Sara Jaye- Thanks for the review and support! I did keep with Lucius & Raven's seperate endings, but they seem to be the type that would keep in contact. Plus, it's just a convenient way to add Chad into the story. (Shameless plot device...)
Rosa Aquafire- Totaly agree that there are not enough Fuuin fanfics out there. I mean, I know that it isn't readily available, and it's not translated, but still...With Rei not having his usual personality and him mimicking Jaffar, well you have to remember that he IS four years old. He can't spell "Sarcasm", let alone use it. And in dealing with social situations, he's copying what his parents would do, and in Jaffar's case, that would be Glaring coldly at someone and saying as little as possible. Finally, when Chad was talking about his "Pap", he wasn't referring to Matthew, but his Step-Father. I didn't mean to suggest that Matthew was an asshole and a wife basher, since we all know that he's a sweetheart.
Sword, Staff and Bow- I am implying that Chad is Matthew's son, yes. It seems possible, and if you take a look at their pictures, they sort of seem alike. But have no fear! It's not going to be this huge thing, just something at the side, a side-plot if you're lucky.
Black-D- Thanks for the review, although if the future of FE6 fanfics is in my hands, then surely we are doomed... Or maybe not, depends if I hit a writer's block.
Finally, before the Chapter starts, I would like to clear up the Matthew-Chad thing. So, here are the line up of events as I see them.
1- Hector is crowned Marquess of Ostia, and the country starts to settle down. Matthew asks for some time off to do some soul searching.
2- After a while of traveling around Elibe, Matthew finds himself in "Miscellaneous Town A". It is there that he meets with Chad's future mother, and after both getting particuarly drunk, they find themselves in bed together.
3- Matthew leaves the next day, Woman get into a forced marrage with Asshole Husband for trade or land or some reason like that.
4- Eventually, her Pregnancy starts to show. Asshole Husband raises an eyebrow, but says nothing about it.
5- Chad is born, and looks nothing like his Mother or her Asshole Husband. Asshole Husband gets angry and turns into, well, even more of an asshole and starts bashing Chad's mother.
6- Poor Cad is forced to live with this for 5 years, until the timely burning of "Miscellaneous Town A", after which he met with Raven and then taken to Lucius's Orphanage.
There, hope that clears things up. Now, onto the main Fic.
Disclaimer- If I owned Fire Emblem, then I wouldn't be writing cheap fanfics now would I?
The Saga of the Discarded
A Fire Emblem fanfic by Kiri-Ryu
Chapter Two: Taking Leave
Rei
We were happy, for a time. Life in the orphanage was simple, but we felt richer then any Lycian noble. Most of our days were filled with simple tasks, such as tending the garden or cleaning the orphanage, and for 3 hours every morning Father taught us letters and numbers. We complained sometimes, but secretly we knew that we would have had it no other way.
Occasionally, a visitor would pass by and enrich our lives. More often or not, it was Lord Raymond, with either a new child or some exotic item form a far away land. I remember once that he came by with a pouch of some strange lollies from Etruria. There was enough in the bag for three for each of us, and we savoured them. I believe that Lugh actually saved one of his for an entire week before eating it.
Lord Raymond wasn't our only visitor however. Every so often, a pink haired priestess called Serra came to visit. She would bring a basket of fruits and vegetables with her, and would help Father in preparing the nights meal. After we had eaten, she would tell us ridiculous stories which made us laugh until our sides hurt. By the time she finished, most of us were on the verge of falling asleep. She and Father then took us to our rooms, or carried those who were too tired to walk, then they too would retire for the night. I remember once asking Father why it was that when Lord Raymond decided to stay the night, one of children's rooms would be cleared out whilst when Sister Serra visited, she would stay in his room. He had blushed and told me that I'd understand when I was older.
But as much happiness as there was, there was also sorrow. Every so often, Father would have one of his Sickness attacks. He would just suddenly fall down, short of breath and twitching slightly. The first time it had happened, all of us were just so scared and fearful for him. Luckily, it wasn't a strong one, and he was recovering by late afternoon. After that, he taught us what to do if he had another of his Sickness attacks. The next time he fell, we were ready. That time, it took him a full week to recover, and we had to survive Chad's cooking. Father said that it wasn't too bad, and we often wondered if he was eating the same thing we were.
