When she had first come to Ferox with Virion to warn of Walhart's impending invasion, Cherche had been hyper-focused on aiding the Feroxi and Ylissian armies in the fight (and picking up the slack from her blasé lord), with the ultimate goal of taking back her homeland.
That said, she hadn't expected to be welcomed as readily as she was by the members of Chrom's army, and one person in particular had caught her eye, which was apparently a rare occurrence for him. As soon as she laid her eyes on Kellam and his adorable armor, she couldn't help but gravitate towards him on a regular basis.
Over time, her fondness for his armor grew into a fondness for the man himself, and that fondness evolved into love in no time at all. Despite being ignored for the most part (which really annoyed Cherche the more she thought about it), Kellam was kind and always willing to lend a helping hand, whether it was with heavy lifting, training new recruits, or raising crops with his farming expertise.
After she had helped him patch up his trousers and tried fruitlessly to convince him to let her spruce up his armor (she still sulked a bit sometimes at his refusal to let her add some pointy spikes to it), he had surprised her one day by noticing that she was sick, in spite of how hard she had been trying to hide it.
That was when Cherche had expressed her desire to become closer and spend more time with him. She had blamed it on the sickly fog that clouded her mind, but deep down she just wanted to be near him. He was kind, handsome, strong, and he made her feel…safe.
To her utmost joy, Kellam enthusiastically agreed, and they indeed became closer. They fought together, went to the market together, and spent some late nights talking by the campfire until it burned down to nothing but ashes, to name a few things. And then, one night, when the army was camped outside of a village during a festival, they went on a date, and when their lips met in their very first kiss, Cherche had never felt so happy in her life.
As a knight dedicated to her duties, she did not have much experience with love and dating. She was thankful then when Kellam expressed similar sentiments, and even more so when not much changed about their relationship, besides the physical benefits.
Soft kisses stolen in passing while going about their business in camp, a comforting hug before a decisive battle, his hand held tight in hers as they helped patch each other up after battle. Each and every simple touch or chaste kiss meant the world to Cherche, and reaffirmed that feeling of safety and comfort that being with Kellam afforded her.
Before she had fallen in love with Kellam, she had always felt the safest while clad in her armor, sitting astride her mighty wyvern as she used her axe to cleave through hordes of enemies with ease. But now, in the moments that she spent wrapped in the arms of her lover, with her exposed, bare skin pressed against his as he placed tender kisses upon her forehead, ran his gentle, calloused fingers through her hair, and whispered words of affirmation softly into her ear, she had never felt more safe.
On this particular night, it was still dark when Cherche stirred and slowly awoke, and she yawned as she reached up to rub at her eyes with her free hand. Her other arm was pinned under Kellam, who had his arms wrapped securely around her, and Cherche smiled as she buried her face in his chest. They were still trapped in the midst of a terrible war, and Cherche cherished these little moments of peace with her lover, no matter how fleeting they were.
"Cherche?"
Tilting her head up at the sweet sound of her love's voice, Cherche smiled when her eyes locked with his half-lidded ones. He lifted a hand to her face and brushed the back of his fingers over her cheek, and she let out a deep, content sigh as she leaned into his touch.
"Are you alright?" he asked, his brow knitting with worry, "Did you get any sleep? I can go check the medical tent to see if there's any sleeping-"
"I'm fine, dear." Cherche giggled as a warmth blossomed within her chest; his concern for her well-being was so charming. "Just a bit restless. We are moving out tomorrow."
Kellam breathed a sigh of relief and pulled her flush against him. "Oh good! I was worried that you might be falling sick or something…"
Cupping his face, Cherche pressed her forehead to his, taking a moment to admire the adorable blush that now covered his cheeks. "I think you worry too much sometimes, Kellam. You'll make yourself sick doing that."
"Golly Cherche, I can't help it, you know," Kellam said, a slight frown crossing his face as he placed a hand over one of hers and stared deep into her eyes, causing Cherche's heart to race at the intensity of his gaze.
"I love you more than anything. If anything were to happen to you, well, I don't even want to think about that!"
Cherche laughed as she gave him a quick peck on the lips. "Then don't think about it, Kellam. I'm not dying anytime soon. Not from sickness, and not from this war. I have too much to live for. Rosanne, Minerva, and most of all you, my heart."
Kellam stared at her with wide eyes, and he let out a light chuckle as his arms tightened around her and he pressed his face against her shoulder. "Ah, hun, you're gonna get me all flustered saying things like that."
"Hehe, but you're so adorable when you're flustered." Cherche giggled as she cupped his face and nuzzled her nose against his. "Yes, you're my boy in the adorable armor, aren't you!"
"Cherche, please…" Kellam's face was beet-red now, and his hands shot to her sides, fingers brushing lightly against her skin. Cherche yelped and tried to squirm away, but Kellam rolled on top of her, pinning her down so that he could continue his assault of tickles.
"K-Kellam, s-stop, ahah!" Cherche said between laughs, and Kellam's laughter joined hers as he finally relented and rolled back over so that she was lying on top of him instead.
Chuckling, Kellam reached up to brush away a few strands of hair that had fallen into Cherche's face with the gentlest of touches. "Cherche…you really are the love of my life. I love you, from the bottom of my heart."
"Kellam…" His smile was warm and sincere and so full of love, so much so that Cherche felt a few tears prick at the corners of his eyes. She quickly blinked them away and mirrored his smile, leaning down to press her forehead against his.
"I love you too, Kellam. I can't wait until we win this war and I can finally spend the rest of my life with you in peace."
"Me too," Kellam said as he wrapped his arms around Cherche's back, and she shivered at the touch, "But for now, we'll just have to make our own peace, hm?"
A light blush rose upon Cherche's cheeks, and a heat stirred deep within her gut as she nodded. "Yes…I suppose we can make that work."
With nothing more to say, Cherche kissed Kellam, this time deep, heated, and hungry, and their love-fueled passion raced against the coming dawn. Even in the midst of war, two partners-in-arms managed to find themselves a world away, safe and loved while wrapped in each other's arms.