A/N: Good thing I still have a while before October with work getting...aggravating. Also, don't forget to vote on stories!


Training was an important part of any soldier's life, and the Shepherds were no different. However, daily training had become something of a spectacle to many Shepherds, and even to the common soldiers. People would flock to the sparring areas to watch the action and get a brief respite from the war they were fighting despite watching more fighting.

Some drew bigger crowds than others. Lon'qu was a crowd favorite. He had only lost to three people in the Shepherds, and one of those was a rather new recruit. When Chrom first bested him though, it had caused quite an uproar. Still, the stoic swordsman remained one of the best fighters in the Shepherds and drew a large crowd with his unique style.

Frederick also drew in good crowds as there was a certain pleasure in hoping that one's drill sergeant would be defeated. Those defeats seemed to come more often as of late as the Shepherds honed their abilities, but if the soldiers got too sure of themselves, then he was more than able to remind them who was the better soldiers as he had been known to take on up to ten at one time just to show them that they were not yet Shepherds and still had much to learn.

However, the biggest event was, by far, the bouts between Chrom and Robin. Robin had proven himself in single combat against almost every other Shepherd, and was widely considered one of the strongest and most skilled people in the army. Chrom had likewise proven himself on and off of the battlefield to be a great warrior. As their reputations grew, so did the attendance of their friendly sparring matches.

Robin found himself in the middle of one of those said matches at the moment. He evaded to the left as Chrom swung hard to his right. Robin took a swing, but Chrom blocked it and pushed him back. Robin deflected the stab that he almost knew was coming.

There was something about their bouts that he never told anyone-not even Chrom: he threw the matches. Now, at first he genuinely lost, but as he grew stronger and more skilled, he eventually got to the point where he could have actually bested him. However, he realized that it did the soldiers good to see their "invincible" leader that could even best their "legendary" tactician in combat. So, for the sake of morale, he made sure that he never won. He kept it close to be sure; having a strong tactician bolstered morale as well, but he would always stop just shy of winning.

So when he saw Chrom swinging for his lower abdomen on the right side, he brought his sword down just a little too slowly to block the wooden blade and braced for the pain. And the pain certainly did come as Robin sprawled out on the cold soil. Chrom really did not seem to understand the concept of pulling strikes.

"You alright?" Chrom offered a friendly hand to show that there were no hard feelings.

Robin hid the pain as best he could and took the hand, "At least you didn't go for the ribs," despite his joking tone, he was still at least partially serious. Yes, they had healers, but that did not mean that broken ribs were pleasant.

Chrom laughed it off though and gave him a friendly, if not rough, pat on the back seemingly oblivious to the pain that he was in. To be fair, he had gotten quite good at hiding his discomfort. Even the most observant of the Shepherds could not discern when he was in pain if he did not want them to know. There was no sense in worrying them over something minor while others' lives hung in the balance. He would simply wait his appropriate turn.

As the crowd dissipated, he turned to leave-he really wanted to rest his side-when he came face to face with one remaining Shepherd who did not look very pleased. He was a master at disguising his emotions when he chose to, which made it all the stranger that one of the most socially awkward Shepherds seemed to be able to see right through him as of late, or maybe he was just imagining things.

"Lucina, is there something I can help you with?" he asked as lightly as he could manage while his side continued to ache.

She simply approached him while still looking displeased until she was within arm's length, "Why do you keep doing that?"

"Doing what?" Robin tried not to grimace as he spoke; the pain distracting him from fully exploring what she meant by her statement.

"You let my father win," she stated assuredly.

"What? Why would you say that?"

"Robin, we both know that you can react much faster than you did there. You are a better swordsman than that display showed. This is not the first time I have noticed such behavior. Why do you do it?"

Robin looked around. The training ground were deserted as the regular soldiers went back to the common area and the Shepherds went about their business as the sun was setting. Sighing he realized that she would not relent and that he was found out. So in a whisper he told her his reasoning.

"I see," she replied as she took in his explanation, "But do you not set him up for failure by letting him win?"

"I make sure to make him try, and he does not shirk his training."

"But why fight him at all? You just end up injured."

"Maybe, but it does the soldiers good to have a little respite. If that means that I have to put up with a little soreness, then so be it."

Lucina suddenly seemed a little less sure of herself as she looked to be struggling with what to say next, "I-I think that you should give it your all next time."

"What?"

"You rarely cause harm when you defeat your opponents, Robin, so he will be fine," it was true. He usually stopped himself just short of a "fatal" blow as he did know the concept of pulling strikes.

"Lucina, I don't know. I don't know how it might affect morale."

"Surely it would not be so devastating," she rebutted before she slightly huffed out her next words, "You should at least do it for your own health. You keep getting hurt, and a hurt tactician is not good for morale either."