And that was what it was like for most of my life. The older children moved off to seek their destiny in the world, so eventually Chad, Lugh and I were the oldest of the Orphans. We were happy, our lives no more complicated than taking care of the little ones and looking after Father when he fell ill. But, alas, things were to change.
My brother and I were ten when he appeared. Chad, who had become good friends with us, was eleven. We were picking this year's crop of corn and placing the kernels into a woven basket. I looked out the gate briefly to see a figure riding toward us. I left Lugh and Chad to finish picking the rest of the corn, then walked up to the newcomer. His silver hair was long, reaching to his mid waist, and was tied back with a bandanna. He had worn a black traveling cloak, a dark blue shirt and brown riding pants. Twin daggers had rested by his side and he had a mischievous look in his violet eyes.
'Welcome,' I told him pleasantly. 'Have you business with Father?'
He had looked at me in surprise, then smiled. 'I believe I do. Could you please escort me to him?'
I nodded, then showed him to the gates. He dismounted his black horse, which contented itself by nibbling on some of the grass. He followed me, and I lead him to Father's room. I knocked on the door.
'Yes?' Father called out.
'Father, there is a man here who want's to see you.'
'It's me, Legault.' The man spoke up. There was a pause, then Father's door opened.
'Legault...' He spoken slowly. 'What brings you here?'
'Many things, Father Lucius.' He replied, his expression suddenly turning serious. 'None of which should be discussed in from of the children.'
Father opened the door wider, then let Legault into his room. He shut the door softly behind him. Quietly, I pressed my ear to the door to hear what they were talking about, but they had spoken in hushed voices. I eventually left, seeking out my brother and my friend.
'Who was the man?' Lugh asked me, carrying a basket full of corn.
'Legault, or something.' I shrugged. 'He wanted to talk to Father about something.'
'I'm sure that it's nothing.' Chad said, his arms thrown to the back of his head. 'We had better get this corn to the Kitchen, before Father decides not to cook it.'
And so Legault was forgotten for a time, and we had rushed to the kitchen. The corn was prepared for cooking, and we had started chopping up other sorts of vegetables. When we were half finished, Father and Legault had walked in.
'Lugh, Rei,' Father spoke with a reserved voice, as if he was unsure of the decision he had made. 'Legault here has something for you.'
Lugh looked at me curiously, before we had moved out of the room. Legault moved us to an empty room, then closed the door.
'I have a gift for you two.' He told us. Lugh's eyes twinkled at the hope of getting a gift, hoping it to be an exotic wonder from a far away land. Legault reached into a pocket located at the back of his cloak, and produced his silk-wrapped gift. He slowly took the silk off to reveal a pair of leather-bound books, one of them with a red cover, the other black.
'These were your mother's.' He told us slowly, hesitantly. 'She entrusted them to me, just in case something happened to her or your father. I waited until a time where you could realize their significance.' He handed the red one to Lugh, and the black one to me. I had looked at the book and I felt myself drawn to it. As I reached for the cover, Legault's hand grabbed mine.
'Be careful,' He told me. ' That is a tome of Darkness, and it's powers are not to be underestimated. I have seen many a man succumb to the alluring darkness, reduced to little more than drooling babes.'
'And this one?' Lugh asked, holding his red one.
'Ah, that is an Anima tome, your mother's specialty. That is the magic of nature, and from what I have heard of it, it will set your spirit free.' He smiled.
'Why give me the dangerous one?' I asked him.
'Because Lucius believes that you would be able to handle it.'
It had been such a simple answer, and it had set my mind as to what I was going to do. I did not want to disappoint Father, so I had decided to master this dark magic.
That had been over three years ago.
I sit on my bed, and recount the events of my years. A strand of green hair drifted in front of my face, and I was forced to flick it from my eyes.
Chad has often told me that I've changed over these past few years. I do not doubt him, but neither am I regretful. The Dark magic that I practice has taught me control and patience, but within the depths of my soul I yearn to learn more, to become more powerful than any shaman ever had. I know that staying here limits my search for knowledge, but I must stay.
For the little ones.
I sighed and raised myself from my bed. Lugh and Chad would be back soon from their venture into town. I doubted that they would have been successful in finding jobs, but I knew that they would still bring a few things back.
