Okay, I know it's been a little while since I last updated, well, anything. I've had a bit of writer's block, combined with a busy semester and an inspiration-less winter break. Not really a good excuse, but I hope you guys are still following this fic!

Many thanks to Rapis-Razuri, Glaceon Mage, Fireminer, and Sentinel07 for their reviews last chapter! I'm pretty sure I replied to them back when they first came in, but, if not, please remind me and/or slap me. I probably deserve it.

Many thanks to Rapis-Razuri for the lovely beta work!

Now I'll shut up and let you guys read ^_^

Dragonsong
Chapter III – Lion's Call

Slowly, she lowered her hood as she whispered in disbelief, "…Roy?"

His eyes widened as he took in the sight of her in her heavy brown cloak and white sage's robes underneath. Blue hair spilled down her back with her favorite red hairband holding it behind her ears, her eyes wide in shock.

Slowly, his jaw dropped in surprise as he struggled to make his voice work. Finally, he managed to say, "L-Lilina…?"

Eafya stood beside Lilina and slowly turned to her. "Matron, do you know the Dragonslayer?"

He slowly shook himself out of his stupor and turned to face the red-haired woman present. "'Dragonslayer'? Is that what they call me in Ilia?"

The woman nodded. "The brave man who continues to battle against the Demon Dragon, even as his allies leave his side and the enemies grow ever stronger. I myself heard the rumors farther south. I didn't think it was prudent to mention them as I wasn't aware the Matron knew you personally."

Lilina finally spoke again, blinking away the shock at seeing Roy once again. "You… You're alive."

He turned to face her, slowly, his eyes widening once again. "Lilina… Thank the gods you're safe."

She didn't even try to fight her inner urges as she ran forward, throwing her arms around him. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she buried her face in his shoulder, crying into his shirt as she struggled to make sure he was real. For three painfully long years, she wondered if he had even survived that battle so long ago.

Now, here he was, alive and well in her arms.

She could barely believe it was really him.

Slowly, his hands settled on her back as he returned her embrace, seeming to be just as bewildered to see her again. As she pressed her face into the sleeve of his shirt, she realized how tall he'd gotten over the last three years. The last time she had seen him, he was no more than three centimeters taller. Now, she could barely see over his shoulder without going on her tiptoes.

He was only sixteen back then. Barely more than a child, but he had the world thrust upon his shoulders. The very fate of the continent rode on him. If he died, no one else could wield the Sword of Seals and bring victory over the Demon Dragon.

She couldn't stop herself as she buried her nose in his shirt and inhaled deeply. It was the same scent as always. She hadn't realized until that moment that Roy had a distinct smell to him that was unlike anything else. What's more, she noticed she missed it dearly.

Folding her fingers into the fabric of his tunic more tightly, she managed to murmur, "Thank the gods you're all right… I've worried so much since Sir Lance returned to you. I thought… I thought everyone was…"

She pulled away from him suddenly and turned away, futilely trying to hide her tears from him. For three years, she had wondered where he was and if he was all right. Now, here he was, on her doorstep and alive. She felt she had every right to be emotional.

That didn't mean she wanted him to see her looking so weak, though.

Slowly, he reached out and touched her shoulder. "I've looked everywhere for you. I had no idea where Lance took you and…"

Shaking her head, she moved to head into the settlement and said, "Come. We can talk more in my tent." Pausing briefly, she turned back to face him and said, "Once you give me your sword. I'm sorry, Roy, but I can't bend the rules for anyone. Not even you."

He hesitated a moment, then nodded. "If you're holding it, then I know it'll be well taken care of." Reaching behind him, he made quick work of the buckles holding his sheath to his back and drew the weapon from its resting place behind him. Holding it out by the scabbard, he added, "You know what this means."

She nodded as she accepted the Sword of Seals from him and held it close to her. It was the only weapon that had any hope of defeating the Demon Dragon. If that sword was lost, then they could forget ever finding peace in the world again. It was no wonder why he didn't want to surrender it to strangers.

Turning again, she continued to hug the sword to her chest as she moved to lead her childhood friend to her tent. They had three years of catching up to do. When she thought about it, she wasn't sure they had ever been apart that long before.

The trek was relatively silent as she pulled the flap back and walked in, then held it open for him to enter. Once he did, she gestured for the cushions on the ground to sit as she moved to gingerly place the Sword of Seals under her cot where it would remain out of sight. Slowly, she sat opposite him on another dirty cushion and bit her lip, wondering where to start.