"I can hide it," he told her as his side continued to flare in pain causing her to sigh yet again.

"I know you can, but I-" she hesitated momentarily before deciding to continue, "I do not like it when you do. You do so much for this army, and I think that you deserve not to be hurt. But if you will not do it for your own sake, then please do it because I am asking you. I may have not right, but I ask this as a…friend."

"I will…think about it…for a friend."

That seemed to placate her for the time being, "Thank you," her face was oddly enough slightly flushed, "Oh, and do please get that checked," she said referring to his soon-to-be massive bruise before excusing herself. His gaze may have lingered a little longer than was normal before he turned himself to go his own way. He did need to get this tended to.

Two days later, Robin found himself in another sparing match with the Ylissean prince. Lucina's words rung through his mind as he carefully fought the prince still undecided. He glanced out into the crowd and saw her hard glance. Their eyes met and Robin knew what he would do.

Chrom swung hard for a finishing blow which would usually work, but to the surprise of most in attendance, Robin blocked it with a determination in his eyes rarely seen off of the battlefield that even made Chrom pause for a moment, but a moment was all that it was as Robin soon forced him back into action.

Chrom went on the offensive again, lunging at the tactician, but he had seen that technique many times before and deftly deflected the blow before going in for his own attack that the ruler barely avoided.

With gritted teeth, Chrom continued his assault with a little more caution. Robin was not really struggling to block, deflect, or evade the strikes though. He had an especially analytical style of fighting which meant that the longer he fought an opponent, the better he became against that opponent, and he had been fighting, and losing to, Chrom for quite some time to the point that he had memorized most of his patterns. Honestly he could say the same for most of the Shepherds. It was his job to know how they fought and place them accordingly after all.

So when Chrom came at him with a vertical slice, he knew exactly where to move and how to counter. The crowd fell silent as Robin held his practice blade less than an inch from the prince's side.

The two combatants met gazes before Chrom answered, somewhat surprised, "I yield."

There were murmurs from the crowd and Robin immediately began to realize that perhaps he had made the wrong decision when Chrom patted him on the shoulder with a wide smile on his face, "Not bad."

The soldiers seemed none the worse for the wear as they chatted amongst themselves excitedly as they went about their business. Maybe he gave them some much needed excitement. Besides, maybe it would also do them some good to know that their leader was mortal himself.

The tactician managed to escaped the congratulations and commotion as he hid away inside of the strategy tent. He remained there looking over documents until Lucina walked in. They had not talked since the fight due to his hasty retreat.

"Lucina," he politely greeted as she sat down across from him and he set the papers down.

"I would like to thank you."

"For what?"

"For granting me my favor."

Robin smiled a little, "Lucina, your favor was for me not to get beat up."

"I know, but I just hate seeing you…injured. So it helped soothe my concerns."

"Well, you're welcome. It means a lot that you care so much."

The princess went red from his comment, "I-it was nothing."

"Well, all the same, thank you."

"You are welcome," she replied with a slight blush.

They sat alone in awkwardness before Lucina excused herself. His smile dropped after she was gone. He should probably stop spending time with her-he knew that-but he was already too far gone it would seem. Today's events seemed only to confirm that, and it showed that her sway over him-whether intentional or not-was significant. He was usually so good at keeping his emotions away from his tactical decisions, but if she was in danger…could he?

Sighing, Robin stood up. He needed to get a bite to eat. He would have to sort out his feelings, but he was not sure if he could. Surely they would only lead to trouble no matter the case. Though, try as he might, this seemed to be one battle that he could not win.

A/N: This story may have more impact if you know how I characterize male Robin (yes, they have different personalities. It's subtle but there). I have him as a fairly reserved guy who can usually keep a reign on his emotions. So the fact that Lucina was able to get him to act with his heart rather than his mind says something.

Also, I tried to lighten him up a bit in this one. I also characterize female Robin (Reflet for ease) as much more…bubbly and less introverted. So I tend to keep Robin kind of dry to avoid getting the two mixed up, but I think I may have been overdoing that to the point that Robin was a little…boring. He is supposed to be sarcastic, but I suppose I struggle to find a balance. So let me know what you think about his character.

That said, I kind of want to do more of these little one-shots or short stories, so if you have an idea you want me to try don't hesitate to send it by me. I may even start a collection (adding new stories can be a pain).

I'm also thinking of taking up a side project over in the Smash Brothers section (if you don't go there, I can't say I blame you) that is strictly fighting. Of course the Smash Bros. section is…well, yeah.

On a side note, if you are wondering who I pair Reflet with, well, I don't actually have one for her. Not in Awakening at least. A lot of people do Chrom, but he has Sumia, and I just never really found a guy who I really liked her with.