Summary: Valentine's Day only comes once a year. Every time it does, Robin reflects on it, and how much things have changed. If there's one constant, it's the sparkles in Vy's eyes whenever he meets her gaze and her everlasting warm smile.

Note: This started as a Tumblr-planned short story to help me process things in the NA Valentine's event while working through the last two weeks in my current position and my having to let go of a friend. The past year I've been at this company has been a roller coaster of things, but throughout it all, I came back to FGO and wrote so much. And well, I couldn't really leave this for Tumblr after putting so much thought into this one thing.

So, as much as it's cheesy, this is dedicated to my favorite Archer, and how working with him helped me put up with so much workplace harassment and swirling personal thoughts. All in honor of three years I've been playing FGO.

The songs I recommend for this chapter are (1) the track titled Bonds from the original FGO soundtrack, and (2) Theishter - Anime on Piano's piano cover of U & I from K-On.

Content Warning, of course, for just lots of Valentine's Day-related fluff and some kissing for those romance-averse folk. You have been forewarned.

Otherwise, please enjoy. :)

Day 30: Three Chocolates

"A gift for my whimsical Master, huh…?" Robin made a show out of thinking about a return gift, but in truth, he still couldn't stop feeling the growing nugget of surprise still lingering in his chest over the chocolate Vy — his little sparrow — decided to give him mid-Rayshift. As a Heroic Spirit, he wasn't unfamiliar with Valentine's Day. Even when he was alive, village maidens and lasses alike all clamored over the holiday, cooking feasts and trying to win over the partners of their choice. It didn't prepare him for receiving a gift to call his own, more so from his little Master. "Lemme see…"

"You don't have to think that hard about it, Big Robin, I just wanted to give you something to show my appreciation of you…"

"Just give me a second, little sparrow, that's all I ask."

"Okay…"

How odd of a girl Vy Duong was. Bright and pretty enough to rival some of the village maidens he once knew at their best, yet smart and hardworking enough to even put some Heroic Spirits to shame. Not to mention so unbearably kind. To choose him to be the recipient of her first Valentine's Day gift — a rogue like him — well, he couldn't just hand her any plain gift in return after all that. Especially not after hearing the rumors that had been wandering the kitchen halls about some kind of rummaging late at night, not to mention the occasional "Muuu" echoing past the doors. (He could already guess who was the culprit, but didn't want to prod once he got a good look at the dark rings under Vy's brown eyes. Typical Vy.)

And sure, the chocolate stars he received were a bit on the clumsy side, examples being some edges of the shapes having melted in the transit it took to get to him and tiny fingernail indents on some other pieces that probably came from the girl in front of him, but they were still good chocolate. Homemade, even. Not too sweet either, being a good mix of dark chocolate and something remotely coffee-flavored. Toffee? Or maybe Billy gave her some tips?

Still, a return gift was in order. "Alright, little sparrow, to you from your humble squire, I hope you'll accept this as an appropriate gift." The silver coins should have some value to her, right? It was remarkable enough that they hadn't changed from his time alive, barely having rusted in their velvet pillow bed inside the wooden box in spite of his forgetting their name. Yet when Robin handed them over to Vy with a snap of extra flourish in his wrist for show, he wasn't expecting her eyes to sparkle.

"Coins…?" Vy had gently tugged at the faded green ribbon keeping the box closed to unravel its knot, almost like it was something precious to her already (and this was even before the silver coins came into view), and once her eyes landed on the intricately carved bluebirds in the coins' surfaces, she blinked at them with those bright, bright sparkles. If Robin didn't know any better, it was as if Vy's birthday had come early with how high-pitched her voice got once she murmured, "From you, Big Robin?"

"I-It's a commemorative gift a lass gave me way back when after an evil lord was taken down," he supplied hastily, suddenly finding it very hard to meet her in eye contact as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Something about crushing and melting down all of his silver to make the new currency for the village, hence the coins. She didn't have to notice me since it wasn't my business, but she did and I got stuck with that. So," Robin turned back to Vy to give her his best smile. "Might as well give it to a Master who might need it for the money, right? Or for the luck, since they can make pretty alright talismans."

Especially after you work so hard for all of us. That part, he decided to leave out. For obvious reasons, of course.

