'm Celica. We knew each other when we were quite young."
Tobin takes a second to catch on before his dark brown eyes widen and he practically stumbles backward into the suit of armor he'd been using as a mirror. Both girls lean forward to catch him if necessary, but the boy manages to steady himself.
"Celica?!"
His mouth hangs open, leaving his usually angular and slight face looking a bit more rotund and goofy. Celica nods rapidly, a grin plastered to her lips.
The earth-toned boy steps forward and throws his arms open. He's immediately met with a hug from the priestess in turn, and the two cling together for a while.
Genny smiles softly as she looks upon them from a few paces away.
"I can't believe it," Tobin says gently. "It's been years since we saw you last."
"Far too many," Celica agrees. Her inherently sweet tone has a soothing effect on the very air around her, one that both Tobin and Genny clearly feel.
As the two old companions separate, Celica stands back and re-adjusts her cape while Tobin continues to look up-and-down her form in disbelief.
"I hardly recognized you without that cute yellow bow in your hair, Celica."
The girl's pale cheeks flush at the very mention, which leads him to smile.
"Ooh, it has been a long time since I thought about that." She laughs and pushes her bangs back by re-affixing her white-and-yellow headband. "Hopefully this is enough to compensate."
"Guess it's close enough." Tobin shrugs and chuckles at his own coy tone.
Celica steps forward again and takes Tobin's right hand with both of hers.
"What are you doing so far from Ram Village?" She asks, tilting her head. "Is it no longer safe from the monsters there?"
Celica and her band had encountered plenty of zombies and skeletal demons alike in the graveyards of Novis and the many other islands they hopped to reach the mainland.
"No, Ram Village is pretty safe. A little light on luck with harvests as of late, but otherwise pristine as ever. Just as boring and isolated as I'm sure you remember."
"Oh please," Celica interjects. "You and the others kept things far from boring, I can assure you."
The boy nods and scratches at the back of his head a bit.
"Well lucky for you the whole crowd is around if you're looking to catch up." He looks off to the side and gestures his right arm vaguely. "We all joined the Deliverance."
Celica's eyes shoot open, as it's now her turn to take a step back and nearly trip into Genny. Her boot click loudly against the floor, drawing Tobin's concern.
"Everyone is here?" She asks hoarsely. "Even Alm?"
"Yeah." Tobin's shoulders slump. He could see where this was going. "Alm took over the whole liberation army, as a matter of fact."
The redheaded girl seems more flustered as she looks about the chamber.
"Do you… Happen to know where he is?" She's suddenly short of breath.
Tobin sighs and throws his right hand up over his shoulder, pointing at a staircase hidden behind the leftmost row of columns.
"Saw him head up that way with his pops not too long ago. He's probably enjoying the view, if you wanted to join him."
"Sir Mycen is here too?"
Celica seems just as shocked to hear this, but shakes her head to clear those thoughts before steeling a determined face.
"I'm sorry Tobin, we'll have to chat another time. I really, really have to—"
"I get it," Tobin interrupts with a shrug. "Go on and see him, I'll catch you later."
She offers a silent 'thank you' before racing off again, leaving Tobin and Genny to watch from afar as each overly-enthusiastic bound brings her one step closer to falling flat on her face. Every hint of composure Celica had was gone, replaced by childlike giggling as she pauses at the foot of the stairs. The priestess skips multiple steps to reach the amber light shining in from outside, and again very nearly trips in the process.
Soon enough she was gone, and Tobin sighs.
"All these years later and nothing's changed," he remarks while pushing some hair back out of his face. "We're still playing second fiddle to Alm."
Genny, having been largely ignored while the two old friends reconnected, steps up to Tobin with her hands folded at her lap.
"I can't recall the last time I saw Celica so excited," she says. Tobin glances with a start, as if he forgot about her. "This 'Alm' must be special. Is he Celica's boyfriend?"
The brown-haired boy cracks a smile and casually rests his hand on Genny's shoulder. Her younger age and stature shows through how tall he looks beside her.
"Something like that," he says. "They probably don't know it yet, though. Or at least Alm doesn't — he's always been a little dense with matters of the heart."
Genny giggles, bringing up her left hand to brush some fluffy hair behind her ear.
