Fire Emblem Awakening - He Searches for une Identité, She Searches for la Liberté, I Search for Toi

Chapter 1

"Land ho!"

A large, wooden ship battled the waves to approach a harbor. It carried several passengers and cargo. Most of the passengers were refugees, trying to escape the harsh wars that plagued their home lands. The lookout's announcement of land caught many passengers' attention.

One such passenger looked up from a book she was reading. "This is it," she said to herself, marking a page in her book and closing it. She stood up and started gathering her things. Only a few minutes later, the woman emerged from her room, wearing armor, a satchel, and a wrapped-up battle axe. She walked to the deck and found the chief mate. "Excuse me, sir," she said.

"Oye, it's the pink-haired lady. What can I do fer ya?" the man said.

The woman didn't care to be called by her hair, but she let it pass. "I will be disembarking now, just so you know."

"What's that?" the man asked. "We're still some time from docking, lady."

"Don't worry, I have a ride. My partner is in your stables. I've made arrangements with the captain to depart early."

"Partner?" Realization dawned on the man. "Ohhh. You're the wyvern lady. Lady Cherche, was it?"

"Yes, pleased to meet you," Cherche said.

"Oh, okay, then. Yes, I hope you be pardoning me, but we will be much relieved when your partner leaves."

"My! You just need to get to know her better!"

"I can't leave the deck right now, but I'll have someone walk you to the fore deck where your wyvern's being housed. You can then take your wyvern and depart immediately." The man called for another sailor, who saw Cherche and smiled. The sailor was very polite and friendly to Cherche as he walked to the ship's stables. Before they entered the animal stables, they were greeted by a loud and threatening snarl.

"Hush, Minervykins," Cherche said. "He's really not that tasty."

"Excuse me?" the sailor asked.

"It's nothing important. I'll be taking Minerva here." Cherche walked up to a wyvern, which was kept separate from the other animals. "We're almost there, Minervykins," she said, patting the wyvern's lowered head. "Did you finish your lunch?" The wyvern snarled again. "Oh, the animals weren't being friendly? Well, at least you got stretch space. The crew has been very accommodating, haven't they?"

"You… You're speaking to the wyvern?" the sailor asked.

"You should try, sometime," Cherche replied, as she climbed up onto the wyvern. "Thank you for your help. We'll be leaving now." Without waiting for confirmation from the sailor, Cherche gently tugged at the reins. The wyvern roared and expanded her wings. The wings were raised up. Then, the wyvern jumped into the air and swung her wings down, pushing off from the deck and staying in the air. "Let's go, Minerva!" Cherche shouted. The wyvern ascended into the air and then swooped down, towards the far-off land.

Cherche saw a busy harbor in the distance. "We're supposed to meet just outside the harbor town, on the main road," she said to Minerva. "Once we get there, let's get you some water and better food. I know you're sick of seafood." Cherche patted the top of Minerva's neck. Minerva shrieked a response.

After some time of flying, Cherche could see people moving around in the harbor. She directed Minerva to avoid entering the harbor town and circled around the perimeter of the town. She saw a road connected to the town's entrance. Minerva dove towards the ground, then extended her wings to decelerate. Her clawed feet reached the ground, followed by her winged arms.

"Smooth landing, girl," Cherche said, patting Minerva again. One boot came down onto the dirt road, and then another, as Cherche disembarked from Minerva. "So this is Regna Ferox," she said aloud, swinging her primrose pink hair to the side as she looked around. "Seems warmer than I had heard."

Less than a minute later, five bow knights came galloping up to Cherche and Minerva. "Lady warrior!" one of the warriors called out. He disembarked from his horse and approached the woman. His sword remained sheathed, though his hand was on the hilt. "If you'd disarm yourself and state your name and business here!"

"Oh, my," Cherche said, seeing the arrows in hand and ready to be aimed. "Well, since you asked so politely…" Minerva eyed the soldier and snarled. "There, there, Minerva," Cherche said. She patted the angry wyvern to calm her down. "They're just doing their job. Relax." She allowed her large steel battle axe to fall to the ground as she turned back to the soldier. "My name is Cherche. I am a representative of House Virion of Rosanne, in the continent of Valm. I am here to bring tidings to the khans." She reached into a satchel and revealed a paper with a wax seal on it.

The soldier looked at the wax seal carefully. "Hmm," he hummed. "It does look authentic. Very well, we'll need to check in with the region captain."