"…You said Lance left you here?"

She looked up as he spoke, his eyes staring at the floor and not meeting her gaze. "Mm," she hummed, offering a slight nod. "Once I settled in here with the first of the villagers, he left to find you. He said he couldn't leave you alone when you could be in danger."

He was silent for a long moment, then finally murmured, "I haven't seen him since that day. I always thought he was still with you."

She found herself unable to reply as she glanced down at the same place where he was staring. "I… see…"

Silence passed for a moment before she quietly asked, "Roy…?"

She felt his eyes fall on her as she continued, "Do you… Do you know anything about my mother? And your lord father?"

He shifted to sit upright and replied, "They're both alive. We have a headquarters of sorts for the resistance set up in a castle in Etruria. We had to flee from Lycia, but they're both there. My father… is still ill, but he's alive."

She couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. "Thank the gods…"

He opened his mouth to reply, then paused as a ferocious yawn tore from his throat. A sheepish look crossed his face as he turned away slightly. "Er, sorry… I haven't actually slept in five days."

Her eyes widened in shock. "Five days?" How was he able to stand? Anyone else would have collapsed after three at most.

He reached a hand to scratch the back of his head as he said, "I've gotten used to this sort of lifestyle. Safe places to sleep are few and far between, so I don't really have much of a choice."

She frowned and crossed her arms in a huff. "Don't you remember our lessons from childhood? General Cecilia used to tell us how every soldier needs to rest. You'll be useless in battle if you work yourself to the bone like this."

He shrugged slightly. "I do rest. I just don't sleep. Like I said, I've gotten used to this."

She folded her arms crossly and shifted to stand, snapping, "Come, a cot's been prepared for you. I'll take you there."

He slowly followed suit and stood with her, a crooked smile on his lips. "I never could say no to you. Lead the way, 'Matron.'"

She frowned. Was he mocking her? "This way, then." Shaking her head slightly, she murmured, "I've missed you, Roy."

…

Lilina walked through the dirt paths, holding a small torch to help her see through the pitch-dark night. Three years had passed since that fateful day. The day the Demon Dragon had won and the dragons returned in full power to the lands of Elibe. Only three years, but Roy had seemed to look so much older. So much…

So much more like a man.

She would be lying if she had said he was just a friend to her. He was so much more… He was her world. It was because of his support that she didn't give up when her father had died. He had hugged her and let her cry on his shoulder, but it was his words that gave her the strength to fight for the Lycian League her father had led before her.

Now, three years later, Roy had seemed so beaten and worn. She was grateful to see him alive, and relief had coursed through every fiber of her being. For three years, ever since Sir Lance had been ordered by Roy to take her to safety, she had lived in that desolate part of Ilia, praying endlessly for word of his survival.

Now, here he was, showing up on the threshold of Panacea, the new kind of Arcadia in the north. It was more like a refugee camp than an actual town, since resources were so hard to come by. She had stayed there and protected those who didn't want to fight, be they dragon or human. There was no use in holding prejudice over those who just wanted peace.

Slowly, she stopped outside the tent where Roy slept, debating on whether she should bother him. What was she doing? It had been three years since she'd seen him last! She pulled the flap back and whispered, "Roy? Are you awake?"

She heard a shuffle as he bolted upright and reached out, presumably for his sword. Realizing where he was and that the Sword of Seals was safe in her tent, he relaxed in his place on the cot. A faint smile ghosted his face as he crossed one arm to settle across his lap as he murmured, "Lilina…"

She managed a light smile in return. What happened to him out there? What happened to the sweet boy she'd grown up with, who never failed to wear a smile? Once the war had started, his smile had become increasingly rare, but it had never been so… false. He had always had a smile for her. Always that same, clear smile to ease her mind and still her sorrows.

Now, all he could give was a mere shadow of that brilliance. The trials he had faced since that fateful battle against the Demon Dragon had hardened him; forced him to become a different person. But what had he seen? What sort of horrors had fallen before his youthful eyes? He was only nineteen years old – barely a man.

And yet, he was all the man she could ever want or need.

He shifted to move his feet to the floor and sat on the side of the cot, revealing his bare feet as he patted the spot beside him for her to take. It was only then that she realized he was shirtless, his gear removed for a night in the peaceful camp. All he wore was the pair of black trousers he'd donned when he arrived at her doorstep.

