Chapter 14) Peruluke

Just as Salamander said, Emer had us set up comfortably in Peruluke within a day of arriving. Thus we spend the winter, relaxing and training. We get frequent letters from Sabia and Magni, letting us know how recovery is going. We hear little from Emer, and we are more or less certain she is put out that we managed her task. But she honors her deal, and so, we couldn't ask for more. Miletos is with us. We have completed our first task. It is a wonderful feeling, truly.

I hummed as I worked, prepping some ingredients for dinner. It helped take my mind off my slight limp, since my leg was still recovering. The injury was fully healed and, thanks to the healers, I would regain full movement, but for now, it was a bit weaker and I was horribly self-conscious about it. So, I hummed and pretended the 'limp' was more of a dance-step. As for what I hummed, I switched between different melodies, whatever caught my whimsy. Sometimes, it would an aria from an opera. Other times, it would be a song I heard while shopping in the market. Still others were simply random strings of notes that I thought sounded nice. Ultimately, it was what I wanted and there was a joyfulness to that. I had never been able to simply hum while doing anything, back in Belhalla. The humming irritated Galle, and then he would kill servants to vent his frustrations.

When I was finished with food prep, and stored them all safely, I decided to head out the back door to check in on Vala and Hezul. The apartment Perukule's Resistance let us borrow was on the ground floor of one of the nicer buildings in the city, in the middle-class district, so it had a fenced in courtyard for the residents to relax in. In our case, though, we used it for weapons practice, getting away with it because the leader of the Resistance was Perukule's own ruling lady. So, at the moment, Hezul and Vala were using it because Vala had randomly demanded that Hezul teach her swords. After a moment of shock, Hezul agreed without further questions, and reminded us that he truly was a merciless teacher.

"Keep your guard up on your left," Hezul suggested-ordered, in that quiet voice that said 'listen quickly'. "Otherwise…" He demonstrated just why Vala needed to do that. He caught Vala right on the elbow, making her yelp. This made her entire defense fall apart, and Hezul had the practice sword at her throat. "That happens."

"Ugh…" Vala groaned. She was panting heavily, sweat pouring down her flushed face. Despite the cold, her hair was plastered to her skull, and her clothes clung. "Okay… how do I…?"

"How are you doing?"

"I can still keep going!"

"Can you? Or is that your stubbornness talking?"

"I…" Vala trailed off and sighed in frustration, head dropping. "Stubbornness."

"I thought so. You made a couple of mistakes you don't typically make anymore." Hezul smiled kindly and patted her head. "You're getting better."

"Am I?" She scowled up at Hezul, who was sweaty, but otherwise looked as fresh as a daisy. "It doesn't feel like it."

"If you weren't, I'd be backing off a little more." He continued smiling kindly. "Your main problem is that you want rush too much. Pushing your limits is good and needed, but pushing too far just lands you right in bed, recovering and erasing what progress you have made and more. You're doing fine. Once you get a good foundation, you'll be able to combine it with your magic for whatever mental image you thought up."

"I-I haven't!" Vala's face went redder with a blush, though, showing that she had, in fact, dreamed up something and wanted to try it. Hezul laughed, catching it. "I haven't!"

"Yes, yes."

"I mean it!"

"Of course."

"I really mean it!"

"I know."

"It sounds as if it is time for you to come in," I called, laughing. I picked up the towels they had set aside and passed them over. I helped Vala get the worst of it off at first. "It is getting late. Others in the apartment shall wish to use the courtyard."

"Another reason to stop, then," Hezul murmured, smiling softly. He hesitated a moment before leaning down and kissing my cheek. I immediately blushed and smiled, unable to help either. I was just… happy. I was happy we had healed enough for this, even if we still couldn't say those 'three words'. Of course, there probably was no need. We clearly knew what each other felt. But it did feel like saying the words would truly mark that the wounds had scarred and would not hurt us anymore. "How is your leg?"

"It is healing." I beamed at him and his own smile warmed. "Don't fret so much."

"I am used to worrying over you. It has always been one of my few choices."

"Didn't I say that to you once?"

"I believe so, actually."

"Gods, you two are so adorable~!" Vala cooed, apparently back to her cheerful mood. Teasing us to blushing made her grin. "Also, it smells nice. The apartment, I mean. Are you cooking, Gwyneth?"

"It is just some prep for dinner," I explained, trying and failing to not blush too much. Still, I couldn't help but keep on smiling. "It is going to be quite cold, so Dain thought it would be nice to have a big meal." But it would be a while before they returned. In exchange for the apartment, and for funds, we did odd jobs for the Resistance, so our hours were by no means regular. "If you wash up quickly, though, I believe I can manage a snack for you."