"Cherche!" a distant voice called out. Cherche, Minerva, and the Feroxian bow knights turned to see a silvery-blue haired man riding a horse towards them. He was followed by two other horse riders. "Cherche!" the man said again, when he got closer. He jumped off the horse and walked towards the group.

"Gentlemen, may I present my liege, the Duke Virion of Rosanne," Cherche said, bowing and gesturing with her hands to Virion.

"Oh, ceremony can wait, my dear," Virion replied, waving his arm to dismiss Cherche. A smile on Virion's face indicated that despite what he said, he still enjoyed the attention. "Cherche, it is such a wondrous occasion to see your lovely self. The years have treated you well. Why, you don't look a day older than twent-oof!"

Virion's words were interrupted by Cherche's fist in Virion's gut. The Feroxian soldiers all cautiously took a step back. "Milord still has his witty tongue, I see," Cherche said.

"You've got a strange relationship with your lord," the soldier observed.

"Ah, yes, for you see, our relationship transcends words," Virion said. "But anyway, to business. The royal Khan Flavia is expecting my report." Virion showed the soldier a document with Flavia's seal on it. "We'll be heading out as soon as possible. These gentlemen I came with will accompany us."

"The weird-talker speaks the truth," one of the new arrivals said. "We came straight from Castle Ferox. We'll take him back, with his companion." He handed the lead bow knight a paper.

"Very well," the soldier said as he finished reading the paper. He handed it back. "Safe trip to you all." He climbed back onto his horse. "Let's head back," he told the other bow knights. The five bow knights all galloped away, leaving Cherche, Virion, and the two Feroxian cavaliers.

"We're some days away from Castle Ferox, so we'll head to a fortress first," one of the cavaliers said.

"They have excellent accommodations, might I say," Virion said. "Compliments to your hospitality, good sir."

"Yeah, thanks, whatever," the Feroxian replied as he turned his horse around. "Let's go."

"We'll try to stay with you, but Minerva and I will fly ahead," Cherche said.

"Minerva?" The Feroxian asked.

"Her mount," Virion explained.

"My partner," Cherche corrected. "We've been traveling together for many years. But anyway, I'd like to fly ahead and find some food for Minerva first. We can travel much faster by air than by horse, anyway, so we'll let you catch up while Minervykins here eats. Would that be okay?"

"Hmm," Virion said, rubbing his chin as he pondered. "I wanted to talk of our homeland. I've received your letters and reports, but words on some paper cannot encompass the years apart from my home." Virion gazed past the walls of the harbor city, past the vast seas, to a land where trees were decorated with blossoms the same color as Cherche's hair. For a moment, Virion was back in Rosanne. He could feel the breeze through the trees, and the sun on his face.

Cherche looked at Virion and sighed. "The latest details of Rosanne may not be very pleasant," Cherche warned. Her words were accompanied by a frigid Feroxian breeze, waking Virion from his wandering thoughts.

"I know," Virion said. "But still, I must know."

Minerva screeched. Cherche looked at Minerva, then back at Virion. "Yes, I know you must miss Rosanne greatly. How about… in one hour? Minerva and I should be able to find food by then."

"Very well, my dear. And… uh… dear Minerva." Virion turned to address the wyvern. "Thank you for taking care of Cherche, as always."

Minerva screeched again.

"Oh, sorry, Minervykins. Yes, we'll be getting some food now. Come on!"

Virion was trotting along on his horse, behind the two Feroxian cavaliers. Virion patted the horse's head, causing it to shake and exhale in appreciation. "You're a good mount," Virion said. "I might have to try some mounted archery with you. Though I hope against hope that that will never be necessary."

One of the cavaliers came up next to him. "So, I hear you are a great warrior," he said.

"Oh, how the bards enjoy reciting my adventures. But I fear the stories of me may be exaggerated. I am just your humble gentleman, archer extraordinaire, and fashion trendsetter."

"I don't know about that fashion part," the cavalier said.

"Or the humble part," the other added.

"But makes sense, I suppose, about the bards. Sorry, man, but you don't look like a strong warrior."

"Ah, now that, I might have to take objection to. For you see, not all battles are fought with brawn. And strength can come in many forms. Perhaps when we take a break, you can try your hand on pulling this bowstring. It is not for the faint of arm."

"Aye, I suppose you're right. I never got into archery much." The cavalier touched the javelin stored at the side of his horse. "I prefer a good javelin for distance, or sword for getting up close."

"The good lady Cherche usually handles business up close," Virion said. "I try not to bloody my clothes when possible."

"She did seem like a formidable warrior. Do you think she's caught some food by now?"

"Shh, wait," Virion said, putting his hand up to stop them. "Listen."