She had seen him shirtless before, when he was injured and needed care for his wounds during the war against Bern. However, when the light from her lantern flickered over his skin, she noticed a long scar that hadn't been there before. It ran from the right side of his ribs and down to his stomach at an angle before disappearing down into the waistline of his pants.

She froze when she realized she was staring, then shifted to set the lamp down and sat beside him. She licked her lips as she folded her hands on her lap and murmured, "Roy…"

At the same time, he said, "They respect you here, don't they?"

She stalled for a moment, taken aback by his question. Slowly, she nodded and murmured, "Yeah, I suppose so. I just wanted to make a place where people could feel safe."

He nodded once. "That's good…"

Slowly, she turned to look at him—look up at him now—and reached to tuck her hair behind her ear when it fell in her face. "Um, Roy…?"

He didn't look at her, but shrugged slightly and hummed a short, "Mm?"

She bit her lip as she struggled to find a way to word her thoughts. It was a question that burned with her for the last three years, and though she had tried to conjure an answer, she wanted to know what the truth was. Inhaling a breath, she quietly asked, "Roy… Why did you have Sir Lance take me away from that place?"

He froze slightly beside her before coughing a short laugh, reaching out to set his hand on her head and ruffle her hair lightly. His eyes stayed on the ground in front of them as he muttered, "Are you kidding me, Lilina? I couldn't let you die."

She shook her head and muttered, "I would have gladly died beside everyone else."

Giving a light sigh, he replied, "I promised Lord Hector on his deathbed that I'd keep you safe. I couldn't break that promise."

She bit back the urge to cry and asked, "How do you expect me to live, knowing every breath I drew came from the sacrifice of everyone else?"

His body stiffened as he took in her words. "I couldn't… break that promise…"

She shook her head. "Forget that! So what if I'm the future of Ostia?! Look outside, Roy. What good is there in me being alive if there's no Ostia for me to lead?!"

He shifted to stand and turned to face her, his hands tightening into fists as he hissed, "You and I both know that as long as a leader exists, a country can be rebuilt. Going one step further, Lord Hector asked me to take care of you not as a marquess looking out for his land, but as a father worried for his daughter!"

She looked away slowly, wrapping her arms around her middle as she tried to keep memories of her father from flooding her thoughts. "I know that… But my father gave his life to protect the Lycian Alliance, just as any leader would do for his people. With him dead, that role of marquess falls to me. It's my place to die to defend Lycia!"

He looked away for a long moment, his eyes squeezed shut as he fought with whatever thought ran through his mind. When he finally spoke, his voice was low and just barely rumbled into the night, "Lilina… Your father made me the general of the army and asked me to keep you safe. It was my place to—"

"No!" she shouted, louder than she had intended, and stood up to look him in the eye. "Don't presume to take responsibility for my duties!"

"Damn it, Lilina!" he cursed. It was the first time he had uttered a curse in her presence, but she found she couldn't care as he reached out and gripped her shoulders. The look in his eye was as fierce as a lion as he met her gaze and shouted in a whisper, "I ordered Lance to take you away from that place because I couldn't let anything happen to the girl I love!"

Slowly, he turned away and released her arms as he added, "No man could bear the weight of knowing he lived when the woman he loved was killed… Not when he had the power to save her."

She froze. He… loved her? "Roy, I…"

She was speechless. With the numerous answers she had conjured over the past three years, that was never one of them. All this time, he had felt the same for her as she had for him? It was too much to believe. Her legs gave out beneath her as she stumbled back to sit on the cot once again. "I…"

He looked away slowly and turned his back to her. "It's… okay that you don't feel the same. I wasn't even going to mention it, but…"

Wait, what was he saying? Did he truly think that she didn't love him in return? Was he that convinced that she didn't? No matter how much she wanted to tell him otherwise, to just open her mouth and say those three words in return, her voice refused to work.

Still facing away from her, he muttered, "It's late. You should go to bed. We both need sleep."

Still unable to bring herself to say anything, she forced herself to stand and made for the exit. She would talk to him tomorrow and explain.

So begins the shippiness! Again, I'd like to apologize for the lack of updates. I'd really like to say that it was a one-time thing, but I really don't know. I hope you'll stick with me and I'll update as often as I can!

Please review!

-Valk