Summary: Even if the little sparrow can't believe in herself, a dusty old robin can. He's already decided he'd stay a long time ago, recklessness and all. He's not going to turn his back on her now, whether it's after wrestling a shark or nursing the aftermath of Olympus' fall.

Note: Dedicated to my real life Robin Hood in my boyfriend of 6 years, and written as a direct response to Day 35 after I took the time to emotionally process the things going on in my life. That chapter was very hard to write, and with the Summer 4 rerun going on as of this note's writing (5/29/2022), it's about time to go back to one of the main reasons I still play this convoluted game.

I love you, Leo. I love you so much.

The themes for this chapter are these: (1) the second ending to InuYasha: The Final Act — Diamond by Alan, and (2) the 2016 Piano and String version of Hikari from Kingdom Hearts, done by Sam Yung on YouTube. I found these fit the mood I wanted to write.

Please enjoy.

Day 36: Dedication

Robin wasn't sure when Vy started becoming someone precious to him. Maybe it was the first time they had met in the American Singularity before he was officially summoned to Chaldea, where he had to stop himself mid-introduction just from her sparkly eyes being directed his way. No one in his village besides the children really looked up at him with that much admiration, and in all fairness, it was somewhat embarrassing to be stared at. Or maybe it was the first time she called him "Big Robin" with that bright smile on her face, like she actually believed in him beyond his ability for subterfuge and poison.

It was all a blur when trying to piece together the moment he fell, but if there was one thing he had grown to accept, he knew he couldn't let her go.

Robin never had a Maid Marian in his brief life as the Man in Green. Maybe Robert Locksley, or Rob Hod, or someone more famous than him had that kind of lady in their days alive. Not someone like him, who took on the name for a village that inevitably contributed to his doom.

But with someone like Vy — his little sparrow —

Maybe he could have something that would last. Someone like Maid Marian.

The door slammed behind them once he was placing his fist against the frame and leaning in to hastily press his lips against Vy's as she stepped into the room. He could taste the surprised squeak echoing in her mouth once they were connected again, but that was okay. Kisses used to be such fleeting things, not meaning much when it came to the inevitable goal of a fling in his past life, but now it was like it just wasn't enough. It was never enough when it came to her. He'd probably have to apologize to Musashi and the others out in the hallway later (that was probably going to end up being a 'tomorrow' problem) when it came to locking the door in their faces.

"N-Nn, Robin—?" Vy was blinking up at him with that adorably unfair blush heating her cheeks once he made some distance, one strap of her sundress drooping down the slope of her bare shoulders as she caught her breath. Her straw hat must've fallen to the carpet of the room somewhere. Eh — it could be picked up later. "What brought this on? Are you okay?"

"…That's my line, isn't it?" Robin leaned in to briefly kiss her again, a long, aggrieved sigh echoing in his throat once he could feel Vy tense beneath his palm on her cheek. "You worry me too much, little sparrow, y'know that? Initiating a fin-fight with a full-grown great white shark on your own, even if Jeanne deserved a talking-to…"

Vy's hands were still clutching onto his jacket (almost for dear life if not for Robin knowing better — it was hard not to catch a glimpse of her shaking legs past the hems of her dress out of the corner of his eye) when he pulled back for a breath of air. Those tiny hands were probably white at the knuckles if not for the bandages still wrapped around them. Shark teeth were still sharp, no matter what anyone else (like Jeanne, sheesh) tried to say. "T-To be fair…" Vy let out a belatedly quiet giggle at the pun he made at the shark's expense, her exhale brushing the corner of his mouth as he leaned in again. "Reece pissed me off more than Jeanne and I rushed in without thinking. And Martha is a good trainer, for what it's worth."

"Doesn't mean you should willingly put yourself in danger like that," Robin chided, nipping at her bottom lip a little to scold her while pressing another light kiss there. "That renders my job as a Servant moot." And my job as the man who loves you and wants to protect you, was left unsaid.

"Muu…" Vy gave him a half-embarrassed, half-exasperated look through the shade of her hair as he pulled back, eyebrows furrowing against her forehead. "I'm okay, though, Big Robin. You don't have to worry."

"This coming from—" he pecked her lips again through her answering pout, hiding a wry smile along the way, "—the worrywart Master?"