There was some rustling nearby. Finally, one of the cavaliers spotted movement in the bushes. "It's a deer."

"Oye, we could catch that. Spare us some coins from buying food at an inn," the other cavalier said.

"Let's go!" the cavalier said. Virion extended his arm to stop them.

"A moment," Virion said, taking his bow and one arrow from his back. He nocked an arrow and watched the deer. The deer had frozen in place, cautiously eyeing the three humans on horseback. Suddenly, it jumped and started to run. As soon as it moved, Virion drew the bowstring back and loosed an arrow. The deer hopped in midair to jump over a fallen log, when the arrow hit it in the head. The deer landed on the ground and twitched.

One of the cavaliers whistled in admiration. "Don't underestimate an archer," he said.

"Aye, good shot. I'm not a fan of archery, but I don't deny its effectiveness."

As the three of them approached the deer, the wind picked up. The sound of wings flapping made them look up and see a wyvern descending slowly. Minerva hovered by the road and dropped something from her mouth.

"Oh, you guys found dinner," Cherche said, looking at the dead deer. "Don't worry, Minervykins, I'm sure they'll still appreciate your gift."

"Ooh, is that a boar?" one of the cavaliers asked, approaching Minerva's gift. He glanced at Minerva's salivating mouth and stopped. "Er, thank you, lady. And wyvern."

"Yes, we wouldn't want to waste this deer," Virion said. "Minerva, did you eat?"

"She had some tasty deer for herself, didn't you," Cherche said, patting Minerva, who shrieked again. "But if you are stopping to prepare the food, I will join you."

They had prepared a fire and roasted parts of the deer and hog. Cherche was resting her back on Minerva's side, who had curled up a few meters away from the fire. Minerva's head popped up and she glared at Virion, who approached cautiously. "There, there, Minervykins," Cherche said, patting the wyvern behind her. Minerva snarled, then rested her head on the ground again. Cherche gestured in front of her for Virion to sit down. "So, how have things been here? You seem well."

"I have met some excellent company. Why, this continent seems to be filled with lovely and affectionate lasses."

"Milord," Cherche said.

"Sorry, sorry. I forget that there were no less lovely and affectionate lasses back in Rosanne."

"Milord!" Cherche exclaimed.

"Sorry, sorry! But yes, as I was saying, I think I have found some excellent allies here. Within the year, we may be able to start a campaign of liberation. That is… depending on how things are in Valm."

Cherche took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "The Conqueror is assembling an invasion force. He aims to expand to this continent."

"Already? Has he resolved all conflicts in Valm?"

"All the opposing armies have been reduced to scattered rebels. I'm afraid Chon'sin has turned."

"What?" Virion's eloquent vocabulary escaped him for a moment. He looked down at the ground and rubbed his chin for a moment. "An invasion force. Already."

"Their fleet was being prepared to launch when I left. They could disembark any day now. And then they are only a few days away."

Virion stood up. "Then we haven't time to waste. We need to get word to Khan Flavia as soon as possible." Virion looked at Minerva for a moment. "Ugh… I suppose... I suppose, if Minerva permits it, you can fly me to Regna Ferox."

"Oh, excellent!" Cherche said. "You've always been so shy and distant with Minerva. Of course she'd give you a ride. She finds your odor very appetizing."

"Eugh…" Virion sighed. "Odor and appetizing are two words I don't much care for in this context." He looked back at the fire. "Let me explain to our companions, and we will be off."

Cherche stood up and started stroking Minerva's skin. "Looks like we can't rest yet, Minervykins," she said. She gazed into the distance as she waited for Virion. "I hope these new allies are what we've been searching for."

A/N

Thank you for reading! Please let me know how interested people are with this particular story path. I love Robin x Cherche (though I love many other Robin pairings, too). I love reviews, so read, review, follow, favorite, PM!

I was planning on this fanfiction for a while. In fact, my previous new story, New Beginnings, was supposed to be a prologue for this. But then I started getting into the other characters in that story, and I realized that the setting before the game started has a lot of potential interesting stories to cover.

My focus will be on finishing "Searching for an Olive Branch." And I still have stuff and definitely will be continuing "To Love a Memory." That was actually my first story, but it feels a lot more serious and dramatic than "Searching for an Olive Branch," so I want to make sure each chapter is perfect before submitting it. So, when my brain wants a break from Olivia's story, but it's not ready to tackle the drama of Emmeryn's story, I have this third outlet to cover. And then there's New Beginnings, which I admit will be my lowest priority.