Emmeryn didn't quite know what to think when her brother described his most recent dispatch with a seriousness she hadn't witnessed since the shepherds were first formed. The prince's personal account of the new monstrous threat tempted her to deploy the entirety of her knights, but she stayed her impulses. It was a ruler's responsibility to seek council rather than rush to failure.
Thankfully, her amusement distracted her anxious thoughts in the form of the two new shepherds Chrom introduced. She'd immediately noticed the unfamiliar faces, with pristinely white hair complimented by the dark colors of their unique dress.
Plegian, her politically minded thoughts whispered. But her heart brushed away her conspirational thoughts, ignorance was the enemy of peace. So she trusted the strange amnesiac siblings. Her only hope was that Chrom knew what he was doing.
They at least seemed innocent, gawking at everything like babes fresh from the womb. The boy had even sent Phila some rather poorly hidden glances, and was she not the exalt, perhaps she would have been in the teasing mood. But appropriately, the boy's sister had reigned in his gaze with a sharp elbow.
A good thing for him - Phila wasn't one to entertain boyish attention. But the exalt's smile deepened anyway, it almost reminded her of her own days from long ago. Chrom, as noble as he was, didn't always know how to temper himself.
"Ylisse thanks you for your service and is more than happy to accommodate you," she offered. It was a rather shallow statement considering Chrom had already recruited them, but she meant it all the same.
"Thank you, your grace," the siblings intoned one after another, dipping their heads respectably low.
With pleasantries dealt, Emmeryn's smile waned as she readdressed her brother. "Chrom, we are about to hold council. I was hoping you could join us."
She silently thanked her sister as she immediately moved to empty the chamber with the other shepherds in tow. A part of her wanted to call out to the blonde cleric to join them, but another part knew that Lissa would only deny the offer with a forced smile. It pained her, but the matter of her younger sister's heart was a difficult thing.
First, they had to deal with the monster raining from the sky. One problem after another…
"Next time let's not ogle women of obviously high standing," Robin groaned, doing her best to glare a hole through her brother's thick skull. Seriously, if Chrom was their boss, then the exalt was their boss's boss. She was about ready to disown her brother right then and there.
Her dearest brother turned his head away in dismissal. "I was looking at her armor. I noticed it was the same make as the knights we saw outside."
She still narrowed her eyes, but her response was beaten by Lissa's spritely interjection. "That was Wing Commander Phila. She's been leading the corps since forever!"
"But enough about politics," Lissa chirped, dashing in front of the tacticians to block the entrance to a sturdy looking entrance with an excited bounce. She placed her hands on the double door handles and looked over her shoulder in an attempt to build suspense.
"Welcome to the barracks!" The double doors flew open, and the Robins exchanged glances.
At least it was… Clean? Well, not really, but it was organized - as long as you ignored the assortment of wooden crates shoved into the corner. It looked more like a cleared out storage room than actual living quarters. But it was better than being homeless, so she pointedly kept her mouth shut.
"Hey guys, meet the new Shepherds!" Lissa cried, garnering a small circle of new faces to gather around. Robin's eyes bounced from body to body. Everyone was outfitted uniquely and exuded vastly different auras, contrary to the professional military she was expecting. She supposed this was going to be the norm if they stayed with the shepherds.
The blonde mountain of muscle laughed uproariously. "Fresh meat huh? Been a while since ol' teach had some lackeys to order around."
"Sorry Vaike," Lissa giggled, placing a hand on each of their shoulders. "But these two are gonna be the ones with the orders. They're really good with tactics so Chrom put them in charge!"
"Haahhh? They don't look so smart - or tough for that matter," Vaike drawled, crossing his arms and shooting a challenging smirk in her brother's direction.
"We're uh- we're just in charge of the tactics," her brother elaborated with a nervous shuffle.
For now, Robin mused, wondering just how hard she'd have to hit the blonde ogre to send him tumbling. Even just the ear to ear grin paired with his raucous voice was tempting her nerves. At least he'd serve as a good meatshield with how big he was.
"W-Welcome to the shepherds, I'm Sumia" a brunette offered with a reserved but not unkind wave. Her brother looked the woman up and down and Robin could already sense the question on his lips before he opened his stupid mouth.
"You know I've been meaning to ask, What's with the lack of armor beneath the waist for you people, Frederick and Sully at least wear greaves. Is it some sort of distraction tactic?" He questioned, pointedly staring at the garter belt straps with a skeptically raised brow.
"W-Wha- no!" Sumia stammered with rapidly darkening cheeks. "The pegasi don't like the extra weight below their center of balance. A-And we've always been light cavalry, it's not a… a distraction tactic."
