A/N 1: Whew, managed to squeeze out this chapter just before my enlistment date. Anyways, hope you all enjoy it! And once again, don't be shy to let me know your thoughts on the fic!

Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem: Awakening.

Survivors

Chapter Two: Star-Crossed Swords

"What in blazes are you doing, woman?"

"Cordelia?"

The pegasus knight in question glanced towards the now-open door. "Yes?"

"Robin wishes to meet with you. Immediately."

Frowning, Cordelia set the whetstone and dulled sword aside, next to the pile of bladed weapons that needed maintenance. In the few days she had been with the Shepherds, she had heard their tactician's name mentioned several times in passing. Prince Chrom had found him not too long ago, on the outskirts of a small town of all places. The man literally had almost nothing - apparently, he was an amnesiac with little more than the knowledge of his name, the clothes on his back and a gift for combat and strategy. Yet he had quickly earned the lord's trust and respect, and most of the other Shepherds had warmed to him as well. Sumia had described him as 'one of those mysterious, brooding types', while Frederick - Frederick the Wary - had expressed 'a growing lack of suspicion' regarding the man. Herself, she was equally suspicious and intrigued, and just a little jealous as well. If Prince Chrom had found her instead, who -

"Er, Cordelia?"

"Ah - right." The red-haired woman shook her head, quickly dismissing any romantic fantasies. "Did he mention why, Stahl?"

The olive-haired man shrugged. "No idea. He only said it was important."

"Alright," Cordelia stood and stretched. "Could you inform him I'll finish-"

"Let me take over from here. Best not keep him waiting. And besides," the cavalier shivered, rubbing his hands together, "I'd much prefer the monotony of sharpening blades right now, thank you. Gods, how do Feroxi men survive barechested here?"

The pegasus knight smiled. Ferox's chilly climate had its fair share of critics amongst the Shepherds. "My thanks."

Although he was the closest thing the Shepherds had to a deputy officer, the tactician's accommodations were not much different from any of theirs. He had taken up residence in one of the fort's spare rooms, which contained nothing more than a bed, a desk, two chairs and a window that offered a clear view of the fort's courtyard. Robin's personal belongings remained in a few bags at the corner of the bed, while the desk was cluttered with papers. The tactician, engrossed in his work, did not look up when she shut the door behind her.

"Ahem." Cordelia cleared her throat to announce her presence. Robin jerked in his seat, snapping his head up in surprise; the pegasus knight briefly considered saluting. Technically, he was the ranking officer. Not wanting to confuse him further, she decided against that. "Tactician Robin? You wished to see me?"

"Huh? Ah, right," the man - surprisingly young for a tactician, she noted - nodded, quickly setting his papers aside and withdrawing ink and parchment from a drawer in his desk. Sharp brown eyes examined her from beneath a head of disheveled white hair. "You must be Cordelia. My apologies - this meeting is long overdue. Please be seated."

The pegasus knight glanced uneasily at the offered chair. "...I would prefer to stand."

"As you wish. I assure you, you are not in any sort of trouble. I simply wish to get a better grasp of your capabilities so that I may know how best to deploy you on the battlefield."

"Wouldn't a duel or a sparring session be better suited for such a purpose?" The pegasus knight mentally smacked herself as soon as the words left her tongue. Great way to make an impression, Cordelia… "My deepest apologies. I was out of line."

Robin simply chuckled, shaking his head and noting something down on the parchment. Seeing her name at the top of the paper only amplified her unease. "That's quite alright. Speak freely, I insist. To answer your question, there are other variables outside of your combat prowess that I must consider as well - things that cannot be gleaned through a simple duel. Some may think the common soldier is but a mere pawn in the hands of the tacticians and officers, but I disagree."

"I… I understand."

"Let us tarry no longer. Cordelia, will you obey my word on the battlefield?"

"Of course, sir."

"Just Robin will do. Is your participation in this campaign completely voluntary; that you choose to fight not under duress but rather of your own free will?"

"Yes, si - Robin."

"Current and past roles and deployments?"

"Pegasus knight. A brief stint in the Ylissean infantry before my application to the pegasus knights was accepted. Two peacekeeping operations with the pegasus knights, as rearguard." Cordelia hesitated, forcing down the memories as she continued. "Border patrol with my squad, as rearguard."

If Robin was aware of the loss of her entire squad, he did not show it. "Any past disciplinary infractions?"

"None."

"Dominant hand?"

"Right."

"Favored weapon?"

"Lance, but I have had training in both sword and axe."

"Have you trained in the usage of shields?"

"Minimally." She'd have to work on that when she had the time.

"Magical aptitude?"

"...low."

The tactician muttered what vaguely sounded like more tomes for me under his breath, adding a few more notes to the parchment. "Have you worked with any of the Shepherds in the past?"

"Sumia and Frederick. Sumia and I were childhood friends and fellow pegasus knights, while Frederick has sought my assistance previously on various matters."

"What about the previous battle, then?"

"I assisted… Oh, gods." The memories came back in a rush, and her eyes widened. Robin's eyebrows rose as she groaned. " I was standing by, observing, and he was about to be overrun... so I intervened. Then those, uh, incidents, occurred..."

"Could you elaborate?"

She sighed. "Before I became... blood-drunk, I had rushed to aid a black-haired Shepherd. He saved me from a mage's attack, although he did knock me from my mount in order to do so. After the battle was over… I did not take too kindly to that."

"You attempted to punch the living daylights out of him, you mean." Robin's tone remained as neutral as ever, and that intimidated her more than a screaming drill sergeant. Cordelia bowed her head, cheeks burning with shame, not wanting to meet his eyes. "I heard parts of the story around the dinner tent."

So it was common knowledge now. "My sincerest apologies. I will accept any punishment that you or Lord Chrom deem necessary for this."

