Author's Note: This chapter will include some serious sibling-bonding as well as humor. This will be the first of many instances of such in this story, so I hope you approve.

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Fire Emblem.

Edited for typos on August 18th, 2016

Chapter four: The Reality

Xander was still a good distance from Corrin's house when he began yelling. "Corrin! Corrin! Are you inside?"

The door, when he turned the handle, was open. He came straight in and nearly fell flat on his face. His mouth hung open, his knees quivered, his heart raced — but he was stuck, unable to move, unable to scream.

Corrin was home. She was in bed, sleeping peacefully under a familiar cloak, on top of her other bedding. Beside her lay Niles. He was uncovered, without shoes, and his hand was resting on Corrin, his cape and her blanket clenched in his fist. He was still fully dressed, but his mere presence in the room made Xander want to smite him with his sword.

Unfortunately, he was still paralyzed.

After some several minutes of gasping and quaking, Xander bellowed, "What the hell are you doing!?"

Niles and Corrin shot straight up. Upon seeing Xander, Niles' face turned pale and he immediately backed away from Corrin. Corrin, after getting over the initial shock, looked angry at her brother's sudden and violent entrance.

"What are you doing here?" she retorted. "There's nothing strange about me being in my room. And there's nothing strange about my having a guest, either,"

"A guest?" Xander repeated. "A guest! Is that what you call him?"

"How can you be so rude to him, Brother?" Corrin asked, her voice hurt. "Just yesterday you spoke to him, not about him. You thought of him as a brave ally and a man trustworthy enough to protect Leo. Now you point at him like he's a bug!"

"He's not a bug," Xander said, glaring at Niles, "he's a weasel!"

"I'm a man!" shouted Niles, standing up to face Xander. "And I know what you think of me, Lord Xander, though Corrin still doesn't get it."

"Lady Corrin, to you!" Xander retorted.

Niles scoffed. "I beg your permission to disagree, sir. I don't think it would be cute to address my wife as 'lady'."

"Wife? The list of things we must discuss privately just keeps growing, Niles." Xander shook his head. "For now, though, it must wait. It's obviously more pressing that I speak with my sister about the proper behavior a woman must keep around men. Good night."

Niles turned to look at Corrin. Xander wondered for a moment if Niles was going to dare kiss her in front of him; in which case, Xander would have been unable to stay his weapon any longer. Instead, Niles merely added to Xander's ire by giving Corrin a wink. "See you tomorrow!"

With a duck of his head, Niles slipped past Xander and out of Corrin's house. Xander banged the door closed behind him. He turned his fury on Corrin. "What were you thinking letting that man in here, unchaperoned!?"

Corrin wouldn't meet Xander's gaze. She glared at his shoes and refused to answer him.

"Corrin?" Xander said again. "Haven't you any idea how reckless you are being — how thin the line you tread is between 'having fun' and utter disgrace?"

"…No." said Corrin finally, her voice soft. "I didn't have any idea, until you started yelling at me."

Corrin sounded remorseful enough to cool Xander's temper. He was still furious, but his brotherly instinct shifted all blame from the couple onto Niles alone. Corrin was now completely innocent in Xander's mind — the poor, young victim of a man of the world's cruel game.

Xander sat down next to Corrin on the bed and let her lay her head on his shoulder. When he spoke, his voice was quiet and comforting. "I'm sorry for yelling. I was afraid when I came in and found you in… an almost compromising position." He couldn't bring himself to say what he was thinking.

"Why?" Corrin asked.

"Because, as happy as I want to be that you have found love, I can not help but be anxious about Niles." Xander pulled away from Corrin; he searched her face for a reaction, for understanding, but only saw confusion.

"He is a skilled soldier," Xander continued, "and I have never had any reason to fear for Leo with Niles as his retainer. But I have spoken to Niles, and I have heard him speak to others, people who are not his employers. His crudeness worries me. His past worries me. And I wonder about his ability to feel something as delicate and soft as love."

Xander forced a smile. "Can you understand my anger, then, little princess?"

Corrin met Xander's gaze and slowly nodded. "I can. I had guessed Niles' reputation was the reason you rejected him so vehemently. I'm not stupid, nor deaf… Once, all of those reasons made me want to avoid Niles, too. But then I heard him speak of Leo, and for the first time, he sounded warm and sincere. That's why I wanted to become friends with him, so I could see more of that hidden side." Corrin smiled herself now. "I didn't expect to fall in love with that side, though."

Fall in love? Xander thought, repressing a sigh. She really does believe in him.

"Sister, I need you to be patient with me — with all of us — as we try to accept this new phase of your life." said Xander. "All of us need to learn to overcome the same fears you did to trust Niles. In the meantime, please, promise us that you will be sympathetic."

Corrin's face lit up. "Then, you'll give our relationship a chance?"

"We'll try."

Corrin smiled broadly. "I promise!" she exclaimed.

"Good." Then a thought struck him. "Oh, and promise us you'll exercise more… discretion in your meetings."

Corrin titled her head to one side. "What do you mean?"

"I mean don't go… you know."

"No, I don't. Where shouldn't we go?"

"You know! To… to…" Xander gestured wildly at the bed.

Corrin obviously didn't understand. "To where? Xander, what are you nodding at?"

"Don't go… you know! Here!" He pointed beneath them.

"Here, to my house? Why not? There's nowhere else we can be alone."

"See! That right there, that 'alone' business — very dangerous and not at all appropriate for a princess. A courtship should always have a chaperone to judge the couple's behavior."

"Why do you keep saying 'dangerous'?" Corrin asked, her eyes wide in confusion. "What's going to happen?"

"You know!" Xander screamed.

"But I don't!"

Xander stopped. He blinked. He stared at Corrin; she stared back. "You… You're serious." he said. "You really do have no idea what I am referring to."

"No, I don't." Corrin agreed, sounding annoyed. "What is it?"

Xander felt cold. He thought he could feel the color draining from his face. Inside, his heart raced wildly, and he screamed curses alternatively at Niles (who might have done anything with Corrin's naivety) and his father (who should never have left Corrin's education to a grumpy old man, a surly butler, and two silly maids).

"Xander?" Corrin asked again.

"I… I… I have to talk to Camilla!" Xander jumped from the bed and ran for the door, not even stopping to close it behind him.