She contemplated giving her brother another taste of the big sister elbow, but settled with a disappointed shake of her head. But to be fair, she'd been wondering the same; leave it to her brother to ask a stranger in the worst way possible.
"Ignore my little brother," she sighed with a healthy amount of exasperation. "Our name is Robin, and before you ask, yes, both of our names are Robin."
"Big brother," her little brother corrected with a sharp tisk. "And we have amnesia, so don't bother asking about our past. Our memories literally started a couple days ago when Chrom found us."
She could see Vaike's face visibly twisting in confusion. But before anyone could responde, a blonde and pink blur flew down a set of stairs and practically crashed into Lissa to begin fussing over every inch of the princess. Frills and ribbons adorned fine looking silk, her perfectly sharp features making Robin feel comparatively common. If she didn't know better, she'd think the newcomer was the princess instead of Lissa, with her weird pigtails.
"Lissa, my treasure, I heard about those terrible monsters!" The newcomer hissed, her hands grasping the smaller girl's shoulders as if she'd disappear at any moment.
"Jeez Marribelle, I'm not as delicate as I look, you know," Lissa huffed between an embarrassed chuckle. She escaped her clutches to tightly cling to her brother's shoulder. "Rob here can use healing magic! He covered for me when I ran out of mana."
Blonde drills dipped to the side as Maribelle turned a scrutinous eye to devour the taller tactician's form. Her gaze even flitted to Robin's for an indecipherable moment before returning to her brother.
"You certainly don't look like a healer. But, you did well to protect my dear Lissa. My name is Maribelle Osprey, daughter of the Duke of Themis," she finished the introduction with a slight curtsey. The lump in her brother's throat bobbed and she knew he was trying to think of a way to respond to the foreign gesture.
Please gods, don't curtsy back, she internally begged, resisting the urge to cover her eyes as she prepared to publicly disown her brother. Thankfully, by some miracle, he managed to cobble together a stiff nod of his head instead of forever shaming their name.
Maribelle only looked on with a skeptically raised eyebrow. "Well, I suppose you can't be all that barbaric if my darling Lissa speaks so highly of you."
Robin guessed that was about as close of a thanks a proud noblewoman could give. She wished she knew where the Dukedom of Themis was, but by the blonde's tone of self reverence, it wasn't hard to guess it was an important Ylissean territory.
"Shepherds!"
The entire room was taken in a single moment. Heads turned and a mop of blue hair burst through the doors. Even Robin found herself standing just a hair straighter. Weird - this was the same man that nearly tripped into the campfire when Lissa put crickets in his boot.
He moved to stand between the tactician siblings. It was at this moment that the brunette pegasus knight, who had hung toward the back the entire conversation, took an eager step toward the prince with the brightest smile she'd ever seen.
"Captai- oof!" Until suddenly, and inexplicably, her feet tangled on seemingly nothing and she face planted in a clattering of armor and limbs. It was so bizarre that Robin would have thought it staged if it wasn't for the whimper of embarrassment that followed.
Her brother stood closest to the crash zone, helping the poor girl up with a matching look of bafflement. Quick mutterings of excuses and apologies clued Robin that perhaps this girl shouldn't be sent off to the front lines. She didn't need her only pegasus knight falling from the sky.
"Don't get too settled in and get ready to march by midday tomorrow. Emmeryn tasked the Shepherds to secure an alliance with Regna Ferox," Chrom explained with an apologetic look received by the twins.
Not that it did much, her lips settling into a thin line. "I was hoping to train a little…"
"No time, and I'm going to need my new tacticians for this mission," the prince shook his head in consolidation. "It's more than a week's march north. You'll have to save it for the road."
She crossed her arms with a grumble but grudgingly settled for the compromise. Even if she was the Shepherd's tactician now, Chrom was still her boss. Orders were orders, and that was why she needed to get stronger. One look at her brother's plotting countenance meant that he knew the same.
"Does the palace at least have a library? It would be useful to get some books for the road. You know, since we don't have memories and all…" her brother ventured, looking expectantly at the prince.
"Of course, and take what you need. The royal library has always been too big for how few people actually use it." Both tacticians perked up at the news. Their realm was tactics, but the uncovered secrets of paperback was an alluring concept.
"To the library then!" Her brother cheered enthusiastically, his feet carrying him back toward the palace.
Robin internally cheered along and determinedly fell in step with her brother's pace. Technically, as tacticians, they were getting ready for tomorrow's march. Packing, much less eating, could wait in the pursuit of knowledge. Maybe they even had tactical manuals!
"W-Wait!" Lissa cried as she hurried to catch up with them. "Do you guys even know where the library is!?"