"Really?" Vala's eyes lit up. "Yes! Awesome! Bath time now!"

She rushed inside and, after a moment of laughing, Hezul and I also stepped back inside our home, Hezul making sure to shut the back door behind us. He then went for his own bath and I returned to the kitchen to make a snack for both Vala and Hezul, humming again. Days like this were nice, and reminded me of just why we were working so hard. I wanted everyone to have a chance for days like this. I hoped they could. For now, though, we enjoyed the little break for ourselves. We sorely needed it.

"Is your leg okay?" Dain asked, peering at me worriedly when I tripped. He rested a steadying hand on my shoulder before taking my hand. "That's the fourth time you've tripped."

"I am well," I reassured him, leaning into his side. The market was very crowded today. "It is simply being unable to balance well because of my leg and the crowd."

"I see." A bit of guilt flitted over his face. I knew he felt bad for not insisting against the 'bait' plan more, though he tried to hide it. "Here, let me take the basket. That way you can focus solely on walking."

"I know better than to argue." I passed him the basket we were using to hold our purchases and took his arm to simply use him as a crutch. "What do we need next?"

"At this point, we really just need to buy some herbs for Vala to make more medicine." He began hunting around, looking for the stall we might need. Peruluke's market was almost always bustling, so often, it was hard to find what you needed. There was just so much! "She wants to make those medicines Blaggi wrote about."

"Ah, yes, I remember." I giggled. "I am so happy we heard from the others." Thanks to Emer and her considerable information network, we actually received letters from them! "It is very reassuring to know they are well."

"I'm sure they feel the same. We've been out of contact for…" Dain paused, thinking. "I suppose half a year now? And it'll be even longer before we see them."

"Yes." Still, it was so nice to write back and tell them that we recruited all of the major Resistances of the Miletos District. We completed one of our tasks. "I do worry about them, though."

"Yeah, they're in a lot of danger." We both grimaced at the reminder. They had to be even more secretive than us, though, and not just because they were right in the heart of the Empire. "I've always heard gossip is a double-edged blade, yet…"

"I know." I sighed. Rumors and gossip often felt more like a bane than a boon. "I know."

Despite our efforts to keep quiet, rumors of rebellion were spreading, and that meant the knights were making more patrols, among other things. Still, they had been doing well enough, even gaining the unexpected cooperation of a duchy in the west called 'Noldion'. However, they were finding it harder to move about freely, and while they were persevering, they acknowledged that they might end up heading to Darna ahead of time, just in case things implode. Sety had already gone there to make the fortress habitable, traveling with Neir, Tordo's best friend. I had never met him, so I hoped he and Sety were getting along. I hoped everyone was well. I worried about...

"I worry about traitors," Dain murmured quietly. He nodded to a passing pair of women, and I smiled when I saw they both blushed. "Logically, the bigger this gets, the more chances of spies and the like."

"We won't even know if they spy because they work for the Empire or because someone they love is held hostage," I whispered sadly. Though, that did assume the Empire thought we were worth the trouble. If we could take advantage of their arrogance, then perhaps we could assemble before such things happened. No doubt, however, that was impossible. Even Resistances were put down brutally. Still, if they thought the 'rebellion' was simply a slightly larger 'resistance', then perhaps… "Ah, I hope a single traitor won't seal our ruin."

"They won't. We'll make sure of it." He smiled reassuringly, even as his eyes remained dark with worry. "I just know that when it happens, we will be shaken. We must prepare ourselves, as best as we are able."

"Well, thankfully, betrayal was common in the court." I paused, more at my own wording then Dain's incredulous look. "Well, perhaps, 'thankfully' isn't the word I wanted. In fact, I am not certain where I was going with that."

"I think it's that whole 'being optimistic' thing that you've been doing a wonderful job with." He smiled sadly, though. "Betrayal was common?"

"Vala would probably have more experience with that than Hezul and myself." Though, I supposed one could argue Galle himself betrayed us long ago. It was so hard to remember those happy days before that tome, the days where I loved him and was so happy to be his intended bride. Loptyr stole that pretty little future from me. Even though I found happiness again, it was hard to not be angry over that. "Galle refused to let anyone close."

"He kept you very isolated, didn't he?"

"Galle doesn't like to share." I thought of the words Galle said, where he outright stated that he would not 'share' Hezul, not even with me. We had always been his… well, no, we hadn't always been. We became his 'possessions' before everything. But there was no forgiving and no saving, so… "How did we get on this topic again?"

