Pre T.A.A.H

Siegfried had never been taught not to cry. Most of the fathers he knew took time to instill values into their sons, one of the most important being that they should never shed a tear. Frederick had never seen things that way. Perhaps it was because of his own upbringing, or perhaps just because he was a different man altogether, but he had never seen fit to teach his son to hold back his feelings. Siegfried was never told he was not allowed to cry.

But his cousins were. Kale especially had the concept beaten into him on a regular basis. Men did not cry. It was a sign of weakness, something only suitable for women to take part in. You never saw entire armies of men on the battlefield bawling their eyes out, but you certainly bared witness to dozens of women openly weeping because of some small tragedy. So it was the common mindset that one sex could cry, while the other was expressively forbidden to do so. The knight's uncles used to tell their boys,

"If I see one tear fall from your eyes, then you are no longer a man in mine."

Siegfried's father had never spoken those words to him. Frederick never said crying was for the weak, though he did say it was not for the battlefield. Tears, like everything else in life, had a time and place. They had an acceptable position in the world, and a notable moment when they could be shown without fear. The older Schtauffen knew when those times, knew where those places, were. However, he had never gotten the opportunity to divulge them to Siegfried.

As a result, the knight never knew when to cry, who to cry in front of, or how to comfort others who were crying. He was nervous around tears. Most people believed him to be highly insensitive. To a degree, he supposed he was.

So when Link had suddenly started crying after an emotional wound had reopened, Siegfried was surprised that he knew precisely what to do to calm him down. He was further shocked to realize that taking the younger into his arms and quietly rocking him to a calmer state was not nearly as awkward as it should have been.

And when Link laughed and said, "I must look so weak to you."

He knew to respond with, "Link, right now, you are just about the strongest person I know."

Pre T.A.A.H

"Did I ever tell you that my parents were never supposed to get married?"

Link curiously looked up from his dinner. The day had been surprisingly quiet, uneventful, and unusually peaceful for the two warriors. The Hylian could not remember the last time they had gotten a chance to simply sit down for a normal dinner, at a nice restaurant that served actual home cooked meals with a smile, in a location not filled to the brim with unsavory characters. It was also the first time in a long while that they were without traveling companions. The group had gone their separate ways a few days prior in order to effectively pursue all the leads they had gathered on Soul Edge. So far, theirs had led to nothing but mere dead ends, but the small voyage was far from unpleasant.

"No, I don't think you've ever mentioned that."

The knight shrugged after taking a bite out of some meat on his plate. "He met her during one of his campaigns against the Holy Roman Empire. It was love at first sight and they ended up spending the night together. A very memorable night apparently."

Link raised an eyebrow. "Just a quick question. Did your dad tell you this story, or did your mom?"

Siegfried chuckled. "Neither. I heard it from an uncle who, by the way, detests the fact that I even exist. Anyway, it wasn't just the obvious that made it memorable. Nine months later, when my father returned victorious from battle, I was born."

"Some welcome home present. I bet he was excited."

"How could he not be? He had me for a son." The two shared a laugh and split the remaining bread roll in half before continuing. "All joking aside, he actually was really excited to become a father. He named me after a legendary hero and looked forward to raising me with my mother. Her parents didn't approve though."

"Why not?" Frederick seemed like such a nice person. So responsible and loving. Why would any family disapprove?

Siegfried shrugged. "He was basically a renegade soldier. They were still supporting the Holy Roman Empire at the time, though I think it had more to do with the fact that they just wanted to side with whoever had the better chance of winning. My father did not seem like all too great of an option to them."

"So what did your mother do?"

At that the knight smiled. "She happily told them that she and her child would decide who would treat them as well as they deserved. Then she gave my uncles the slip when they tried to stop her from running away. She and my father eloped, and the rest is history."

Link could not stop staring at his friend. A certain fondness drifted over his eyes before the biggest smile he could muster made itself known. "To think, if she had listened, you wouldn't have turned out to be the great man you are."

Siegfried winked. "She never did listen to reason."

"Kind of like a certain knight I know."

Fang: Hey, that last part isn't complete BS. *Looking at Soul Calibur bios* You actually looked up Frederick?

Mistress: You're talking to a girl who gave a pack of men different personality traits with the way they drank. Did you really think I wasn't going to do my research on an important part of Siegfried's life?

Fang: Guess I should have known better. R&R please.