The brother and sister shared a look before visibly deflating. "Er- no, no we don't"
"Jeez, and you two are supposed to be the smart ones!"
The march to Ferox began according to plan. He and his sister sufficiently plundered the royal library the night before and with the help of some old manuals, maps and notes, scraped together the semblances of a caravan formation.
Shepherds like Frederick and Sully already had mounts but they had requisitioned a few extra horses to carry a wagon of cargo they nearly had to beg Chrom to bring along. With nearly the entire Shepherd roster volunteering for the mission, duty rosters, proper equipment, and new formations had to be considered.
While they could have settled for what Chrom had always done when traveling the countryside, it was uninspired at the best. So the tacticians had spent the entire day and most of the night rehashing the Shepherds traveling plans.
She was half awake, fairly cranky, and healthily paranoid when she followed Chrom out of Ylisstol's pearly gates. Right as she found herself behind the safety of a literal fortress, her boss was making her leave. Back out in the world that she had no memories of.
Irritated muttering slipped through her lips as a bump in the road tripped her from her thoughts. The sun wasn't even high in the sky and her feet were starting to feel tender. She cursed her past self for having soft feet. Maybe those healing staffs worked for blisters? She'd have to ask her brother later.
A green plated rider flanking her spot in the caravan paused, drawing her attention to the cavalier that had kind of shown up out of nowhere. She mentally flipped through the Shepherd roster before remembering his name. Stahl, an unassuming if reliable man if she were to go off what Sully told her.
"Movement to the front!" Stahl shouted, his voice carrying up and down the column as he raised a gauntleted hand to his brow. "Several figures, they look armed!"
Reliable indeed, she hummed, squinting her eyes to the horizon. True to his word, several specs stood out from the greenery flanking the stone road. Her first conclusion jumped to bandits as the sun glinted off distant iron weapons, but as the figures shambled closer, a weight settled in her gut like she'd just swallowed a rock.
Glaring red eyes glaring balefully behind ashen complexion made Robin wince. A part of her wished the previous battle against the undead had been one abnormal dream, but it seemed the 'risen' were going to be a permanent nightmare.
"Gawds, you said this road was safe!" She stomped to Chrom's side, jabbing an accusing finger into his chest.
"It's supposed to be," the prince grimaced before setting his face to stone. "Shepherds, battle positions!"
Frederick was by his side in moments, his stern brown pupils resolutely bouncing from risen to risen. As much as she hated to admit it, the weary knight was an encouraging presence to have by her side. Stahl, Sully, and Vaike followed, looking to Chrom for orders who's gaze turned toward her.
"Alright, form a wall down the road. Nothing fancy, cavaliers on the outside, Chrom and Vaike on the inside. Frederick, I want you running the gaps so nobody gets overwhelmed." Nobody moved for a moment before Chrom stepped forward.
"You heard the plan, let's go!" He cried, bounding to get into position. The mounted Shepherds followed suit, easily overtaking the prince and settling into a rough line of steel and lances. Vaike was the last to follow, and Robin's eyes bulged from her head as she noticed something horrifically amiss. Her arm snapped to yank the axe wielder back by the iron pauldron around his neck.
"Vaike! Where is your gawds damned weapon!" She practically shreaked in his ear. The spiky haired blonde flinched but she didn't feel a shred of remorse. Was the oaf planning to punch the risen to death?
"I er- I had it a moment ago," he unhelpfully explained. Robin wanted to tear the oaf's head off, but she settled for violently shoving him toward the rear of the caravan where the backline Shepherds were similarly scrambling into positions.
"Then go find it you idiot!" She could feel a vein bulging in her head as the blonde scampered away toward the rear of the caravan.
"And tell my brother we're going with formation C!" She called after his retreating form. Hopefully he heard her, not that she was actually worried. Her brother was an idiot, but when it came to tactics they were of the same mind, she was just being sure.
A poorly hidden scowl marred her features as she tromped toward the line of fighters ahead. Her blood was already boiling and the battle hadn't even begun. If it wasn't the risen, then these Shepherds were going to be the death of her; she just knew it.
"Further in!" She beckoned to Sully's reddish form, causing the cavalier to adjust her position closer to the center.
"You look peachy," Chrom amusedly remarked, a paralyzed look crossing his face when she rounded on him. A long huff passed through her nose as she placed a hand on her hip, the other roughly massaging her pulsing forehead.
"The oaf lost his axe. We're going to be down a man until his brain starts working," she bit out, leveling her temper just enough in order to observe to incoming group of monsters that were almost upon them.
The crude hulking piles of flesh certainly outnumbered them, but they moved in groups without rhyme or reason. Just like the first time when they were falling from the sky, their tactics were near nonexistent. It was perhaps the one advantage they had against the monsters, and it was an advantage she was fully about to exploit.