"That's a good question." Dain became thoughtful, genuinely trying to remember. "We had been talking of such fun things and then-"

Someone gasped and I stiffened, wondering what had happened. However, the sound was followed by laughter and people pointing up. I looked up as well and finally saw what had caught everyone's attention. It was snowing. Big, fat snowflakes drifted down from the clouds and dusted all the roofs and roads.

"It is so beautiful," I whispered, watching the snow fall. But it wasn't just how pretty falling snow was. It was also what the snow represented, what it reminded me of. "It has been a year since Hezul and I first escaped." More truthfully, it would be 'almost' a year soon. But… "We have been free for a year." It had only been a year. It had been one glorious, wonderful year.

"And you'll have many more ahead of you." Dain wrapped an arm around my shoulders and kissed my hair. "But let's get some sweets to celebrate."

"...Yes!" I laughed, feeling giddy. So many things made me 'giddy' nowadays. It was such a wonderful feeling. "Oh, maybe we could make something instead? I am certain Noba would love that."

"She would. So, in that case, let's get some ingredients…"

We ended up making filled pastries, which were perfectly messy and a great deal of fun to make. They were even more fun to eat, especially as we sat around the fire and laughed about various gossip. I was sure Baldur exaggerated no few stories, but that was fine. They were amusing.

Baldur was fast and strong when it came to fights, something that always came as a surprise for some reason. His style was almost brutal in its efficiency, though he frequently left holes in his guards. Sparring against him was a lesson in waiting for the perfect moment to strike and dodging. Sadly, while I was rapidly developing the first skill, the second was… tougher. My recovering leg didn't help matters.

"Okay, I can see your leg struggling to keep bearing your weight," Baldur noted, stepping back. I breathed a sigh of relief and immediately shifted all my weight onto my 'good' leg, just barely keeping from dropping my practice sword. It was long after dinner, longer after sunset. Most were asleep, but our group enjoyed the luxury of staying up 'too late'. We enjoyed the quiet that came with night, looking out over the sleeping city with a smile or to train without bothering anyone. I did most of my training at night because of that, despite the bitter cold. "You can just say you're having trouble."

"I am afraid I still find it hard to gauge what my limits are," I defended, wiping the sweat from my face with my sleeve. Baldur tossed a towel in my face to remind me to not do that. Noba scolded when I did, for some reason. It had something to do with 'rubbing my face raw'? "Honestly, all of me is still a bit numb. I am not used to fighting like this."

"No, I suppose not. You're getting better, though."

"Truly?"

"Yep!" He grinned. "I mean; you'll probably always be better suited to magic than physical weapons. If you were able to train since you were younger, it might've been the other way around, but circumstances being what they were, and are, you're doing amazing!"

"Oh, that is wonderful!" I beamed at him, toweling the sweat off my face and neck. "I wasn't sure, because Jarl… well, Jarl is Jarl."

"Stoic and then Salamander scolding him for it." Baldur waved a hand over his face and held a stoic expression for a split-second before grinning. I had to laugh. "You know; I can't help but think Jarl and Salamander know Naga and Forseti."

"Oh?" That was an odd change in subject. "Why is that?"

"Those stones they carried. Plus, they all seemed to join up with various resistances around the same time." Baldur shrugged, looking up at the stars. "I'm certain they're here to help us, but you had to notice it, right? How there seems to be something just a little off?"

"Well…" I supposed he was right. Salamander outright stated he wasn't from anywhere near, and that he was out and about for a purpose. With that all said, though… "From my perspective, everyone is a little 'off'. The world outside the court is wondrous, and so incredibly different."

"That's true. And we're also not so well off that we should question help freely given. Especially since I know that if Jarl wanted us dead, we'd be very dead, very quickly. Same to Salamander." He sighed, but smiled. "I suppose it has been bothering me, though."

"We do have the luxury of letting small things 'bother' us, for now."

"Though, sadly, not in the future." He chuckled and shook his head. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. Just, like I said..."

"It is quite odd, yes." I thought briefly on it, but decided to dismiss the thought. Yes, it was odd, but if they were here to help, then they could be as odd as they wanted. "Regardless, thank you for sparring with me."

"Of course! Good practice for me too." Baldur grinned and then became thoughtful. "You know; I'm thinking of taking up lances."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." He fussed with his sweaty hair, grimacing at the length. "I need to cut my hair soon."

"I can do that in the morning."

"Thank you!" He grinned again. "Anyway, there is some merit and skill in mastering a single weapon, and certainly, I will always favor the blade, but well…" He shrugged, sheepish suddenly. "You can't exactly throw a sword at a distant enemy."

"Mmm… no, you can't." Swords were the only weapon without a 'true' long-ranged capability. The closest was the magic swords, but those were very expensive and tightly guarded. "Ah, you and I can learn together, though!"