"Celica too. She's read through entire stories of mine without realizing the main couple are… Well, a couple."
Tobin pulls his hand back and rests it on his hip while turning to face the girl.
"Stories, huh?" He nods, holding out his free hand and waving it around slightly to mimic his grasping for words. "What are you, some kind of a writer?"
Genny shrinks into herself slightly and shrugs.
"In my spare time, I guess…"
With Celica, Boey or Mae she was more than capable of proudly presenting her passions. But with a total stranger, especially a (cough, cough) handsome older boy (cough) like Tobin, it became harder to spit anything out through her cottonmouth.
"I'm a cleric by trade. Celica and I grew up in the same priory."
"Ah… So that's where she wound up after Alm's old man ran her out of Ram Village." The boy nods with a kind of slow, appreciative movement.
Not entirely sure what to say, Genny resorts to idly brushing her shoe against the tile from underneath the hem of her gown while gently tugging at the loose end of the blue ribbon keeping her hair from exploding out like a frizzy fireball.
Tobin catches onto the awkward moment he'd created and clears his throat.
"Right, uh…" He throws out his hand, the sudden movement making Genny flinch. "I'm Tobin. Deliverance soldier, mercenary for hire. All-around cool guy."
His blatantly goofy optimism breaks down some of Genny's guard and leaves her giggling as she takes his hand.
"Genny," she says with a nod. "Novis cleric. Daughter of Mila. And, I suppose, novelist of some capacity."
"A lovely one at that."
Rather than shaking her hand as Genny expected, Tobin pulls it toward him slightly so he can politely kiss the knuckle of her middle finger.
It was a cheesy facsimile of a chivalrous gesture, especially coupled with the enthusiastic grin he offers while letting go of her hand.
Yet… She falls for it. Hook, line and sinker.
The girl's fair complexion runs hot all under her brown eyes. She turns her body slightly so she can look away as her knees buckle together within her gown, unable to suppress the silly little smile that flares up. Once she has control of her hand, it comes to her sternum so she can tug the red gemstone at the end of her gold necklace.
Tobin is very keyed into the effect his little gesture had, and her adorable reaction only emboldens him. In fact, his voice almost seems to get a few octaves deeper.
"So, what exactly do you like to write about then Genny?"
She shrugs and sways her upper body side-to-side for a moment.
"Epics, usually. Grand adventures. Myths and legends. Etcetera."
"Really?" Tobin genuinely perks up at that, eyebrows raising as he tilts his head. "That's interesting. I wouldn't think that just by looking at you."
Genny giggles, wondering exactly what he did think of her upon a first impression but not wanting to derail the moment by asking.
"They've always been a good distraction for me, I suppose." She finally turns her body entirely toward him again, no longer overcome with butterflies. "Growing up in a monastery can be suffocating in a way. There isn't very much to do beyond chores or rehearsing prayers, at least so long as you aren't gifted with true magical prowess like my friends. My mind has always wandered in grand journeys to pass the time."
"Sounds to me like you're selling yourself short," Tobin says as he puts both hands on his hips. "I can't imagine Celica would bring you along if you were dead weight, so you must be a very gifted cleric."
Once again, Genny has to keep from melting into a puddle right in front of him.
"Thank you," she mumbles. "Honestly though, I've always clung to her. Celica is like an older sister to me… She probably just felt obligated to take me along."
"Nonsense." He shakes his head, clearly prepared to insist in spite of her reservations. "I'm sure she appreciates having a good story once in a while."
Before Genny has the chance to respond, Tobin suddenly straightens out his posture and brings up his right hand, snapping loudly with his middle finger and thumb.
"Hey, speaking of!" He grins and takes that hand to his hair so he can brush it from his eyes again.
"Any room in that catalog for a tale about a pauper out of a small village in the countryside who takes up the sword to earn some coin for his family? Maybe one who, through his adventure, manages to one-up his friend and save the world from a tyrannical kingdom, and then… Oh, I don't know… Becomes the coolest knight around?"
The slight girl rolls her eyes but doesn't lose a pleased smile.
"You know…" She begins, her voice trailing off in a teasing way. "I think your story sounds just compelling enough to make a great book, Tobin."