Frederick's mount clopped by their side and Frederick leaned over his saddle to address her. "There's no mounted risen, I can take our cavaliers and rout their flank before they hit us."
"Maintain the line," she ordered with a shake of her head. "We have superior mobility but there's no point in taking chances."
The knight didn't seem all that satisfied with the answer but remained silent at Chrom's nod, swiveling his reins to return to the gap between Stahl and Chrom. She turned the the prince, flashing an appreciative look before scowling again.
"They do realize I'm trying to keep them alive right?" She grouched, her temper being channeled into a few test swings of her bronze sword.
"They're just not used to having a tactician, it'll come with time," he absently explained while his gaze remained focused on the encroaching horde. They were only barely a hundred meters away now and their unsteady pace hastened to a shambling trot.
Eight hulking forms made up the first wave. Swords, axes and spears approached and Robin silently thanked the gods for the lack of archers. Ranged superiority was something she was more than comfortable having on her side. This was proven as she as her brother's roaring command faintly tickled her ear before all hell broke loose.
Fire and lightning painted the blue sky in a volley that soared overhead. The hairs on her arms stood like pin needles as the violent arc of magic directly impacted the line of risen, a few corpses being felled outright while several stumbled out of the bombardment with visible injuries. Even then, a sequence of arrows followed, peppering the staggered undead with the archest of precision.
"Wow," Chrom breathed to her right, his grip on Falchion loosening as only three risen broke out of the hail of punishment.
"Not over yet," she bit out, watching one of them zero in on the center of their formation. A chipped axe rose above its head as it recklessly charged their line and Robin was more than content letting Chrom step in front to weather the blow.
A metallic clang assaulted her ears as the prince caught the blow on Falchion's pristine edge. The monster snarled, moving to rear its heavy arm back for another swing, but Robin moved quicker. Using the small opening, she ducked by Chrom's side and delivered a slash across its fleshy gray flank.
Against a normal man it would have been a fatal slash, but the risen simply roared in primal fury. Maybe if it was her first time fighting these unthinking brutes she would have been caught off guard, but instead she slipped away when it tried to clothesline her with its giant arm.
"I hate these things," she scoffed, receiving only a focused grunt of response. The risen charged again and this time Chrom swung to meet the axe in its descent, parrying it to the side and sending it off balance.
This time, her blade shot forth like a needle, plunging through its meaty head with a gut turning squelch. That did the trick and the monster faded into smoky purple ashes. She sent a cursory glance to their flanks before turning back to their front. The second wave was already nearing and she grimaced at the greater numbers they came in.
"Is anybody hurt!" A shrill cry whipped her gaze away from the horde, turning to see Lissa hastily bounding from the rear of the formation with her staff clutched tightly to her chest. Her brother followed the cleric, arms full of vulneraries and his head on a swivel.
"Right here!" Stahl cried back, his non lance hand holding a gash on his thigh.
Seeing the reassuring glow of Lissa's staff refocused her attention to the imminent danger. Twelve- no thirteen figures shambled forth, nearly tripling their frontline number. Daunting odds, but the burning forest had been worse.
"Stay together and don't get surrounded," she called out to the line of knights. She hesitated for a moment before raising her bronze sword. "For Ylisse!"
The cry was echoed by the cavaliers, and even Frederick raised his lance with a stony nod. Chrom shot her a grin and warmth crept through her cheeks. Morale was essential to any army, it wasn't like she meant it or anything.
She spied Lissa and her brother scampering off in the corner of her eye and she steeled herself for the oncoming melee. Her shoulder brushed along Chrom's side as they paired up to watch each other's blind spots.
A tingle of goosebumps was the only warning before lightning, fire and steel streaked overhead like last time, crashing into enemy lines with just as devastating effects. But unlike the previous bombardment, her gaze remained grim as she traced more than a handful of risen pushing through.
"H-Hold the line!" Her voice hitched as she gracelessly dove out of the path of a throwing axe. Since when could they do that?
Chrom's gloved hand yanked her back to her feet just before the risen finally crashed into their line. Steel and flesh danced across her vision and her body moved before her brain. The monsters' ear splitting screams drowned only as the Shepherds defiant roar clouded her mind like a thick fog. Duck, swing, kick, her movements flowed into one another and she barely registered her surroundings.
That hazy tunnel vision was replaced by a white flash as a meaty fist backhanded her across her chest. Every ounce of air in her body felt like it had been wrung out of her lungs when her back hit the hard ground, her sword bouncing from her grasp.