Lugh had embraced his Anima magic, and was almost as good as casting it as I was with my Dark magic. Often, he would perform small magic tricks for the little ones, delighting them and making them laugh furiously. It was his gift, the ability to enrich other people's lives, even in these troubling times.
Bern was flaunting it's power, and had been sending out small skirmishes to Lycia. I had heard that they were fast taking over Ilia, and Sacae had already fallen. Bern's war had made it even harder for us to survive, and we were only barely able to stave off hunger. Thus, the older of us had gone out to try and find jobs to get a little money. But not many were hiring, and those who were did not hire us. So Chad was forced to resort to stealing. He told father and the little ones that he had managed to work for the food, but I secretly think that Father knew.
'We're back!' Lugh's voice echoed through the Orphanage. I strolled out my room to meet with them. Lugh had a triumphant look on his face, and he held a small pouch. Next to him stood Chad, who carried a half a loaf of bread and some dried meat. I wonder who he stole those from?
'Welcome back, Lugh and Chad.' Father greeted them, smiling. 'I see that you were reasonably successful.'
'Yup!' Lugh smiled and nodded. 'I managed to get 5 gold for my work, and Chad was able to get some food!'
His over-excitedness irritated me, but at the same time it lightened my mood. It was like an infectious disease. Father congratulated them, then took the food. He would divide it up so that it would last as long as it could. Many of the little ones often complained of being hungry, but they were ignorant of all that Father did for them. Few knew that Father cut his portion of the meal so that the others could get more. Since he wore the heavy robes of a Bishop, you could not see that his body had wasted to barely more than skin and bone.
It was pathetic, how we had to survive on what we could scrape from our measly little garden and on the pickings of others that had not the common sense to keep an eye on their property. It sickened me to my core, that this was the standard that we had been reduced to. I turned away from my brother and his friend, suddenly revolted at what they had become. Paupers and thieves. I had to get away from here, so that I would not suffer the same fate.
The day faded quickly, and I once again found myself in my room, quietly studying my tome.
'Rei?' Lugh asked quietly, disturbing me from my book. I slowly closed the cover, then turned with controlled anger to meet his questioning eyes.
'Yes?' I asked, my voice betraying none of my irritation at being disturbed.
'We're going to pull through, aren't we? I mean, we can only barely scrape up enough money and food to keep us alive, and it doesn't look as if things will get any better...' He trailed off, averting his gaze.
'I don't know." I told him simply and truthfully. 'We'll just have to find another way.'
He looked at me a while longer, his eyes wide with worry, before he turned away, staring at the ceiling. I too turned back to my tome, but my thoughts strayed elsewhere. The life at the orphanage would not get any better, that I was sure of. This year's crop of food was only barely alive, and what was pulled from the garden was barely enough for a meal. The gold that was raised from working was only barely enough to pay taxes and to pay for a little dried meat. If this continued, then there was a chance that someone would die of starvation, or when Father had one of his attacks we wouldn't be able to provide for him.
So, I came to my decision.
I waited until Lugh fell asleep, then I got up from my bed. I quietly pulled out a piece of parchment, then set out my quill and ink pot; one of the small luxuries that I had left. I paused, and wondered how to word it. I needed a plausible excuse to leave, I hovered over my parchment, then placed the nib of my quill on it's surface.
"I want to train my Dark magic skills on my own."
This was, indeed, my main reason for leaving. I found it frustratingly hard to concentrate on my craft whilst half a dozen small children ran under my legs. I needed to expand my knowledge and I could not do that sitting in this orphanage, twiddling my thumbs and waiting for starvation to claim me.
I placed the parchment on the desk between Lugh's bed and mine. The same beds that we had slept in since we first came here. I felt a twinge of regret, but I shook it off. I picked up what little belongings I had and quietly left out the front door. I paused, then looked at the barely living garden. I remembered that it had once been full with vegetables, many of which Lugh and I had planted. I shook off the memory, I needed to steel myself for the journey ahead of me. I started to walk down the dirt-track road that lead to and from the orphanage.
The little ones are none of my concern anymore.
(Deep sigh) It's done... Rei is not the easiest person to write about, you know? But anyway, I think I did a reasonable job.
Chapter 3: Bloodstained Garden (Lugh's POV)
R&R Please!