"Still can — mm," Vy cut herself off once he firmly covered her lips with his, and she raised a shaky hand to touch the one he was using to cup her cheek, almost as if to discourage any more interruptions. "Say it as the worrywart of Chaldea." But even in the dim darkness of their hotel room, her palm was warm against his as she squeezed his hand. Her brown eyes seemed so bright past her glasses once she added in a softer voice, "I'm not going anywhere, Big Robin."

Robin found himself exhaling a breath he didn't realize he was holding, his arms frozen. "Vy…"

"Aye." Vy smiled again at the sound of her name, just as she reached up with her other hand, her lotus Command Seals glowing faintly past the bandages keeping her knuckles hidden all the while. Her fingers were gentle in touching his cheek and brushing some of the fringe out of his other eye, making it all the more easy to stare into her own eyes. Brown was such a simple color, but Vy's brown made Robin feel like he was staring into something deeper. Maybe the soil leading to a bright flower. Or the feathers of a sparrow. Either worked with a girl like her.

A courageous, reckless, selflessly kind girl like her.

Maybe, with someone like my little sparrow—

"I love you, Robin Hood," was Vy's confession against his mouth, just before she leaned up to shyly slot her lips against his. "I love you too much to even think about leaving you. Until you don't want me anymore, then I'll be here." Before he could respond, Vy stood up on her tiptoes through her sandals again to kiss him, the heat on her cheeks close enough for him to feel it. "And if it helps relieve whatever you're thinking about, I want to be here."

Instead of a verbal answer, all Robin found himself doing was wrapping his arms around his little sparrow and passionately kissing her back to convey the want she was hinting at. Keep her close enough until she could only breathe him in just like how he was with her.

Maybe I can have a future too.

Oh, to have such thoughts like that.

But the world wasn't always kind. It could be unfair and cruel, too. So, so unbearably cruel.

After all, Robin was not unfamiliar with the sound of Vy crying. If anything, his long tenure as a Servant of Chaldea meant he had to get used to it, to hearing his little sparrow lose feathers from her wings, one bit of plumage at a time. From the Singularities to Agartha to Salem and even the Lostbelts — there was only so much one little sparrow could fly against. And the risk of her wings giving in from all the pressure was always there, even back when Dr. Roman was around to help mitigate the damage.

It didn't make it any less painful to hear Vy's sobs when Musashi had come back through so many spent Saint Quartz and inevitably found out part of the truth behind Vy's strength. As much as Vy tried to hide it, tried to make it out like she was okay and ready to handle the next challenge the Crypters would inevitably pose to her, she was still human. She could still get frustrated, lonely, angry — all of those things. Even if her stubbornness made it fairly simple to cover up.

Being forced to watch a friend sacrifice themselves was never easy. To witness it multiple times, well —

It was honestly amazing enough that Vy was still willing to get up from bed. An unprecedented miracle, if some of the more medically-oriented Servants had anything to say about it.

Sometimes, Robin dully wondered when that too would change.

"…You should go check up on her," Holmes had said over a puff of his pipe in the smoking room, his legs crossed in a chair. Robin was picking at a box of his usual cigarettes underneath his mantle at the time, tempted to light one stick if not for the looming clock over his head reminding him that Vy's nap was supposed to end soon. Vy never did like his cigarettes, even if she tried to hide it from him for the sake of his comfort. Sweet, but still self-destructive. Whether or not Holmes noticed his thought process, he didn't show it and continued on with an unabated, "It's something the previous Director asked of you, isn't it?"

It took a moment for Robin to realize he had flicked open the cap to his lighter, but the ignition wasn't on. "…What makes you say that, great detective?"

"It's an elementary deduction, humble Archer," Holmes said with a raised brow, a wry smile tugging at one end of his lips as he removed his pipe to exhale a cloud of smoke. He then raised a hand to start counting off fingers. "You haven't taken out a single cigarette since coming into this smoking room, not to mention the absentminded tapping of your right foot, and even the appearance of your arms crossed over your chest gives you away." Robin didn't even have to face Novum Chaldea's Administrative Advisor to know the Ruler looked proud of his newest deduction. "All of these things point to a dedicated anxiety of some kind, and I do not have to be contracted to our little Master to know you are in love with her."