A long shadow covered her form as the risen raised its axe like an executioner would with both its hands. She rolled on instinct but her coat yanked her back into place. Her eyes nearly bugged out of her head as she spied a buried root snagging at the hem of the black and gold edges.
This was how she died? To a damn tree root; at least her brother wasn't here to see his sister die in such a spectacularly lame way. What a joke, she didn't even have the air to sigh in frustration as she futilely raised her arms and watched the axe descend in slow motion.
Sorry bro-
"Class is in session!"
"GRAAGHH!" The risen screeched from around an iron axe buried halfway into its skull, clawing disgustingly at its own gaping face before bursting into dark purple motes. Spiky blonde hair replaced the monster standing above her, (the) Vaike's grin brighter than the sun.
She could only gape lamely at her blonde axe wielding savior for a moment before her brain kicked her ass back into reality.
"T-Took you long enough," she hacked, shakily pushing herself upright and mustering enough air to snarl. The nauseating thought of almost being butchered pushed deep into her gut as white hot anger sprung forth instead.
"Ol' Teach always arrives in the nick of time!"
"You damn idiot! I- Ugh, quit smiling and get out there!" She raged. Her boot crunched down on the blasted root and she tore her coat free.
Taking a few seconds to catch her breath, she opened her eyes past the fog of battle and thanked the gods that their meager line had held. Frederick's mounted form pounded toward Sully who was somehow managing to fend off two risen at once. On the right flank, Stahl haggardly stood over a still dissipating risen, somehow having been dismounted during the melee.
Chrom stood steadily like usual, holy blade resting by his side while his blue eyes swept across the battlefield. He looked more like a prince than ever and she cursed how even the wind seemed to blow in his favor, rustling through his hair at just the right angle. At least he was dumb as a rock, she consoled herself. Not as dumb as Vaike, but just as stupid. If it wasn't for her and her brother, they'd have marched out the gates with just the clothes on their backs.
With the faint cries of the last dissipating risen ringing in her ears, she let her shoulders slump wearily. It was a rough victory, but it was theirs. A lopsided grin smeared her lips as she pushed herself to the prince's side.
Now they just had the rest of the march ahead of them.
"You look like Lissa when she just started," Chrom chuckled, amusedly watching the shorter man massage his sore feet. The tactician only winced in response, sliding off one of his boots. Their sleepless hours of planning had finally paid off, and the Shepherd's camp was erected in record efficiency. He'd be damned if he wouldn't enjoy it for a scant few moments.
"The meeting isn't until a few minutes, and my feet feel like they're suffocating," Robin grumbled, tugging off his second boot and sighing. "People aren't meant to be walking that far. Why else did we tame horses?"
He pretended he didn't notice the grinning prince roll his eyes. "Ah, give it a few days Rob, your feet will adjust like everyone else."
Robin silently huffed, letting his feet enjoy the still temperate Ylissian breeze. They better - one of his blisters popping had been an experience he'd rather purge from his lackluster memory. Thankfully, Lissa had only teased him for a quarter of the march after healing it up.
"What's with you all calling me Rob anyways," he questioned Chrom who looked up from an unrolled map.
The prince's mouth opened a few times in consideration before settling on a placating smile. "Well… you're both named Robin, and it would be confusing to call you both the same thing. Especially in battle, don't you think it would be easier to go by a nickname?"
"But I'm Robin," his eyes narrowed in insistence, his words carrying a tinge of annoyance. "Why can't my sister go by a nickname?"
"Like what?" Chrom sighed.
Robin shook his head. "I dunno, Robby, Robette? What about Refelt?"
"That last one doesn't even make sense," Chrom interjected with an exasperated frown. "Just… take one for the team?"
The tactician glowered. While they shared names, he was Robin too. Even when she wasn't around, it felt like his sister was getting the one up on him. At least he could use healing magic, even though he didn't really know how to. He'd need to pay attention to Lissa's lesson after dinner.
It was at this moment the flaps to the command tent tore open and his sister stomped her way inside with a frown. Robin intelligently chose not to bring the name issue up at the moment. His sister was the one with the sword (for now) after all.
"Sorry I was late. Vaike somehow lost his axe again," she breathed out in one angry sigh, practically hissing the oaf's name like it was poisonous.
Chrom snorted and half smiled knowingly. "At least he realized before the next battle. Did you all find it?"
"Nope," she groaned, putting an unsteady hand on her forehead. "But I made sure he'll never make the mistake again."
"Should I call Lissa?" Chrom prompted with a rueful grin.
"She's already on it. But anyways, let's get this over with, I've got a spar with Sully after dinner," she grunted, moving to stand at the central table folded in the center of the tent. Rob(in) sullenly slipped on his boots, much to his feets dismay, and took his spot at her side.