"Thankie, Big Robin!" Vy's brown eyes shined all the brighter past her glasses as she took in the words, but to Robin's surprise, she then shook her head. "But I'm not going to sell these! No way!" She quickly recapped the box of coins to hug it to her chest, frowning all the while. "They're way too pretty to sell! Talismans work just fine!"

Robin quickly found himself tempted to sweat, ducking his nose into a corner of the No Face May King instead to hide his sudden urge to sigh. "Vy, I'm happy you like them, but that's the point of currency—"

"No way! Besides!" Any protests on Robin's tongue stopped once Vy smiled at him. Like he was someone important to her. "It's my first gift from you! It's way too important to me to sell now!"

He really had no comeback to that one. It was Vy, after all. Very typical and sweet of her, though he knew he couldn't say that last one out loud.

Still, once EMIYA eventually got the scent of sweets out of the kitchen, Robin couldn't help but hide a smirk to himself once he caught a glimpse of a green ribbon in Vy's hair the very next day.

"Second time coming by, huh…?"

"Fweh?"

"It's nothing." Robin couldn't help himself from chuckling once Vy was giving him that confused look past the few strands of brown hair that escaped her ponytail. Even when dressed in all black and her hair done up for business, that innocent face of hers hadn't completely disappeared. Heck, it was a relief to see Vy flush her usual pink in spite of everything — despite the loss of the original Chaldea and the pruning of three Lostbelts, Vy was still a little sparrow.

His little sparrow too, if the bag of chocolates in her hands was any indication. Hardworking and kind as ever.

"You wanted to visit me in the simulator to give me chocolates again, little sparrow?" Robin said softly, already scooting over on his log of a seat in the digital forest so that he could get closer to his Master, his eye trained on the bag she was still holding. The sweets in there didn't look like the chocolate stars from last year… Still, he added, "You really don't have to do this every year. There's plenty of other Servants you can celebrate with."

"But I wanted to!" And sure enough, just as he predicted, Vy puffed her cheeks outwards in a pout, narrowing her eyes at him as she raised the baggie in his direction. Cute. "You're my favorite Archer, Big Robin! Why wouldn't I make chocolates for you?"

"…Ah," he said aptly, barely able to catch himself from turning red in the face. There it was. Vy's honesty was still on-point and oh so deadly like before. But why was his heart skipping? Sheesh. "…Thank you, Master," was all he could finish with. No point in beating around the bush with someone like his little sparrow. "Could I try the chocolates now?"

"A-Aye aye, they're for you, anyways!" With her smile back on her face, Vy pushed the bag into his hands and Robin immediately noticed how heavier they felt compared to last year's gift. Almost like she used different ingredients. "I actually decided to put a twist on the usual Valentine's Day chocolate based on something I learned from a hiking class back in high school. Go ahead and open it!"

"Alright, alright." He still took the time to unravel the bright green ribbon (was it there to replicate the one Vy loved from his first gift to her? She was still wearing that one in her hair every now and then) keeping the baggie together, and once the knot came undone, he blinked. Chocolate chips, oats, some coconut flakes, nuts, and… honey? "You made granola, little sparrow?"

"Granola bites," Vy corrected him gently, the sparkles from last year shining past her glasses as she met Robin's eyes. With how she looked, she seemed proud. "Back in previous Rayshifts, I noticed how you often carried trail mix—"

"—And those are rations, little sparrow," Robin needled her with a grin.

"Muuu, you get what I mean!" Vy interrupted with a face, pouting up at him again. Once Robin stared at her for a few seconds more, Vy wilted and lowered her head just to reveal red staining her ears, shakily raising one hand to gently nudge one of his. "And well, it's just nice to have more on hand, right? Just wanted to give you a practical chocolate you could use!"

At her nudging, Robin turned his gaze back towards the bag in his hands, poking one of the apparent granola balls — wait, no, bites — with a finger. In spite of the prodding, the granola didn't collapse at all, staying in its ball shape while feeling… cold? "You froze these?"

"Aye!" Vy beamed again once Robin met her eyes, looking all the more triumphant at the fact as she rocked back and forth on her log seat, her fingers fiddling with a fold in her skirt. "I learned from my teachers that the best way to have these is to mix all the ingredients together and then freeze them overnight! They should last an entire hike if we wanted to go on one! Oh, and—" She leaned into Robin's space bubble just a bit, pouting again. "Don't worry about it being poisoned! I made sure to taste test them before wrapping them for you! Regular chocolate chips, granola oats, coconut flakes, and honey all went into these! No tricks or traps!"