Heat started to climb up the back of Robin's neck, enough to make him tempted to tug on his mantle to disappear, but bad habits wouldn't serve him well here. Especially with one of Vy's first Ruler Servants. "…You don't have to remind me," he relented instead, continuing to refuse to meet Holmes' gaze while letting his arms fall to his sides. "The good ol' Doc did that enough already." Even if he said it only once before the end.

"So then why are you here and not by her side?" Holmes murmured after a small pause, and Robin could've sworn his voice turned softer as he puffed at his pipe. "Your little sparrow loves you back, doesn't she?"

"I'm not the only one she loves," Robin pointed out in a matter-of-fact tone, even if his heart still aches a little at knowing just how big Vy's heart could be when it came to the Servants around her. "Even if I'm the only one who gets kissing rights—" Robin ignored Holmes' barely hidden snicker in favor of rolling his eyes, tucking his arms behind his mantle, "—she still needs to work things out with the newly summoned Saber. Sleeping it off and all, I mean."

After all, not even Robin could bring up his usual sarcasm in the face of said Saber's apparent depression when she left Vy's room half an hour ago. Nursing his old grudge against her didn't matter after seeing that.

"Ah, Miss Musashi," Holmes said with a click of his tongue, nodding his head when Robin turned back to look at him. "I can see why you would want them to reconcile, considering what we saw in Olympus. But I believe as a fellow Servant that Vy still needs you in the aftermath, no?"

Robin took a breath, raising a hand to rub at the back of his neck. "Maybe."

"My instincts as a detective inform me that it's no longer a 'maybe', May King." Even from the corner of his eye, Robin could tell the Ruler was grinning. Darn perceptive types. "Even before I came under Vy's official contract, I could clearly see how her eyes shined when looking at you. It's something that hasn't changed with the loss of the original Chaldea. Never with a loyal rogue like you."

A tiny breath left him before Robin realized he was the one making it. "…Have that much faith in me, huh?"

Holmes merely chuckled around his pipe. "Why wouldn't I when you are the Archer our Master chose to Grail? Not even the hugs she gives me are as warm as the ones I've witnessed between you two, and she was already surprised enough when I arrived in the Summoning Chamber after everything with the Kogetsukan Manor."

Fair enough.

"Just don't smoke yourself rotten enough to have the smell linger on your clothes," Robin warned mildly, making himself stand up from his place leaning against the wall with a shake of his head. If he closed his eyes, he could already hear the faint trilling of Vy's alarm clock through their bond. "I can tell you from experience Vy doesn't like it."

"As she should," Holmes agreed sincerely, closing his eyes and reclining back in his chosen seat. "…All I ask in return is that you don't lose sight of her, Robin Hood. Especially in pursuit of the truth."

Robin was already halfway to the exit when his ears caught wind of the Ruler's words, and he turned only to see Holmes smile. "Is that out of experience too, Sherlock Holmes?"

"Perhaps," Holmes said in a quieter voice, a tinge of what sounded like melancholy tainting the word, then he waved his hand in a carefree "shoo shoo" gesture past his pipe — a considerate dismissal if anything. "But you have a little sparrow to awaken, May King. I will need to get back to work."

Robin rolled his eyes again but offered the detective a two-fingered salute in return anyways, lingering by the door a few seconds longer to say, "As long as you visit Vy at one point too. She sees you as another dad, y'know."

She loves you too, so don't dawdle here for long, you workaholic detective, was left unsaid. Robin knew Holmes could deduce it with his perception of the world. He left his fingers crossed underneath his mantle, after all.

Still, had it not been for the door closing behind him, Robin might've been able to read Holmes' lips as he left, instead pondering over what he could faintly hear. Something along the lines of, "…makes it more difficult to leave."

That was a mystery he'd have to save for investigating on another day. A better day, maybe, if Novum Chaldea could be calm enough for that kind of thing. Robin had more than enough of his share of nursing headaches over other Servants' choices.

Still, the tear trails lingering on Vy's cheeks were hard to look at directly. Robin knew that Musashi and Vy were going to talk eventually, hash out whatever baggage had been left behind with the fall of Olympus, but it didn't stop his heart from aching at noticing the dried salt and wet spots of skin underneath Vy's already dark eyes as he slowly approached her bedside.