A small parchment barely the size of her hand was produced from within Robin's coat. "According to Miriel's inventory, we only have twelve vulnaries left which means we used too many during the fight earlier."
Their eyes met, and Robin knew that meant their strategies needed to be hashed out more. Lissa could only run around to support everyone so much. If only they had another dedicated healer, preferably a mounted one which would perfectly round out their backline roster.
"Everyone's armor is good but Stahl's sword got a nasty crack in it," his sister continued.
"Ferox has plenty of smiths to replenish our damages," Chrom added, garnering a nod from the tactician.
"We could also use more bandages, Lissa went through nearly half of them after the battle," Robin shared his piece, and his sister hastily scribbled into her parchment.
"Alright, I still haven't checked on the horses or water supply but Frederick didn't seem all that worried when I pressed him," her fingers rapped on the table's wooden surface. "And I still need to post the night watch shifts, but that can wait until I'm done training with Sully."
Chrom nodded slowly with a quirked brow. "Okay, but don't push yourself so hard. We still have nearly a week's march ahead of us."
His sister's eye twitched, and Robin, in all his wisdom, decided to keep his mouth shut.
"It's not just me, Rob's going to be spending the whole evening with your sister." That is, until his sister threw him under the proverbial wagon.
Chrom recoiled like he'd just been struck across the face and turned toward the taller tactician with a dark look that was so unlike his usual expression. "Rob, is what your sister saying-"
"It's training!" He cried, throwing his hands in the air in surrender while sending his sister a glare of betrayal. "It's only after dinner, and she said she'd teach me basic staff magic. Afterwards I'm seeing Miriel to compare our tomes."
The protective big brother aura around the prince faded, replaced with a sigh of exasperation. "So you're both going to be working through the night, just like yesterday. Don't you two realize, out of anybody, it's you I need well rested?"
"And we need to be ready," he countered.
His sister crossed her arms in solidarity. "Just the other night, monsters fell out of portals in the sky before some guy in a mask gave us an omen. Now we run into those same monsters on a road that should have been safe. Both times we nearly died Chrom, this is honestly the least we should be doing."
A break of silence fell upon the trio as Chrom shifted from one foot to the other. Rob could see Chrom's point, but the thought of losing rattled him enough to keep his objection firm. Being a tactician was easy - hell, he had fun doing it. Being someone who worried about all their lives at the same time was the hard part.
A drawn out sigh rolling off their reluctant leader broke the silence. "The Shepherds are a kind of a family to me, that's why I'm more worried about you guys than anything. But… you're right, things are getting more dangerous than ever."
His shoulders sagged in reassurance. Out of anyone who could have found them, he was glad it was Chrom. At the very least, it definitely helped to have such a sturdy swordsman on their side; he'd seen that sacred sword of his split those damn monsters in two.
"Then you understand-" his sister began, only to be cut off by Chrom raising a hand in peace.
"I understand Robin. Just… make sure you guys are eating and try to get some sleep before morning breaks. And remind me to pay you guys more when we return home," the prince relented. Both siblings shared a glance, glad for their boss's understanding.
Now free from the emotional tangent, the rest of the day's details were monotonously unpacked. Routes were considered, the skirmish was recapped, and Robin's gut rumbled needily by the end of the obligatory observations.
The other two seemed to share the sentiment with his sister's gaze began drifting toward the tent's entrance more often and Chrom's eyes increasingly became more unfocused as the sun went down. It didn't help that the creamy smell of tonight's chow snuck through the flaps with a tempting aroma.
"Okay!" Robin tiredly exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "Frederick should hang further back and Lissa needs a designated bodyguard, anything else?"
Both shook their heads and Chrom physically slumped where he was standing. Maybe it was the fatigue of the day, but it took nearly an entire hour to get all their matters settled. Screw waiting until they got back, he'd remind Chrom every day to get paid more.
For now, it was time to eat, and without any pretense they scurried out of the command tent like rats drawn to the smell of food. It wasn't hard to spot where the mess tent had been erected as most of the Shepherds were already congregating around the heavenly smell.
Sumia and Stahl had been rostered for the night, and a generous cream stew was placed in his hands along with the other Shepherds. Thankfully, Frederick had the foresight of starting a sizable campfire to fill the area with a comfortable glow. It wasn't even a question as the weary Shepherds congregated around in a circle, scraping together whatever they could sit on to enjoy the fire's warmth.
So with the sun eclipsed by the horizon, the gentle snapping of the campfire filled the silence left by the general scraping and chewing of them eating. Conversation was only traded in short bursts as they were simply content with each other's presence as they finally unwound from the long day.