"Oh yeah?" He very unsubtly pumps his arm at his side. "Well I don't really read very much, but I'd be very interested to read that particular book of yours."
Suddenly he reaches his right arm out and points at her chest. She leans back slightly and looks at his finger, going cross-eyed in the process.
"As long as you don't turn it into some boring historical text or something. Mila knows my friend Kliff has tried to force those on me one too many times."
She playfully pushes his arm aside in such a way that she can wrap her hand around his while straightening her posture again. Once she's fully upright she looks at him with puppy-dog eyes, warmly smiling.
"I promise it will be action-packed and full of intrigue, just for you."
"Well then you are speaking my language Genny."
As he pulls his hand free, they share a quiet look; stretching seconds into hours.
Without thinking about it, Tobin suddenly starts rummaging around in his pocket.
"Here," he says before pulling out a brown piece of cloth. It looked like a makeshift patch that he would use to repair a tear in his legging, but he handles it as daintily as one would a handkerchief.
Genny takes the fabric square and stares down at it in her hands for a moment. She turns it this way and that, as if expecting to receive some kind of secret message by giving it enough attention. When she doesn't, she looks back up at him curiously.
"This should have my scent on it," he says casually before realizing just how weird that sounded out of context.
The pink-haired girl does all she can to resist sniffing the cloth there and then.
"So you know, if you come across a messenger bird of some sort, you can always send something my way." He stuffs his hands in his pockets and looks off into the middle distance. "Last I heard we're going to move into Rigel along the western coastline, which means we shouldn't be that hard to pinpoint."
Genny looks down at the cloth again before hugging it to her chest.
"I've never sent anyone a message before," she remarks with a twinge of sadness. "Everyone I know has always lived in the same place as me."
Tobin looks toward her again and smiles.
"It's not that hard, honest. I've been sending one back home to my family in Ram Village at least once every few weeks." The boy coyly starts to scratch his nose. "I'm sure it'll be especially easy for someone with a lot of great things to say."
She dips her head slightly.
"Alright. I'll be sure to send you bits of my manuscripts, too."
"I'd love that."
He reaches out and rests a hand on Genny's shoulder. Once more she has to resist every gut instinct telling her to rub her cheek against his hand and purr like a cat.
… Why she was thinking about it like that, she wasn't entirely sure.
"Hey, I've got to go meet up with my friends Gray and Silque. I'll see if I can catch you again before we ship off though, alright?"
Genny nods eagerly. "Yeah. I understand."
"Great."
Tobin takes a few hesitant steps back before turning and starting to make his way toward the castle's entrance.
"Good to meet you, Genny."
"You too," she stutters out before growing more silent. "Tobin…"
Once he's gone, Genny takes a deep breath through her nose and sighs it out.
"Gosh," she mumbles to herself before turning to look into the chest piece of a suit of armor. Briefly, she teases at a clump of hair to put it in different places. "I guess I have a lot to write about now, huh?"
I've been laser-focused on my Three Houses fic "Entwined by Misfortune" while getting used to freelance work, but I have a heaping backlog of other ideas to write about. Fire Emblem: Echoes being the focus of this year's Valentine's Day event in Heroes happened to pique my interest in finally banging out this slight re-telling of events around Alm and Celica's first reunion. Hope you enjoyed it!
For those of you who might not have expected the ship I told the tale around, I'm not sure what to tell you. Genny was my favorite unit in Echoes, and I love her canonical ending text describing a secret love affair with someone older than her that no one would expect (specifically one of her "companions" if you go by the original Gaiden text). Somehow I got it in my head that it would be cute if Celica's adoptive little sister and Alm's right-hand got together in the interim of the adventure, that way they see one another often when their leaders become the King and Queen of Valentia.
Anyway, as I said I have plenty of ideas to jump into next. Some Fire Emblem-themed, others Pokemon-themed, and some more out-there ideas for games like Shantae and Don't Starve. If any of those sound interesting to you, my valued readers, please let me know! I'm also in the business of taking commissions if there is anything you want to see me bring to life, and I'd be remiss not to mention that.
A guy's gotta eat, you know?
Thanks for taking the time to read my stuff. I really appreciate it, and I hope you have a great Valentine's Day!