A Secret Romance

Chrom sighed as he made his way towards Kain's quarters. His tactician had a room in a largely unused area of the castle, close to the library. It had been only three months since Gangrel's defeat, but everything in the castle and among the Shepherds had returned to what was as close to normal as they could. However, Chrom noticed that one member in particular was having trouble adjusting to Ylisse's newfound peace.

After Emmeryn's sacrifice, Kain had taken to holing himself up in his room, rarely leaving to eat and was often not seen for days on end. His quality of work remained high and it was always done quickly, but he never seemed to interact with the Shepherds the same way anymore. Chrom knew he blamed himself for the Exalt's death, but he was on a path to self-destruction if he didn't start taking care of himself. Chrom was going to make his friend come out and interact with the others, by force if necessary.

He came to the door that led to Kain's room and knocked several times. After several moments of silence, Chrom knocked again, with the same result. Sighing, Chrom called into the room.

"Kain, open the door. I need to talk to you."

Several more minutes of silence followed. Growing concerned, Chrom took hold of the doorknob and twisted it, allowing him entrance to the Grandmaster's room.

Chrom was surprised by what he saw. Usually, Kain had books all over the floor and piled haphazardly on his desk. He refused to let the castle maids to touch anything, telling them that everything had its proper place and that he had his own sorting system.

However, this time the room looked very different. The books were picked up and placed neatly on the shelves, organized alphabetically by content. The rug in the center of the room was neatly laid on the floor instead of half curled up. The bed was neatly made and the nightstand only had one unlit full candle upon it, unlike usual when it was covered in a fine layer of candle wax and an assortment of stubs from previous candles.

Another thing that was odd about the room was a distinct lack of a Grandmaster in it. Kain was nowhere to be seen. Confused, Chrom walked the short distance to the library. It was fairly large, but had only a single entrance. He approached the guard and asked if Kain had come in today. The guard shook his head, saying that the Grandmaster hadn't been in for several days now. Chrom was growing more and more concerned as the mystery continued to grow.

Heavy footsteps approached him from behind. Turning, he found Frederick behind him. "Milord, what seems to be the problem?"

Chrom's expression displayed only confusion. "It's Kain. I can't find him anywhere."

Frederick immediately straightened, his expression displaying concern. "Really, milord?"

Chrom knew Frederick well enough to hear the suspicion that crept into the great knight's voice. "Frederick, we may not know what Kain's doing, but he has earned our trust."

Frederick was still for a moment before nodding slowly. "Of course, Milord."

Chrom sighed. "Ok then, where would Kain be at this hour?"

Frederick thought for a moment. "We could try the barracks. He might be training."

Chrom nodded. "Ok then. Let's go."

The pair walked through the halls until they reached the Shepherds barracks, specifically the mess hall. After asking the Shepherds they found, they learned that none of them knew where Kain was either.

Chrom looked at each of them, looking very confused. "How can no one know where he is?"

No one answered. Chrom shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright, then. If anyone sees Kain, tell him I'm looking for him please." With that said, Chrom and Frederick left the hall.

"Milord, it would be beneficial if we split up to search of the tactician. I will gather a few men and continue searching." With that, Frederick was gone, running down another corridor.

Chrom was now completely concerned for his friend. He was at the point that he did one thing he hoped he would never have to do. Stopping in front of one of the room, he knocked on the door. After several moments of silence, the door opened eerily.

Inside all Chrom could see was blackness, except for the eyes glaring at him through dark bangs.

"Yes?" Tharja hissed.

Chrom swallowed. "Hello Tharja. I-I was hoping you could help me find Kain. I can't seem to find him."

Tharja narrowed her eyes further. "What are you talking about? He's in his room."

Chrom shook his head. "No he isn't, I was just there and he wasn't in."

Tharja's glare was so strong at this point Chrom was sure he would have burst into flame at any moment. The sorceress exited her room and began walking towards the room that belonged to the tactician, Chrom following.

The unlikely pair arrived at Kain's room and found the door still open from when Chrom left and still, the Grandmaster was nowhere to be found.

Tharja looked confused. "My tracking hex says he is right here. Why isn't he here?!"

Chrom looked at the sorceress. "Let's just keep looking. We can worry about that later."

In town

Kain was enjoying himself at an inn not far from the castle. He hadn't spent much time with the Shepherds since the war ended, except one. And she had just walked through the door.

"H-Hello, Kain." Said Olivia as she took a seat next to him.

Kain smiled. "Hi, Olivia." He was trying not to be tongue-tied by the woman sitting beside him. She wasn't wearing her usual dancer's cloths, instead she had on a simple blue dress. It wasn't extravagant, but Kain still thought she was beautiful.

They stayed in their seats, having a few drinks and making conversation for quite a while. Eventually, Olivia was able to talk without stuttering, having grown comfortable around the Grandmaster. Eventually, however, Kain noticed he was receiving a few hostile glances from nearby men. He wasn't sure at first, but after a few more minutes of conversing with Olivia, he saw the way they glared at him, but wasn't completely sure why until he saw the way one of them was looking at Olivia with a lustful expression.

Olivia had noticed as well, her face turning a dark red and her stutter returning. "C-Can we please go s-somewhere else?"

Kain smiled at her. "Sure. We can go wherever you want." He placed a few coins on the counter to prove his point.

Olivia looked relieved. "Thank you, Kain."

The pair stood up and left the inn. By this point it was beginning to get dark. Kain turned to Olivia and spoke. "We better get back to the garrison soon."

Olivia nodded. "Yeah, we should." She was quiet for a few moments before speaking again. "Kain?"

The grandmaster turned to look at her. "Yes, Olivia?"

The dancer looked the grandmaster in the eye, a rare occurrence and a very welcome one. "Thank you."

Kain was confused. "For what?"

Olivia's gaze turned to the ground. "For never pushing me to do things. Usually my friends are always trying get me to be braver and less shy. But you never do. So, thank you."

Kain smiled. "Olivia, I will never push you to do anything you don't want to. You're perfect the way you are."

Olivia's blush was so hot that she was sure her hair would catch fire as they entered the castle grounds through the garden gate. She turned to Kain one last time before she had to head back to her room. "Um, K-Kain? C-Could we still k-keep this between us?" Her voice was cracking, but her eyes were hopeful.

Kain smiled. "Its fine, Olivia. I won't tell anyone if you ask me not too."

Olivia let out a sigh of relief. "Ok then. See you tomorrow."

Olivia turned and when on her way towards the barracks and her room.

Kain began to make his way towards his room. As he was about to enter his room, however, he was stopped by Chrom.

"There you are Kain! I've been looking for you everywhere." The great lord stated.

Kain looked back at the door. "Sorry, Chrom. What did you need?"

Chrom crossed his arms in front of him as Frederick approached the pair. "Where have you been?"

Kain was silent for moment before he looked his friend in the eye. "I went to town. I had some things I needed to."

Chrom's expression softened. "Ok, then. Next time you leave, please at least let me know."

Kain smiled at his friend. "Ok. I will." With that, the Grandmaster entered his room shutting the door behind him.

Once the door was closed and Kain heard Chrom and Frederick's footsteps fade away, he let out a deep breath and walked over to his bed. He smiled when he remembered that he had disabled Tharja's tracking hex with some of his own magic. He knew the dark mage had an obsession with him and had tried to let her know he wasn't interested in her, but after he learned about the tracking hex, he had spent a good deal of time learning how to confuse it and make it reveal incorrect information. He smirked and took off his cloak.

By this time it was very dark outside. Kain decided it was time for bed.

A/N: So after I finished Betrayal, I wanted to do something slightly less serious, so I came up with this.