Vaike was among the first to finish, disturbing the silence with a guttural belch. "Hah, that sure hit the spot. The Vaike gives his compliments to the chefs!"
"Ish-was nothing," Sthal managed from around a mouthful. "Sumia did most of the work, I just helped out."
The pegasus knight in question held her own serving closer to her chest with a blush. "E-Eh? I really couldn't have done it without Stahl's help though. It was my recipe, but it was like he could read my mind when it came to preparing it."
His sister leaned to whisper conspiratorially in his ear. "We should roster them on cooking detail more often."
He silently agreed, scarfing down the rest of his stew in a single bite. The wooden bowl was lazily discarded by his side and he leaned back for a moment. He reveled in the moment, sitting in this circle of smiling faces with the fire's glow warding away the evening chill. The lighthearted air was infectious and a sly grin tugged at his lips.
From across the fire, he spotted the group's resident blonde princess nudging a spider toward her brother's leg. It was particularly large and hairy, and certainly another prank on the poor prince who, like usual, was completely oblivious to the cleric's machinations.
Not this time, he thought as a rough plan drew itself in his head. Chrom deserved a break, and Lissa deserved some payback for trying to slip a frog into his coat during one of their rest stops. That, and he didn't need their leader almost tripping into the campfire again.
"Everyone!" Robin's voice raised itself like when he usually gave out commands, and all the Shepherds turned toward him, some even reaching towards their weapons on instinct.
He chuckled and held his hands up in reassurance. "Relax, I just wanted to say that everyone did well today. Our tactics wouldn't be near as effective if you all weren't so on point." The Shepherd's in question preened at the sudden praise and his confidence peaked.
"The Vaike always gives it his all!" Vaike laughed with a hearty chest slap.
"Indeed our strategies are executed at a capability that exceeded my expectations," Miriel, their resident mage besides himself intoned with a rare smile.
"And so," the tactician continued, his gaze locking onto Lissa's, who quirked an eyebrow at the attention. "Princess Lissa asked me if she could sing for you all this evening to compliment our efforts."
"I- I did?" Lissa squeaked, her posture going stiff as every set of eyes swung to her shrinking form.
"So if we could all give her our undivided attention," Robin finished, settling in to enjoy the show. The chatter had completely ceased as every Shepherd in attendance respectfully waited for the princess to begin.
"I didn't uh…"
"Lady Lissa is actually quite a talented songstress," Frederick, ever quick to compliment the royal family, silenced Lissa's denial.
"Ah- er, ahem," Lissa stalled, rigidly shifting from atop her seat, small beads of sweat visibly trailing her brow. Robin loved every second of it, making sure she saw his ear to ear grin. He was rewarded with perhaps the chilliest look he'd seen yet from the uppity princess.
The silence stretched to the perfectly awkward amount and Lissa audibly gulped before taking a deep breath. "F-Fiiiiire eeeeemblem."
Having no memories he didn't recognize the shaky tune but understood that it was seemingly well known with how the Ylissean Shepherds swayed to the rhythm, Chrom especially grinning mirthfully. He couldn't help but smugly exaggerate his own enthusiasm for her song, starting a round of rhythmic clapping to accompany the impromptu performance.
The following morning he would find a family of amphibians had suddenly taken residence within his bed roll.
It had been a busy couple days of travel and Frederick freely admitted to growing weary of the long march - not that he'd ever let it show. So he savored silently watching Freya daintily nibble the last apple crumbs from his hand. For such a towering girl, the veteran war horse was stubbornly picky when it came to her diet. Many nights' dinners were spent trying to coerce the fickle animal with various treats in order to feed her something a bit healthier.
He supposed she earned it, riding out across Plegian sand only to return with a bloody saddle and a few scars of her own. So he only rolled his eyes when her beady brown eyes loomed expectantly after finishing the mid march snack.
"It'll have to tide you over until dinner," he huffed, giving her side a few rugged pats. They were now only a few days until they hit Feroxi territory where the weak were swallowed by the cold nation. The north would be less kind to his horse who was used to Ylissean pastures, so she would need to be strong and healthy.
"I didn't take you for a horse whisperer," a new voice chuckled, preceded by the crunching of approaching boots. He swiveled his gaze over his shoulder and his neutral expression tugged into a frown.
One of the 'amnesiacs' they had picked up off the side of the road steadily made his way across the idle caravan. The oddly white hair shone in the late morning sun contrasted by the dark colors of his tacticians cloak.
'Plegian cloak', he revised, such garb could only ever be confidently worn by dark mages. He'd seen the like during his squire days; scores of mages, raining magic so black that steel burned like paper. So far Rob had only demonstrated lightning magic during their battles, perhaps he was concealing his dark nature from them. Whether it was out of goodwill or deception was still to be determined.
