Coming Prepared

"I'm telling you, Sharena, you've got it all wrong!"

The princess of Askr grinned mischievously as she shook her head. "Nope, I don't think I've got it wrong at all! Just admit it!" Fjorm sighed in exasperation, a stubborn frown on her face. "I will do no such thing! Now please, just drop it!"

"What's going on over here?"

Both girls turned to see Alfonse approaching them with a concerned expression. Fjorm smiled in relief at the prince of Askr's arrival. "Hello, Alfonse. Perhaps you could help me convince your sister regarding-" Before she could finish, Sharena dashed to her brother's side. "Alfonse! Perfect timing! Guess what? Fjorm and Kiran are going on-"

"Sharena!" Fjorm interrupted with a yelp, her eyes widening with alarm. Alfonse looked with confusion between the two before stepping in between them with raised hands. "Please, both of you!" With that said, Alfonse gave his sister a reproachful look. "Sharena, you know better than to interrupt others." With the two girls quieted down, Alfonse gave his attention to Fjorm. "My apologies for Sharena's behavior, Fjorm. Please, why don't you share what this is all about?" Fjorm nodded, her expression more relaxed than a moment ago. "Thank you, Alfonse. You see, what happened was-"

"Fjorm and Kiran are going on a date!"

A heavy silence fell upon the three following Sharena's loud and brash declaration. Alfonse blinked, initially unsure if he had heard correctly, but one glance at Fjorm's mortified expression told him that was not the case. "I'm…sorry?" Alfonse questioned his sister, who was beaming innocently.

"N-no! That's wrong! I-It's just a misunderstanding!" Fjorm sputtered in defense, all the while glaring angrily at Sharena, although the flustered blush the Nifl princess was sporting on her face lessened its intended impact. "Kiran was going to investigate the nearby coast, s-so I volunteered to join him! For his safety!"

Alfonse sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sharena…" He groaned. "Aren't you a bit old for this childish teasing?" Sharena pouted in response. "But it's true! I have proof; though, if you ask me, it should be completely obvious!" Alfonse regarded his sister with a deadpan look while Fjorm attempted to recompose herself behind the Askran prince. "And what evidence would that be?"

Grinning eagerly at having captured at least some of her brother's interest, Sharena made her way to the small pile of supplies gathered next to Fjorm before picking up a large carrying basket. "Like this! It's obviously a picnic basket." The Askr princess turned her grin toward a slightly fuming Fjorm as she said, "Likely intended for a romantic picnic on the beach with a certain special summoner~!"

Fjorm huffed as she replied in a stern tone, "Those are our rations, Sharena, in case we need to take a break on our journey. Why wouldn't I put it in a basket like that, when it's the most convenient method to carry everything?" Alfonse nodded in agreement, not bothering to hide how unimpressed he was. "I agree with Fjorm, Sharena. Surely, you're jumping to conclusions."

"Oh, yeah?" Sharena retorted, setting down the basket and retrieving a large parasol. "Well, how do you explain THIS?" Again, Fjorm responded coolly, "That is to protect us from the sun during our travels in case there is no shade. You are aware that I am still unaccustomed to Askr's warmer climate, not to mention Kiran would overheat in that coat of his that he refuses to remove."

Her eyes narrowing in frustration, Sharena placed the parasol down before gesturing to a bundle of blankets and towels. "Alright, then! How about these? You two could just spend the night at an inn instead of camping outside together." The Nifl princess hesitated for only a second before replying in a neutral tone, "True, however this is a more cost-effective alternative. Commander Anna certainly encourages us to be mindful of our funds, so I am simply adhering to her requests. Besides, there is never a guarantee that an inn will have separate accommodations for us."

Finally, Alfonse shook his head. "I'm sorry, Sharena, but I must agree with everything Fjorm has said. There is nothing here to indicate that this is nothing more than a routine excursion." The blue-haired prince crossed his arms with a stern look. "I would ask that you not make such hasty remarks in the future." "B-but…!" Sharena weakly protested, but Alfonse paid her no mind as he turned to Fjorm with an apologetic expression. "I'm terribly sorry about my sister's juvenile behavior, Fjorm. I hope she hasn't caused you too much offense."