"I wasn't worrying about that, little sparrow, considering it's from you," Robin bemusedly pointed out in return, but he still gave the granola a look before throwing caution to the wind by grabbing one and tossing it into his mouth. "…Huh." He meant the warm smile on his face when he chewed and finished the mouthful he started before turning back to her. Vy was looking up at him with an (unfair) adorable look of expectation, and he chuckled. "It's delicious, Vy."

"Really?" The sparkles were back in Vy's eyes again as she smiled back, her brown irises reflecting his image with so much joy. "Yay!" All my test batches were worth it, then, leaked through their bond before she could stop it, and Vy flushed.

Robin chuckled again, reaching over to rest a hand on top of her head, patting her hair softly. "You did good, little sparrow. It's definitely a good ration to have for future battles if I need it."

Just like that, with that simple touch, Vy was meeting his gaze and beaming again. Like she was truly happy to be by his side, to give him a gift she made all on her own again. Like she really loved him as a person. Like he was the real Robin Hood and not just a roguish imitation of the original.

Robin considered the box hidden in his back pockets past the No Face May King for a single second. "Think you could close your eyes for me, little sparrow?" In the face of that (seriously adorable, how) stare from his little Master in return, he grinned wryly. "A humble squire such as myself needs a moment to prepare a return gift for his Princess, doesn't he? I merely require a second."

"…I dunno about the 'princess' and 'squire' part, but don't overdo it, Big Robin," Vy eventually allowed him with her eyelids fluttering closed. "And I can say that as the main Chaldea resident workaholic."

"The main one, huh?" Robin still left his thoughts about that to the unspoken parts of his brain while rummaging around for the box. It was about the same size of box as the one his nameless silver coins came in last year, but a bit more well-furnished and with no ribbon. What mattered this time were the contents inside, decided upon by himself, Arturia, and Achilles in a quick huddle together. Input from Marie, Medea, Diarmuid, D'eon, and even that red Archer EMIYA all came into it too. Still, he couldn't help but feel proud of it once the box was in his grasp and the accessory came into view. "I'm just glad to know I'm not the only one who thought about giving a practical gift."

For a dispirited, cynical Heroic Spirit like himself, Robin felt he could at least take pride in giving birth to a gift that Vy could hopefully use even after all this Saving Humanity business was over.

"Consider this as my return gift and an early White Day gift from your humble Servant, little sparrow," Robin whispered, reaching over to gently tuck the accessory into Vy's ponytail and past her hairband. From how close they were, he could feel her twitch a bit in surprise as he finished with a softer, "As a thank you." Once he was able to clip it into place, he slowly pulled his hands back just in time for Vy's eyes to flutter open.

The green ribbon that made up the lotus flower's "leaves" fluttered in the simulated wind of the forest as Vy raised a curious hand behind her head to touch the clip in her hair. The lotus itself seemed all the more bright against Vy's long brown ponytail, glowing pink to match the slowly growing flush on Vy's cheeks as she met his eye with her dawning realization. "A hair clip?" she murmured softly, blinking in time with the growing smile on her lips. "Big Robin…"

"The others helped me with making it," he answered in the same quiet tone, reaching out to gently squeeze Vy's left hand. "The Count kept calling you 'little flower' for so long, I had to take something from his book. Especially with the Command Seals that still keep us together." His thumb absently brushed the outermost petals of the red lotus on the back of Vy's hand. "And hey. The lotus is supposed to be the national flower of your parents' homeland, isn't it?"

Vy squeezed his hand back enough for him to look up and see her smile. A happy, truly joyous smile. "You remembered…" left her in a touched high pitch, and she nodded her head. "Thankie, Big Robin. I'll treasure this forever."

With how warm her hand felt in his, Robin knew he could believe it, even with the sweat starting to build up on his palm. "I know you will."

One year later, marking almost three years since Vy had become a Master, Robin found himself in the simulator again, amongst all the digital trees and birds, looking down at his petite charge with another smile. "I shouldn't be surprised anymore, should I?"

"Nope!" The lotus ribbon clip in Vy's hair didn't even deter from the smile on her face. If anything, the pink petals and green ribbon added to the sheer sincerity showing in Vy's eyes as she steadily met his gaze. Yet again, a small red bag was in her hands and she was raising them towards him in a clear offering. "Happy Valentine's Day, Big Robin!"