Everything about the man was enigmatic and therefore highly dangerous. And now, after knowing him for only a few days, he was one of the Shepherds' tacticians. He believed in his lord, but sometimes he questioned Chrom's reasoning when it came to their safety.
"Rob," he neutrally acknowledged, turning away from his horse and clapping the specs of food from his hands. What did he need this time? They'd already instructed him to guard the rear of the caravan, placing him unnervingly furthest from his lord who led the caravan.
The cloaked man hung his head with a scoff. "You too huh? Whatever, I have a question for you."
He maintained an air of silence, spurning the tactician to awkwardly shuffle in place before spitting out his question. "W-Well, I was sparring with my sister earlier, and…"
"She beat you," Frederick surmised, the flat tone of his voice making the smaller man wither in place.
"Destroyed me," he griped, cringing as he tenderly rubbed his side. "She even used Vaike's axe, and I couldn't beat her a single time!"
"You trained with sharp weapons?" He rounded on the man who shrunk beneath his towering glare. "We use training weapons for a reason."
A low sound rumbled deeply from his throat. He'd seen young knights have had their bright lives snuffed by the slightest foolishness. The Shepherds were, for the most part, blooded fighters, but even the smallest of rules existed for a reason.
"R-Right," Robin stammered with the decency of looking abashed. "I-we'll be more careful."
"You will use the training weapons for their intended purpose," his voice was steel and his arms crossed to assert his stance. He received a reluctant nod and Frederick hummed in assent.
"But anyways, since you're the most experienced knight in the Shepherds, I wanted your advice," Robin asked, regaining a more casual posture.
"In swordplay?" He asked with a lifted eyebrow.
"Yeah - well really anything that might help me in close quarters," he affirmed, looking at him with hungry eyes he'd already seen plastered on impatient squires all too often.
He huffed, eyeing the man up and down. "You're not built for it."
"What do you mean by that!?" Robin exclaimed. His voice rose with irritation as he glared at Frederick who returned the look impassionately.
"Our frontline fighters have trained their bodies for years to wield their steel a thousand times over," at Robin's silent response, Frederick sighed. "You have to build a strong foundation before you go around asking for tips."
The tactician grumbled like a child who had been told they couldn't get what they wanted. But thankfully for Frederick's patience, the budding fire in the man's eyes simmered as he adopted a look of consideration.
"What about my sister? It's not like she's built like Sully or anything," Robin pointed out. Frederick paused, not having an appropriate response for once.
"She's… she makes due," Frederick answered vaguely. His thoughts drifted to the shorter amnesiac. the twin tailed girl who determinedly fought in the face of the enemy. He could recall her sharp commands rising above the deafening of battle, tearing away his attention to the much smaller girl who stomped through the frontlines.
She wasn't the strongest fighter, and she was far from the most skilled, but she made up for it with a ferocity Frederick could grudgingly respect. She might have made a decent knight - if she wasn't Plegian.
His evasive answer was met with an exasperated eye roll. "Of course she is…"
"But anyways! Even if it wasn't really what I was looking for, I appreciate the advice. Workout, build muscle, then bother you," he finished with only a hint of disappointment. Frederick silently watched as he spun on his heel and trudged his way back toward the center of the center of the caravan.
"Rob!" He called before the man could draw too far away. A closed sigh died on his lips and he closed his eyes for a second. "When we return to Ylisstol, I train every day. You're… you may join me if you wish."
"And I thought you didn't like me, Fred," Robin snorted, a bit of his enthusiasm returning to his face.
The nickname made his brow twitch and he fought against taking back the offer. "I don't. But you're a Shepherd and you came to me for help. Whether I enjoy your presence has nothing to do with "
"Ha! There's hope for Frederick the Weary yet. I'll look forward to it!" The tactician proclaimed, turning back around with a smile and a pep in his step. A jet of air puffed from Freya's nostrils, turning Frederick's gaze to his steed's blank stare.
"No he won't," he murmured as his hands returned to their previous task of grooming the seasoned horse. It was called the fanatical fitness program for a reason.
Now, if only they could go a few more days without running into undead monsters, or mysteriously masked individuals, or Plegian amnesiacs lying on the side of the road.
Appreciate everybody's follows and favorites and I can't wait until we get to future events with more Shepherds joining the mix. Awakening's original story is kind of a mess when you really look into it but I really love the ideas behind it. Don't know if I'm regretting both Robins having the same name yet; what started as a joke is ending up to be a bit tricky to warp my writing around. Anyways, hope everyone sticks around for what's to come!