Her alarm was still ringing from her wrist communicator sitting at her nightstand, set quiet enough to not disturb others possibly passing outside but supposedly loud enough to wake her up on any other occasion. Not this time, it seemed. Aside from a weak "Nnn" of protest, Vy didn't even move at the sound echoing in the room, only stiffening when Robin reached over to gently brush his knuckles against her cheek to wipe some dried tears away.

"Vy," he whispered softly, sitting down once he got close enough to do so and wiping at her other cheek. The faint echo of distress ringing through their bond was more than enough of a sign her nap was over. "Little sparrow, I'm here. It's time to wake up."

The little sparrow made a sleepy noise in reply, barely opening her eyes when he stroked her cheek again past the tear-made crusts lining her eyelids. Still, Robin's patience paid off when she eventually blinked up at him with a foggy look in her brown eyes, some ruffled strands of hair falling down onto his hand as he cupped her cheek in his palm. "…Big Robin?"

"Hey, little sparrow," Robin whispered, unable to hide the joy in his voice as he scooted closer to move her away from her blankets and take her into a hug as she sat up in her bed. At least she was still Vy, tired and all. Of course, he had to reach past her shoulders to press an angry palm against the communicator on the nightstand, still making a racket all the while, to turn it off. It was getting annoying even to his ears. "You okay?"

"…Please define 'okay,'" Vy said after a pregnant pause, barely twitching in his arms as she appeared content in her place slumped against his chest. Whether she noticed his internal conflict with her alarm clock, she didn't voice it. Instead she continued with a drier, "Because otherwise, that's a loaded question and if it wasn't you waking me up, I'd be tempted to go punch something."

"Okay then." Robin hid a chuckle by pressing his lips to the top of Vy's hair, unable to help himself from fondly kissing the crown of her head. Vy made a tired, embarrassed kind of noise in response, but he persisted in giving her another kiss to the temple anyways. Typical tired Vy, saying something like that when waking up. Achilles would have a field day if he got to see this. "How are you physically feeling, Vy?"

"Like shit," Vy immediately deadpanned in spite of her growing blush, raising a hand to clumsily wipe at her face. "I can still move, I can still talk, but I feel…" she then wiggles her fingers in an "eh" gesture, visibly swallowing from a bit of discomfort. "Numb…?" Her voice makes it sound more of a statement, barely toeing the line of a question, but she still leans into him as she reaches over to grab one of his hands to squeeze. "Like something is both off my chest but still weighing me down? I dunno. I… I hate crying so much, even if Shii-chan didn't mind." Vy swallows thickly, shaking her head while pressing her cheek against his shoulder. "…It's still good to see you, my heart says," is the eventual admission that brushes the column of his throat. "There's just a lot to do, I think."

So she definitely cried with Musashi back home. Of course. The realization hits him with a rather dull thud compared to any other attack that could've been shot his way. "As you've guessed," Robin outwardly says, and it takes a moment for him to belatedly realize a note of resignation seeped into his voice because Vy is turning her head to look up at him in tired confusion, big brown eyes blinking at him. With a shake of his head, he covered it up with a warmer, "Is there anything you want to do, little sparrow?"

Vy squeezes his hand for a moment, her fingers gently squishing his own for a few seconds. "…Ask you a question? If that's okay, Big Robin."

"Go ahead," he followed up without hesitation, squeezing her hand back once her grip was weakening from fatigue of some kind. At least there was progress. "What's the matter?"

Vy visibly hesitates, her fingers catching against his before she laces them together with a tentative squeeze. She inhales, exhales, then whispers in a barely audible voice, "…You still okay with me?"

Robin blinked, growing still as his mind took its sweet time to process the words. What did he just hear? "Okay with… with you?"