Robin chuckled as he raised his own hands to cup Vy's in between them. "Happy Valentine's Day, little sparrow." From feeling the bag, he knew it was different from the previous two gifts from the weight and the texture of whatever was inside. "Did you do another twist on the usual chocolate?"

"Aye!" Vy took a step back once he had effectively taken the bag from her hands, placing her arms behind her back as she shifted on her boots in anticipation. "With hikes and Rayshifts in mind, just like last year!"

"I hope you didn't overwork yourself this time like the last few years," was his answering drawl, but Robin still took care to unravel the ribbon keeping the bag tied up, and once it came apart, he blinked at the contents. Pieces of fudge, caramel, almonds, pretzels, and chocolate— "But trail mix, little sparrow?"

Vy just grinned like it was another birthday having come early. "Aye! Last year had granola bites, so this year I wanted to try my hand at making trail mix you can carry around!" Vy's voice then dropped a little as she ducked her head, pink starting to color her cheeks as she then added, "If you're okay with trying it…?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Robin didn't even hesitate to take a piece of fudge to toss into his mouth, an action enough to shock Vy into looking up at him with slightly panicked eyes, and he grinned past the mouthful as he chewed. "Mm, not too sweet. Just the right amount of sugar for a journey out to save the world."

"O-Oh," was all Vy said at first, and then he could see her shoulders sag past her Winter Chaldean uniform as she sighed in relief. A few stray strands of hair fell out of her ponytail and brushed her temple. "That's good… it took a lot of practice with Boudica and Shirou to get the caramel just right… who knew chocolate could catch fire in a microwave…" Vy put a hand to her chest, allowing her red lotus Command Seals to glow against her clothes as she raised her head to give Robin a relieved little smile. "You like them?"

"I do," Robin admitted, retying the ribbon to the trail mix bag before gently putting it into one of the many pockets he had on him to eat for later. Now, where was that one box he was looking for…? "You outdid yourself, Vy."

"Yay…" Vy closed her eyes and smiled again, wider this time. "Thankie, Big Robin."

Robin considered for a single second before making his decision.

Vy let out a little squeak once he ducked his head and gently pressed his lips to hers, but eventually relaxed into him once he rested a gentle palm against her cheek. "I should be the one saying 'thank you,' little sparrow," he eventually whispered before kissing her again because it was nice and it was honestly all he could think of in terms of a distraction. Slipping the box out from behind the No Face May King and taking out the accessory inside was like child's play once he pulled back and, with one more tiny kiss to keep her occupied, Robin finally succeeded in sliding his gift onto Vy's left middle finger.

"R-Robin, don't tell me—" Vy cut herself off once she caught a glimpse of the simple gold band sitting on her hand, the intricately carved vines and flower-shaped pink jewel standing tall for her to see. Robin took pride in how warm her cheek grew under his palm, barely hiding his own grin at the eventual "Muuu" that left her lips. "Last year was a hair clip, this year is a-a ring?" A single tear then started to bud in the corner of Vy's eye, noticeable enough for Robin to wipe it away with his thumb as she met his gaze again. "Robin…"

"Consider it a promise," he filled in for her, raising her hand to his lips to kiss the jewel sitting there. "For when this Saving Humanity business is all over. I don't plan to leave you even after the end, little sparrow, and you said way back when we first met that you wanted to stay with me. So…" Past her knuckles, Robin let himself grin while ignoring the matching heat starting to flood his own face. "I might as well solidify that with a vow to get married one day, right?"

Vy's shy yet bright answering smile was worth all its weight in gold for him once she nodded and stood on her tiptoes to meet him in a kiss of her own.

Valentine's Day may not have meant much to the man he once was when he was alive, but to Robin Hood the Heroic Spirit, it signified new beginnings with the little sparrow in front of him. And that was enough.

Author's Notes: I regret writing the notes I did for Extra Day 4 in the Ooku now, because if this chapter is any indication, a pairing did happen. Ah well. Can't deny how Robin is my favorite Servant, more so because he's the only Bond 12 I have in-game. The fact that I do want to marry my real life Robin in my current boyfriend one day means something. Coincidentally, I'll be seeing my first real wedding with one of my cousins this upcoming June, so hopefully it'll all work out like in the fairy tales.

For now, this is Vy, signing off to sleep. I'll see you all next time.