Disclaimer: Fire Emblem doesn't belong to me - my OC's do

Chapter 1

(18 years later)

The deer grazed on the fresh grass below the trees. It's ears flicking from side to side, listening for the sounds of danger. It chewed quickly eager to return to its home and get out of the open. The only noises were the normal ones from birds and insects that inhabited the forest. The area was dark and only a few of the suns rays reached the floor as the thick canopy of leaves covered almost everything. An owl hooted from afar and the deer raised it's head up. Looked left then right. The only movement was from the wind gently blowing the leaves around.

Cautiously the deer began to eat again, taking large mouthfuls of grass and checking it's surroundings constantly. It would all be in vain. Hidden amongst the greenery the hunter drew her bow in a single stroke, her eyes focused on the deers heart and she released the arrow. It hit the creature dead on target, the deer didn't have any time to react. Birds and smaller animals scurried away from the corpse then silence blanketed the place.

Swinging out of the tree the hunter moved over to her prize. She pulled down the camouflaging green hood and smiled. She and Sofia would eat well tonight. Against all odds the twins had survived in the "cursed forest", she snorted at the thought. They had never encountered any monster. No-one knew the forest better than them, sometimes if they needed to make a little extra money they would act as guides for the various travelers and adventurers that roamed around the various towns on the borders.

She began to tie the deer up in order to make it easier to carry. The forest was home, out there in the world was the danger and violence. On the few times that she had visited a village she had heard the tales of war and hatred that seemed to appear in every country, it was why they decided to stay hidden amongst the trees. A peaceful sanctuary isolated from the rest of the world and its troubles.

She checked her water canteen; it needed refilling. Slinging the deer around her shoulders she began to run through the trees. This was one of her frequent hunting trails and she knew where all the clean water sources where. Her clothes were a mixture of browns, greens and blacks that allowed her to disappear if she so chose. Some where handmade, others had been stolen or bought from the few towns on the edges of the wood.

Soon a small lake appeared and she bent down to refill her canteen. Thetia studies her reflection; long red, almost orange, hair that was tied up in a tight ponytail, a few curls escaped but that's what she was, unruly. Her purple eyes stared back at her, she wasn't delicate and pretty like Sofia her build was slightly more sturdier and her face lacked the softness that her sister (and mother) possessed. She sighed and finished filling up the canteen. Time to head back.

She made her way nimbly through the trees, a ghost in the background. Some people had even labeled her as the "spirit of the forest". She shook her head, honestly could people not think up rational explanations for things they didn't comprehend. Beorc and Laguz were too confusing for her to understand which was why she loved her home. Here there was one simple rule: survive. The familiar scent of earth and pine filled her noses, she stopped and took a swig out of her water canteen. Her eyes didn't stop moving around the clearing; she was always alert for danger. Her sister and her had always been different to beorc and laguz, her experiences as a guide had taught her that much. She had heard some of the travelers call her a 'Branded'. She guessed this was why her eyes were significantly better than a beorcs. This had been a great help during the earlier years in the forest.

She shook her head to clear the memories gathering in her mind. If you wanted to live here you had to live in the present. She started her run again. Eventually she came to the one of the oldest trees in the forest; a massive oak that stretched to the sky. If you looked at it carefully, you could just about see the small tree house lodged within the branches. It was one of the many shelters that she and Sofia had made. They had about 15 safe places in the forest where they could sleep and eat. Thetia rapped her bow against the trunk and a rope ladder fell down.

"Catch anything?" her sisters voice came from the above.

"A deer that was strayed too far from its herd." Thetia replied and began to ascend up into the leaves. She hauled herself onto the wooden platform and took the deer off her shoulder. Sofia was building a small fire so she took out a knife and began to skin the deer. Her eyes flicked upwards to examine her sister.

Sofia was smaller and more fragile than her sister, their faces were the same shape, although again hers was slightly harder than Sofi's. The big difference between the two was that Sofi's hair was white and fell down her back in a straight curtain whilst hers seemed to curl out everywhere.

"Any trouble?" Sofi asked, poking the fire with a stick.

"No, pretty quiet today. Guess that pack of wolves has finally moved on." the canines had disrupted her hunting trails and she was glad that they had left.

Sofi snorted. "Good, you've been complaining about them so much for the past couple of weeks that I wanted to strangle you."

"Like you could." she retorted a smile on her lips, they both knew that she was the better one in a fight. Sofia was way to gentle, a quality which she had kept despite living in the wild. Soon the noise of sibling bickering filled the air as they prepared their meal. Thetia took a bite out of the her food.

"How much money do we have left?" even as isolated as they were some things they had to buy. Sofi's face fell.

"It's almost all gone, since someone had to buy a new bow."

"O come on! The old one was dead! You wouldn't want me to face the terrors of the forest with faulty equipment. I might die." she protested. Her sister smiled and shook her head.

"So dramatic."

"Yeah but you love me." she smiled and took another bite out of her meal. "We're near Belur, it's a pretty big town. I'm sure we can find someone who needs a couple of guides."

