I can't help myself. Ricken isn't hard to write and he's absolutely adorable. I know people that don't like him much, though, so he probably won't be the best of my writings in this...ah, well...

Ricken I ~Throw my Arms around you~

"I wish I could throw my arms around you and never let go!"

He always felt so small compared to everyone else. He was the youngest in the camp, so he felt like there was no way he could ever have anything good happen to him…but being a part of Chrom's army made him feel more confident!

But his height didn't make him feel very good about anything…

Tapping his pen against his blank sheet of paper, Ricken could only hum to himself as he had to think hard. With Robin's help, he was able to write a letter to his parents and it went very well! The bad thing was that the reply came back VERY quickly, his parents getting very excited to hear about how well Ricken was doing.

So, NOW he needed to reply AGAIN. He didn't just want to send them the same letter again saying 'Oh, I'm wonderful, yay'. He wanted to tell them EXACTLY what was happening…

He had so MUCH to say to them, but nothing to really SHOW.

Maybe Robin could help him again? But, that was the problem…he wanted to write to his parents about her…about the woman who he had fallen head over heels for. But he didn't want to just say 'yes, I have a crush on this woman, but I'm pretty sure she doesn't like me back' to his PARENTS. They'd want to hear about his MARRIAGE, rather than just childish crushes.

But, he couldn't just wait until he got the bravery to ask Robin to marry him to reply to his parents. He had to tell them SOMETHING.

"Ricken? Ricken?!"

The young mage jumped when he heard the feminine voice outside of his tent as he panicked, trying to get his stuff together and flailing to get his large hat and shove it onto his head, only to shove it on a little too hard, forcing himself to fumble to straighten it out as Robing poked her head into his tent, watching him fumble with a giggle.

"A-Ah! Robin?! Y-You just barged in!"

"I apologuze. I heard you fumbling around and got worried. Hm? Oh? Trying to write another letter?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"Oh…not going well?"

She could read him like a book. "It never goes well…they respond quickly and leave me with nothing new to say…"

"So, no news to report?"

"Nothing new…I can't just give them the same 'I'm doing well', either, or they'll just think I'm bored of replying to them."

"Poor Ricken…want more help?"

"Not with the suggestions you gave me last time! No limb ripping! You sounded like Henry!"

"Well, good point…okay, I won't meddle in your affairs. By the way…Chrom told me you went off on your own a while ago…where did you go?"

Oh, that…a few days ago, Ricken went out on his own to the slope of Ghoul's Teeth to gain a bit of experience…he couldn't tell her that, though. He was glad he got something more than experience out of it, though.

"Well…I went out looking for things…I found a nice stone. Oh! Here!"

The tactician raised her brow as Ricken dug into his mage's robes and brought out a shining, green stone, about the size of the palm of his hand, a blush on his smiling face as he held it out to the woman.

"Oh! Wow, what a beautiful stone! Where did you find such a prize?"

"W-Well…Oh, just…laying around…"

"Laying around? Something like this? Oh…I think I've actually seen this stone in a book before…I think it's a kind of gem from Ghoul's Teeth…RICKEN."

"I DIDN'T DO IT, I SWEAR."

Instinct took over as he shielded himself from any nagging he was about to receive, only to no avail when Robin glared down at him, her hands on her hips. He was ready for a scolding…

"Why would you go somewhere so dangerous on your own?! You could have been hurt!"

"I-I was going for experience! Look! I'm not even hurt, I promise!"

"You better be telling me the truth! If you're hurt I want to know!"

"I am! I'm not a child, Robin! I'm a grown man!"

"A grown man who made a stupid decision!"

Well, at least she was admitting he was a grown man…that was a start.

"M-Maybe I made a stupid decision, but I don't regret it…I got this stone out of it and I want to give that to someone, so…if they accept it, it'll be worth it!"

"Ricken? Well, that's nice, but…still, I worry about you, Ricken…"

"But, I'm not a child, I told you!"

"I know. You don't have to be a child for me to worry. You're my ally and my friend. I care, Ricken."

He couldn't help but blush as she put a hand on his shoulder, looking down at him with worry. "D-Don't look at me like that…I feel bad for making you worry about me…"

"Good. Don't make me worry again, Ricken…"

"W-Well…I want to give the stone to you, since you like it so much."

"Oh? That's…lovely of you. I mean…you went through so much to get it…"

"Y-yeah, but…here's a weird question…if I put that on a ring and gave it to you…would you accept it? Like…a proposal?"

Now was Robin's turn to blush as she looked down at the young mage, who just looked away with a flushed expression.

"W-Where has this come from?"

"I-It's been on my mind for a while…But, if you wouldn't, then…you can just have the stone. I'd be happy if you just accepted that."

She just stood in shock. Really, Ricken was a wonderful young man and…well, now she was just confused.

"Ricken…really, this has come out of nowhere…I can normally read everyone very easily and see these little things, but…I never knew."

"I'm…pretty good at hiding things, when I feel like it…I figured you'd think I was too much of a child for you, so…actually, I thought you'd laugh at me."

"I wouldn't dare laugh at something like that. This is very serious…I mean...you proposed. I wouldn't laugh at that…do you really think so poorly of me?"

"No! Of course not, I mean…I think you'd just feel like I'm a kid with a crush, but-! I-I really do like you and I want to be with you! B-But…umm…"

"Come here, okay?"

Shuffling closer to her, he couldn't bring himself to look into her chocolate brown eyes. But he was surprised when the young girl leant down a little, pulling his large hat up a little and brushing her lips against his forehead as gently as she could, giving the young man a quick kiss.

His face practically exploded with heat as he looked up at the young woman as she smiled down at him. "R-Robin-?!"

"I didn't say no, did I? You're a wonderful young man…hell, you're not exactly much younger than me, so of course I can see you as a grown man. And I want to watch you grow more. By your side, Ricken."

"R-Really? Yes! I'm so glad!"

"Woah, there!"

Now was Robin's turn to be surprised, as the mage jumped up and down, ending up jumping into his new fiancé's arms, forcing her to carefully wrap her arms around him as he nuzzled his head into her chest. He really was happy.

"Now I have something to write to my parents! Ahhh, I'll tell them all about you!"

"Don't go exaggerating about me, okay? I don't want them expecting so much."

"I'll tell them the truth and about my feelings for you! This'll be great! I promise I'll protect you for the rest of my days!"

"Hehe…of course. And I'll be here to support you."