Author's Note: Ok, personally I find it a little weird that the female avatar can be paired up with Gunter despite him being old enough to be her grandfather. But I suppose that Japan must love their silver foxes and should get some love too. Anyway, this is not going to be a pairing fic since I feel they have more of a family dynamic, along with Felicia, Joker, and Flora. Enjoy my fluff~!

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem Fates or its characters, but I do own this story.

You're Not Alone

It was a strong storm that night. The clouds were painted a deep shade of black, illuminated by off and on streaks of lightning and ear-pounding thunder. Rain pelted the castle roof like thousands of arrows from enemy archers. Gunter was making his rounds, inspecting every corner of the halls to maintain a tidy setting despite the gloomy atmosphere. Gunter nodded at every castle guard he passed, approving that they were kept on task. He was nearing Lady Kamui's room when he heard a shriek.

Alerted Gunter gripped his sword and barged through the door! "Lady Kamui?" He cried, expecting to see a villain inside her bedchamber. What he didn't expect was a shivering blanket-covered mound in the upper left corner of the room.

Immediately sheathing his sword he cautiously stepped toward the mound. "Lady Kamui?"

The princess peeked out from under the covers. Her long, silver blonde hair was a mess of curls from being under the sheets. Her red eyes were wide with fear like a deer being spotted by a hunter. Another streak of lightning followed by a slap of thunder briefly lightened up her room. The young princess flinched, abandoning her blankets and latched onto Gunter's torso.

"I don't like the noise, it's scary!" She cried, sobbing in his chest. "Make it stop Gunter, please!"

Gunter hesitated for a moment. Deciding quickly, he gently patted the princess's head. "Now, now lady Kamui, there's nothing to fear. It's simply a little thunder. We're safe inside the castle."

She looked up cautiously before another burst of lightning flashed outside her room. She yelped and buried her face in the old knight's chest. Gunter sighed. Well the princess is only six years old. Scooping her up in his arms, he used one arm to pick up her blanket and bring the small princess back to bed. He sat on top of the bed again patting the frightened child's head. She refused to unlatch herself from his side.

"You know," he mused. "I used to be scared of thunder when I was your age."

Princess Kamui looked up at him, eyes wide with curiousity. "You were scared of thunder too?"

He chuckled, "Indeed I was."

She shook her head with a pout. "That's a lie. Gunter's the strongest knight ever. He's not scared of anything."

Gunter smiled at the child's denial. "Now that's certainly not true. There are many things I am scared of. Fear is a natural part of being human." The young princess looked confused by his statement. "Would you perhaps like to hear how I overcame my fear of thunder?"

Her eyes brightened with excitement and nodded energetically. She grabbed her blanket and covered herself up to her chin, eagerly awaiting the story from the old knight. Gunter couldn't help but chuckle at the display. After a minute he cleared his throat and began, "As I said before I was afraid of thunder at your age. I lived in a village where thunder and lightning were a common occurrence. Once, a lightning bolt struck a tree barely ten feet from me."

Princess Kamui flinched and said meekly. "Did you get hurt?"

"No, no," he smiled. "Though, it did frighten me enough to run back home and latch on to my mother. My mother would ask why I was scared of thunder?"

"Because it's really scary!" Princess Kamui interrupted him.

"Yes it was," Gunter continued. "But my mother decided to make me brave by teaching me a magic spell."

"A magic spell?"

"Correct. She told me to cross my heart and recite this spell, 'Cross my heart, make my fear fly, I'll launch a spear into the sky." Saying this after so many years, Gunter couldn't help but feel silly. The words didn't make much sense, but it did relieve him and made him braver toward thunder.

Princess Kamui sat up and put a finger across her heart. "Cross my heart, make my fear fly, I'll launch a spear into the sky. Thunder go away, thunder go away."

Once she said the spell, she looked outside. To Gunter's surprise, it stopped raining outside. The clouds began to separate, revealing a full moon in the sky.

The young princess gasped with delight, "It worked, it worked!"

Gunter smiled and patted her head again. "You see? As long as you chant that spell, you needn't be afraid of thunder anymore. Do you feel better now?"

She smiled shyly bringing the blanket up to her chin again.

"Very well then," He slowly rose from the bed. "I shall return to my duties-." He stopped when he felt the young princess's hand grab his own.

Lady Kamui had a slight blush across her face. "Could you stay with me? I'm braver now, but I don't want to be alone."

"Lady Kamui," Gunter said.

"Please?"

The old knight scratched his head, unsure of what to do. The storm might've been over, but he supposed if it would make his charge at ease. Across the room he brought over a chair and placed it beside her bed. "If you insist, I'll be right here by your side."

She held out her hand and he took it and squeezed. She smiled before she closed her eyes and instantly fell asleep. Gunter couldn't help but smile at the display. At the same time, he could understand how the young princess would feel lonely. True, he and the other guards are stationed at the Northern Citadel to protect Lady Kamui as well as prevent her from leaving. But Lady Kamui is all by herself. She has no other children to play with except her siblings. Even then her siblings try to visit whenever they could with their mothers' approval. The concubines of King Garon were very competitive with one another and didn't even allow their children to interact very much. Another sad fact, that even Kamui would feel lonely without the comfort of a mother.

Gunter remembered the day King Garon returned after his ambush of King Sumeragi of Hoshido. In his arms was Lady Kamui, barely a year old and was forcibly adopted into the Nohr royal family. Growing up never knowing her true origins nor her real family. King Garon approached him and placed the infant princess in his arms.

"You are to guard this child at all costs," He ordered. "She will be useful when the time comes."

Gunter was always disgusted with his methods. It was the same cruelty he expressed when he annihilated his hometown and slain his wife and son. His son was around the same age as Lady Kamui, a youth cut down before he could even grow into a man. He swore vengeance for that horrid day. He earned the trust of the king and became one of his strongest knights. however he couldn't find an opportunity to strike. While he may not have found a chance to kill him, his hatred for him had been masked well.

He felt the princess squeeze his fingers again, lost in whatever dream she was having in her slumber. This innocent princess he helped raise since infancy, he vows to protect her from King Garon's poison no matter what the future brought.

"You will never be alone, Lady Kamui," he whispered to the sleeping princess.

The End

A/N: So what did you think? Like I said, this is not intended to be a pairing fic at all. I honestly see Gunter as more of a grandfather figure to Kamui and decided to write a story about it. I hope you guys liked the story.