Vy ducks her head, pulling back from his arms a bit as she keeps their fingers laced together, almost as if retreating back into a shell of her own creation. The only reason she seemed up for holding onto his hand was for comfort, nothing more. "I knew this was a silly question," she muttered, lurching back but still clinging to his hand like a lifeline of some kind. "But I know that… that I'm not entirely 'okay.'" The lotus Command Seals on the back of her left hand glowed faintly once Vy turned to look at them, and she took another breath. "And the Olympus soldiers we fought had… well, they had a point in calling me 'demon' amongst all their delusions about their gods. I'm not… I'm not innocent anymore." With a shake of her head, Vy finally let his hand go, scooting back to let her back lean against the headrest of her bed, starting to look more like a ball than a person. "You're still… still okay with that?"

Oh. This again. Is this why she summoned someone like me?

Robin considered. "…Is it so hard to understand, little sparrow?"

"Mmph!" was the vague noise of protest Vy made when he leaned over to press his lips to hers, and he pulled away after getting a good taste of her tongue for the next few seconds. Once he made adequate distance between them, Vy's eyes were wide enough to reflect his image as red dusted her cheeks, plenty to wipe away the shadows underneath them. "R-Robin?"

"Sorry for the abruptness," he confessed, still tempted to kiss her again with how soft her lips looked. The shininess of her mouth from their shared saliva didn't help his growing desire. "I had to start with that first to get my point across."

"Your…" Vy blushed a darker red as he lingered in front of her, voice pitching a few octaves higher from surprise. "Your point?"

"I really need you to know that I love you, Vy." Robin leaned in again, reaching over to lace his fingers together with hers as his thumb lingered over the pink flower-shaped jewel still sitting on her middle finger. The lotus Command Seals keeping them together glowed again from the corner of his eye, a bit brighter this time, but he didn't really care about those. Her eyes were wide, clear enough to reveal his own determined face, but Robin continued with a roll of his own eyes and a peck to her lips. "I love you. More than anything in the world. Flaws and all, 'demon' and all. I stayed with you because I'm more than 'okay' with you. As long as you want me, I'll always be here. And if it helps you, I want to be here with you. I want to kiss you until you can't think of anything else."

"A-Anything else?" Vy squeaked, looking closer to a tomato with each passing second. Robin was tempted to laugh if not for the warmth starting to shine in her eyes, recognition clear in her brown irises as the words registered. "Robin…"

I love you too, echoed through their bond before she could open her mouth again. You dork of a rogue, you.

Robin smiled. "Y'know what?" He decided to lean in enough for his lips to barely touch Vy's, loosening the clasp to No Face May King along the way. "You're cute when you're blushing and this robin's getting a bit hungry." Without any hesitation, he cast the heavy mantle over them both, internally grateful for having locked the door beforehand. "And a robin has to let his little sparrow eat too, right?"

"O-Oh," was all Vy said once the No Face May King dimmed the lights around them. Her breath brushed his mouth, enough for Robin to feel her embarrassment before she shyly smiled at him. "You dork," she whispered softly. "No wonder I don't wanna leave."

A surge of pride flowed through his veins once he finally kissed her. "Don't think I'd be able to handle that when I finally found my Maid Marian, Vy." With one more squeeze of her hand, he pressed his lips to hers again. "Let me cherish her for a bit longer."

Until the next Crypter would attack and work would need to be done. Until then, Robin could help a girl feel special. It was the least a nameless rogue could do for a girl who looked out for him like he mattered.

Like he really was Robin Hood.

Note: Not much else to say when I finished this on the eve of what's shaping up to be the first family wedding on my mom's side (6/3/2022, actually). More so when I still don't know how I feel about seeing the symptoms of kidney failure in my maternal grandpa who helped raise me, with his overly swollen hands and constant need of a wheelchair just to walk around the house. Not helped with how I can hear grandma praying to the Buddha a room away, begging him to let grandpa stay with her for a few days longer. It's such a stark, cold contrast to a decade ago, when my parents could leave grandpa alone without supervision and he could build a homemade wooden arch for the garden.

And my parents said I inherited grandpa's workaholic tendencies. Seeing what old age can do scares me. More so with how resigned he is to his swollen limbs from all the extra fluids his 11% functioning kidneys can't filter.

Part self-indulgence, part-processing, this chapter is.

…Can't stay up for too long, so I hope you all don't mind this overly fluffy chapter. The last scene is inspired by a conversation I had with my own Robin in Leo over all these things happening recently.

Otherwise, this is Vy, signing out. I'll see you all next time.