Sofi nodded but looked away. She knew it was necessary to replenish their funds but truthfully, she hated leading people through the forest. People, both Beorc and Laguz, scared her. Whenever they visited a town she let Thetia do the talking and she stayed in the background. She only trusted her sister. Bitter memories of that night tore trough her, she could still hear the villagers screaming at her mother. No. People could not be trusted. Her hands fingered the necklace around her neck. It was a simple chain with a pendant. The pendant was a silver carving of a sun and moon, and her pride and joy. Each day she polished it to keep it sparkling, it was the last connection to their mother.

Neither of them had returned to the village that they had been born in, and they had sworn that they never would. The nearest they got to the place was when they visited their mothers shrine. Marina's body had been burnt and her ashes scattered to the winds in order to "cleanse" the town and its people from the "curse of the Dark God". So in honour of her memory the twins had built a sort of altar thing in a nearby clearing. Sofi had carved a picture of their mother into the rock and in order to dissuade anyone from destroying it she had also carved some random runes onto the stone. A rumor had sprung up that any who tried to destroy the shrine would be cursed horribly.

Night fell quickly in the forest and soon Thetia was getting ready for sleep. She stretched out and covered herself with one of the few blankets they owned.

"Night Sof."

"Night Tia." she scowled in the dark. She hated the nickname and they both knew it. Her eyes turned to the sky. The moon was crescent shaped tonight and she could make out a couple of stars. Drowsiness began to overcome her and she drifted off into a deep slumber.

Sofia watched her sister drift off to sleep. Thetia could never stay up late, she was a day person; energetic, happy and a little crazy at times. Herself however, she sighed and lay against a thick branch, she always felt more alive at night. It was as if she absorbed energy out of the moon and stars which was drained out by the sun in the morning. Sleep did not come easy to her. So she settled down to listen to the night, it always brought her peace.

The next day

Sofia always hated being surrounded by strangers; she could feel their eyes on her, watching her, judging her. She pulled her hood over her head, it gave her comfort, a shield against the world. Thetia gripped her hand, but she walked with her head held high amongst the crowd, though her hand itched to touch the mark on her shoulder. There were a few whispers from those that recognized them from previous outings.

The inn was a bit quiet today and there were only a couple of people around. The innkeeper nodded at Thetia, he was one of the few contacts they had on the outside and would sometimes help them find jobs. Sofi became her sisters shadow and kept an eye on the customers in the back.

"Hey Ryan." Thetia put a hand on the bar and met his eyes. Ryan was around 50ish. He stood a little over 6 feet and had a large stomach. He didn't smile just grunted and went on wiping cups.

"What do you want Thetia, business ain't been so good lately and I don't want you or your sister scaring any customers away." His voice was thick and Sofia tensed at his words. Yet another reason why she didn't interact with people, they were rude. Tia scowled.

"Now listen.." from the tone of voice Sofi could tell that Tia was getting angry. Not they way to go about getting a job. She grabbed her sisters arm. Tia turned to look at her and she shook her head.

"Calm down." she whispered "We need some money."

Tia took a deep breath and forced herself to relax. "Look just tell us this. Do any of these" She looked around at the customers "fine people need a pair of guides through the forest." Ryan stroked his chubby chin as if in deep thought.

"Can't think of any. Now get out and go back to that damned forest where you belong." Sofi shook her head. Usually Ryan was nicer but the loss of business had turned his mood sour. She tapped Tias shoulder.

"I think there's another inn on the other side of town." Hopefully they would find some employment. Tia nodded and they turned to leave when...

"Excuse me. Did you two say you were guides." They turned to see a small group of three sitting at one of the tables. Thetia blinked. They certainly looked like an odd group; 2 Laguz and a beorc. The beorc was small, red haired and was pouting at one of his companions.

"What are you doing Muarim! We don't need guides, I can find my own way. My sense of direction never fails!" he said crossing his arms over his chest.

"That's what you said last time." the female Laguz spoke. She had black wings and dark hair. There was a small smile on her face.

"Well we got there....eventually." the red head said again this time mumbling under his breath and glaring at a corner. Tia turned her attention back to the one who had spoken. He was the tallest of the three and from the look of him, the strongest. He was a beast Laguz, she could tell from his ears and the tail was a big help.

She walked a little closer with Sofi following right behind her. "Do you need guides?" Her social skills hadn't developed much and she was very blunt. He met her gaze with an even stare.

"Yes. Can show us a way through the forest into Daien? We need to get there quickly." He said. Tia smiled.

"Sure we can but will we is the question. Nothing comes for free." He nodded.

"We will pay you." She nodded and stuck out a hand.

"I'm Thetia and this is my sister Sofia." Sofi nodded but didn't move closer.

"My name is Muarim. This is Vika and the young one is Tormod."

"Nice to meet you. To get to Daien should take a couple of days as long as you don't mind walking at night." All 3 shook their heads. "Well then. We have a deal."

AN: Sorry for taking so long for this chapter been busy. Huge thank yous to Nijigasumi and vampireizzy for the reviews! Advice is always welcomed hope you enjoyed this chap!