"That's what I was thinking!" He grinned. "It'll be much more fun with someone."

"Yes, we can help each other!" I giggled, delighted by the thought. "Ah, though that does make me wonder if Vala might be willing to learn other magic."

"Then you can teach her and learn it better!" He snatched my hand and tugged me inside. "Come on! Let's ask!"

"Baths first!"

"Yes, yes!"

It turned out Vala was, in fact, interested and while Baldur badgered Dain into teaching him lances alongside me, Vala and I began the first 'lesson'. After a moment, Noba joined us in the main room with some snacks she whipped up, and Hezul settled down by the fire with a worn, used book we had bought on discount, enjoying the time to simply read and listening to all of our antics with a warm smile.

Days like this would be rarer and rarer as the rebellion went, but they were nice. I loved them.

Our Family

Gwyneth

20 years old

Class: Shaman; Weapons: Fire - C, Thunder - C, Wind - C, Light - B, Staves - A; (Axes - E, Swords - E, Lances - E)

Is rather startled that it's been a year, feeling that it is both so short and so long of a time. It's the longest she's ever been away from Belhalla, and from Galle, since her engagement.

Working very hard to master all the weapons, though she's half-convinced she was mad to actually go through with this, due to the intense level of studying and training. At the moment, though, she's most worried about learning bows, as she only learned the absolute basics back in the camp and doesn't know any skilled archers.

Hezul

22 years old

Class: Paladin (dismounted); Weapons: Swords - A, Lances - B

Almost found it hard to believe it has been a year since he and Gwyneth stole the Loptyr tome and ran. So much had happened, and he notes that he's not formed such fast bonds of friendship since first meeting Galle as a child.

Decided to improve his lance skill, worried that the coming battles would require a little more versatility besides his swordwork. Thankfully, the armor proved to be simple armor, so when they next march out, he'll wear that. Just in case.

Noba

19 years old

Class: Soldier; Weapons: Lances - A

Wants to throw a little party to celebrate the end of the year, but the others think that quiet is preferred. She calls them spoilsports and continues bugging them, thinking they deserve some 'normal' fun after everything.

Though she's thought about branching out, she finds it hard to actually commit to that, as she's not sure she wants to start from the beginning again. She's not sure they have the time for all of them to do that.

Baldur

21 years old

Class: Mercenary; Weapons: Swords - A; (Lances - E)

Was rather surprised by the snow, not realizing the end of the year was so close. He hopes that this new year will be even better than this last one, and that they can use the momentum to save everyone

Had been trying to decide between lances or axes, since while he'd have plenty of teachers for lances, he is a little worried about weapon diversity in their group. However, given how much Gwyneth has improved, he decided to simply go for the easier option. It's difficult to start from the beginning, after all.

Dain

23 years old

Class: Soldier; Weapons: Lance - A

Upon seeing the snow, he took some time to himself to pray, just as he does every year around this time. It's the one time he actively prays during the year, as a time of self-reflection and determination to do better.

Is really confused as to why he's the 'lance instructor' of the group. Noba just laughs when he tries to make her do it instead. Still, he goes through with the lessons, improving his own technique in the meantime. He's been considering taking up swords, mostly because they're much easier to hide than a lance

Vala; Fjalar

18 years old

Class: Fire Mage; Weapons: Fire - A; (Swords - E, Thunder - E, Wind - E)

Was so startled by the snow that she slipped on some ice and fell right on her butt, to the amusement of the resistance members with her. Afterwards, she burned some incense for her family, quietly 'celebrating' that it had been three years since their deaths.

Had been wondering if Gwyneth would mind teaching her magic for a while, but was always a little too shy to ask, worried Gwyneth would find it bothersome. For some reason. She's happy Gwyneth brought it up on her own.

Author's notes: Given the previous couple of chapters, here's a nice little rest one. And some various bits of training to show them getting stronger and prepping for some promotions. Fun note: Gwyneth is one weapon type away from having all of the Master Knight weapons listed. And it all helps highlight why Master Knight wouldn't work as easily in the more modern fire emblem games, where you work up the weapon levels instead of having them set like in FE4. Can you imagine working up all those weapons? (Yes, Discipline would help, and the promotion could give some hefty weapon experience boosts, but still.)

And yep, we're entering a new year for the story! So, expect ages in the bios to slowly update throughout these next few chapters. For timeline's sake, the first few chapters were in 642, while the 'starting the rebellion' and 'Miletos' arcs were in 643. Beginning next chapter (and arc), we will be in 644.

Next Chapter - Glow