The tactician sighed. "Gods, why does everyone I meet see me as a ruthless taskmaster?" Shaking his head, he scribbled down a final note, before setting the parchment and ink aside and getting to his feet. "Anyways, we're done, but would you kindly walk with me? There are items I need to collect from the armory before heading to the training grounds."

Cordelia's brow furrowed in confusion. "Pardon?"

"Your request for arms has been approved by Frederick," Robin explained. "It would be an ideal time to collect them and to see if they are to your liking. After that, there is someone at the training grounds I would like you to meet."

"You wish for me to mentor someone?"

Robin flashed her an enigmatic smile. "Not exactly."

Gods, why do I have a bad feeling about this?

"Oh, gods."

"Urgh."

Robin glanced back and forth between the two Shepherds, noting the pegasus knight's mortified look and the ashen expression of the black-haired myrmidon. "Ah, so you two have met prior?" He casually asked.

Cordelia resisted the urge to turn around and punch the tactician in the face. All around her, various members of the Shepherds were engaged in various combat drills or simply sparring, the fort's courtyard having become a maelstrom of training activities and sweating bodies. Yet the myrmidon appeared rested and fresh, standing with his arms crossed in the middle of one of the marked sparring rings. Training weapons and equipment of various sorts laid untouched in a pile next to him. Evidently, someone had arranged this beforehand.

"Begone." The myrmidon hissed.

The pegasus knight ground her teeth, pushing down her unhappiness. Ignoring the black-haired man for the moment, she instead turned towards the tactician. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Patience, Cordelia. All will be explained shortly." Robin spoke, approaching the black-haired man. "You have my thanks for your assistance, Lon'qu."

Eying her uneasily for another moment, Lon'qu turned to the tactician. His hand hovered near the hilt of his sword. "Enough flattery. You asked me here for a reason. What is it?"

"Would you assist me in evaluating Cordelia's combat capabilities? I originally spoke with Vaike, but when Frederick asked him to spar with Lord Chrom, he jumped at the chance."

The dour look on the myrmidon's face soured further, if that was even possible. "You wish of me to spar with… her?"

"Yes. Is there-"

"Beg pardon, sir," Cordelia interrupted, "but I must ask for an explanation. You mentioned prior that you had no doubts-"

"I do not doubt your skill in mounted or aerial combat, milady." Robin cut in, his tone polite yet firm. "However, I have yet to evaluate your skill in ground combat."

So he did have doubts, after all. Did he not trust her? Was she not good enough? "Robin, sir -"

"No more protests, Cordelia. My decision is final. Consider this a substitute for Frederick's… uh, physical conditioning sessions?"

Cordelia sighed, shaking her head in resignation. While she had no love for what Frederick termed his 'Fanatical Fitness Hour', sparring with someone - Lon'qu, Robin had called him - who most likely held a grudge against her for that brawl would be nothing short of painfully awkward. Turning to the other Shepherd, she forced a neutral expression onto her face, even as he took an uneasy step back. The least she could do was make this as professional as possible. "If that is your wish. Shall we begin?"

"No. We do not 'begin'. You will stay away from me," The myrmidon hissed, stepping back again.

"Lon'qu, you said you would not let your phobia interfere…" Robin started. Lon'qu jerked his head to glare at the tactician, and the latter instinctively backpedaled with a tiny, undignified eep. "...with your duties…"

"That is irrelevant! Do not speak of that again!"

"Lon'qu," Cordelia tried again, her tongue struggling to wrap itself around the odd syllables of his name. Oh, what she would give for a swift end to this sparring session... "Perhaps we could-"

"Silence, woman! I want nothing to do with you!"

Her nerves, already frayed by awkwardness, self-doubt and impatience, finally snapped at his unwarranted insult towards her gender. Crouching slightly, the pegasus knight swiftly plucked a training javelin from the ground, gauging the distance with her eyes as she did so. With a grunt, she hurled the weapon at the myrmidon, who fortunately had the good sense to duck instead of simply staring transfixed at the approaching projectile. Glancing over his shoulder at where the javelin had fallen, the black-haired man spun back to face her, sheer disbelief written all over his features.

"What in blazes are you doing, woman?!"

Cordelia's response was to hurl another javelin at him. With a curse, the myrmidon twisted his body to the side, letting the second projectile pass by with inches to spare. The disbelief on his face had vanished, replaced by anger. "Answer me!"

"Sparring." The red-haired woman grunted, a third javelin poised and ready. "Javelins were intended for ranged combat. If you choose to remain at a distance, then what better weapon is there?"

"Cease this insanity at once! I will not fight you!"

"And why not? Do you not desire revenge for the wounds I inflicted on you prior?" Her voice rose to a shout, laced with anger and desperation. Driven by emotion, she flung the javelin at him, but this time the weapon missed its target by a wide margin. "Why do you refuse to raise your blade against me? Am I not worthy of your time? Is that it?!"

"I am above such petty matters!" Lon'qu snapped. He sharply spun on his heel. "I will listen to the ravings of this madwoman no longer. I'm done here."

"Face me, you coward!"

The myrmidon froze mid-step. Slowly, deliberately, he turned his head, glaring at her with one eye. His fingers closed around the hilt of the oaken practice sword hung at his waist.

"If you insist."

A/N 2: And here we go again. Ring the bell.

I don't intend to limit myself to just Cordelia and Lon'qu's canon supports, and it's quite obvious that Lon'qu's C-rank support with the female Avatar inspired a particular section of this chapter. xD There might be other scenes along the same lines in the future (inspired by a support conversation, but with possibly different dialogue and mood/settings), who knows?

To all readers, do take note that the next chapter will be delayed. I hope to be able to update at least once every fortnight, though.