This chapter was a little bit harder to write because I couldn't decide how I wanted it to go. I initially started it with a darker theme and angsty Gaius in mind, but his sweeter side (no pun intended) came out instead lol. Hope you guys enjoy!

I also wanted to thank all of you who have read the story so far. I also wanted to thank Gunlord500 for the review, it meant a lot that someone actually likes my writing lol :)

Over the weeks, Sumia's curiosity about the thief tended to get the better of her as she got to know him. He was always so calm and collected. Nothing ever seemed to shake him unless his precious candy stash was threatened. He never seemed to have a care in the world besides tending to that sweet tooth of his. Gaius was a complete mystery to her. She couldn't figure out if his carefree attitude was just the way he was, or if it was just a façade he put up because he didn't feel like he could fully trust any of them yet.

One afternoon, she was taking a walk through town when she spotted someone quite familiar eyeing a local bakery. If the fiery orange hair wasn't a dead giveaway as to who it was, then the fact that he was drooling as he pressed his face against the shop's window would do it. "Gaius!" she called. "What are you doing?"

He waved her over and brought her face close to the glass so she could see what had his undivided attention. "Look at all of these pastries! They're calling out to me! I must have these babies all to myself!"

"Wow! I haven't seen pastries this beautiful in a while," she muttered to herself as she eyed a layered cake with pink frosting. "But these must cost a fortune, especially in these times."

"Um, hello? Have you forgotten what I did for a living before I met you, Stumbles?" he dismissed her last comment with a wave of his hand. "It will be a piece of cake to swipe a few of these, hehe get it? Piece of cake? 'Cause I'm about to snatch myself a few of those delicacies for myself. I can grab one for you too if you want."

"No! Gaius, you said you wanted to put your skills to good use serving Chrom and Ylisse! You can't just steal from these people that are trying to make an honest living!" she exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around one of his and attempted to drag him away from the window.

"What can I say, old habits die hard. Lemme go! If you don't want in on this sweet deal, then leave me be! Anyone who can make cakes and pies that extravagant during war is well off enough to spare at least one cake in my opinion," he cried as he desperately tried to untangle her arms from his. "Besides, the kids at the orphanage would probably love it," he muttered.

Unsure if what he had said was meant for her to hear or not, she stopped struggling with him. Noticing that she wasn't trying to keep him away from his no undoubtedly delicious prizes, Gaius tore his gaze away from the window to see that Sumia was staring at him with curiosity and something else in her eyes that he couldn't wrap his finger around. "Uh, you okay there Stumbles?"

Snapping out of it, she nodded her head and smiled at him. "Alright you, how about this? I came into town to buy ingredients for a pie I'm making. Why don't you help me out today, and then you can have all of the honestly earned pie you can eat?"

His eyes widened as he considered the offer. "All I can eat, you say? You've got yourself a deal!"

As they were baking, Sumia studied him. He was completely absorbed in his work and almost nothing could break his concentration. She sensed that this was not the first time that he had made pie, but she did have to stop him from dumping a whole sack of sugar into the mixture once or five times. "Sorry about that, Stumbles. I guess not everyone can handle sugar like me," he chuckled as he rubbed the back of his neck.

When they had finished, she was left with eleven pies of assorted flavours. They cut into the apple pie first for a taste test. Sumia had no idea what to expect, seeing as Gaius had made that particular pie on his own, but she was pleasantly surprised at how delicious it was. "Gaius, this is amazing! You're a natural at baking," she exclaimed as she shoveled the rest into her mouth and cut herself a second slice.

"Thank you, milady," he smirked as he lowered his head in a mock bow. "It actually comes with a lot of practice. It's a necessary skill to learn when you have a sweet tooth like mine to please."

"Well, thanks anyways for helping me today. I have way more than I need, so help yourself to as many as you want," she smiled at him.

"Don't mind if I do," he replied as he scooped up seven of the pies. "These should last me the week," he mumbled. "Thanks Stumbles, catch ya later," he said as he turned around and waved one arm in the air.

Remembering what he said earlier in the day, Sumia's nosy side convinced her to pay the orphanage a visit however, upon arriving, she didn't spot him anywhere. Maybe I heard him wrong, she shrugged as she offered to help the head matron. She played with the orphans, who immediately took a liking to her, until she heard a high pitched squeal. "Gaius is back! Gaius is back!" Popping her head up, she whipped her head back and forth and dove into a nearby closet, tripping on at least five toys in her haste.

"Hey kids," Gaius smiled as he ruffled the hair of one little boy. "Guess what I've got for you," he said as he pulled out a box.

"Is it candy?" one girl asked as they all bounced around him, completely forgetting about Sumia for the moment.

"Not quite," he chuckled as he set the box down. "I brought you guys the best pie in all of Ylisse. I would know, because I've had a taste of all of them and nothing holds a candle to these babies." Upon hearing his high praises, Sumia's face began to heat up as she realized that he had brought them the pies that they had made together.

"Yay!" the little ones cheered as he began to unpack them one by one. In total, he had brought five of the seven pies that he took from her earlier. Judging by the crumbs on his cloak that she could see through the crack in the wall, he probably already ate one earlier.

"This one is my absolute favourite, but I'll let you guys have it. Besides, I have a second one all for myself at home," Gaius teased as he pointed at the one in the middle.

Peering through the crack, Sumia saw that he was pointing at her crowberry pie. Oh my, it's his favourite? she smiled to herself as she planned to make more of that particular pie in the future. He really is a complicated guy. He's so fierce on the battlefield but he has this sweet side of him too, she thought as her heart warmed at the sight of him playing with the children.

I hope you guys liked this chapter ^^ I know I liked writing Gaius with the kids, but poor Sumia is stuck on that closet until he leaves ^^;

I got the idea of Gaius adding too much sugar in the pie from one of his supports with Olivia and I could just see him adding the whole bag of sugar in lol

Until next time~