Fjorm gave a small smile as she shook her head. "It's fine, Alfonse. I'm grateful for your support, and that this whole misunderstanding has been cleared up." Alfonse nodded, intending to turn back toward his sister and demand she apologize for her behavior, when something caught his eye regarding the pile of traveling supplies. "Fjorm…"

"Hm?" Fjorm hummed curiously. "Were you and Kiran just about to leave?" Alfonse asked suddenly. Despite the abrupt question, Fjorm nodded. "Well, yes, at first. I…had forgotten something important in my quarters, so Kiran volunteered to head back to fetch it for me. Once he returns, we will be on our way." "I see…" Alfonse murmured thoughtfully, which prompted the princess of Nifl to raise a curious brow. "Is there something troubling you, Alfonse?"

"Well, it's just…" Alfonse paused as he articulated his thoughts before asking, "The number of supplies here seems…inadequate for a lengthy journey to the coast. Is Kiran bringing the rest of the provisions?" Another bout of silence fell upon the area, both Fjorm and Sharena caught off-guard by the question. "Hey, yeah!" Sharena butted in, her previously forlorn expression quickly morphing into an eager grin. "I didn't realize that! At most, everything here will last about a day. How do you explain that, huh, Fjorm?"

"U-um, well…" To Alfonse's confusion, Fjorm stumbled over her words nervously, her calm demeanor having suddenly melted away at Alfonse's question. "You see…um…"

"Oh, hey Alfonse, Sharena! What's up?"

All eyes turned to see Kiran jogging toward them, one hand waving casually while the other clutched a small bag. "Have you two come to see us off? Aw, you didn't have to go out of your way to – whoa!?"

The trio gasped as the summoner suddenly lurched forward and crashed to the ground, the bag flying out of his grip in the process. "Kiran!" Alfonse shouted as he made his way to the summoner's side, Sharena and Fjorm close behind him. "Are you alright?" Alfonse asked as he extended a hand to the fallen young man. Kiran chuckled bashfully as he accepted the prince's outstretched hand. "Yeah, I'm good. Must have tripped over a pebble or something."

As Alfonse pulled Kiran back to his feet, Sharena noticed the bag Kiran was holding had spilled its contents over the ground. And what was there was…

"Well, what do we have here?" Sharena called out playfully, garnering everyone's attention as she picked up one of the items off the ground. Lifting the item up for all to see, Fjorm's face immediately lit up with a prominent blush as Alfonse stared in puzzlement at what he was looking at. "Is…that a swimsuit? Why would-"

Alfonse didn't get the opportunity to finish his sentence as Fjorm suddenly dashed toward Sharena, snatching the swimsuit from the blonde princess' grasp. Not missing a beat, the Nifl princess turned and scooped up a pair of swimming shorts that also fell on the ground before stuffing both items back into the bag they fell out of. "Th-thank you, Kiran! I believe we have everything, let's go!"

"H-huh? O-ok, sure I-gah?!" The summoner yelped as Fjorm grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the supplies, the princess not daring to look either Alfonse or Sharena in the eye as she went. Gathering everything together, Fjorm began dragging Kiran off without delay, leaving the startled summoner with only enough time to turn around and wave goodbye to the royal Askr siblings. "Um, see you two later! We'll be back soon!"

As summoner and princess gradually passed the horizon, Alfonse attempted to process what had just transpired within the last few minutes. "…huh." Was all he could say to sum up what just happened. Beside him, Sharena flashed him a smug look of triumph.

"See, I told you so!"

Author's Note: Hello everyone! It's been pretty busy these past couple weeks, but I'm so glad to finally get back to posting for you all! By the way, have I made it obvious yet which FEH ship I subscribe to the most?

This will be a new anthology series of short stories focusing on Kiran and Fjorm's relationship across a variety of settings. I can't help it, its just so fun to write about Fjorm and her rather blatant crush toward the summoner, and I was getting so many ideas concerning the two that this was the result! I really hope you all enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it, and I hope you all have a wonderful week!