Please read Author's Note at the bottom!

Thank you!

Be Careful What You Say

Chapter 1: Green Fields and Story Books

Truly, it was one of those days to be thankful for. A warm golden sun was slowly rising against the blanket of sky that stretched across the heavens. Little white and fluffy clouds inched across the open space, giving the blue canvas splash of color. The air was warm, the breeze gentle, and both had a sweet scent of freshly blooming flowers that lingered in its presence. Each little movement of the wind sent ripples across the blossoming fields of green like the waves of an outstretched ocean. Across the ever growing and lush greenery of the landscape small speckles of color, wild flowers and other vibrant plants, appeared and vanished in the swaying grasses.

Between the rolling hills of the Ylisse countryside, in those fields of color and life, cut a small blue stream and a stitching of dirt paths that broke the green ocean like little brown bridges. The stream, nestled in between two hills, flowed slowly over the sand and small pebbles along its banks. Just besides that was a single dirt path. Mimicking the curve of the stream, the dusty brown road twisted parallel to the clear waters. Old tall trees flanked the sides of the river and path. Their leaves swayed up, down, left, and right in the soft push of the breeze. All of this beautiful and vibrant scenery from just outside the city of Ylisstol. The stone walls and buildings of the capital rose up over the hills in the near distance.

Yet underneath one of those strong and sturdy trees along the sandy bank slouched a man. He leaned up against the wooden trunk, setting his back against the smooth woody bark. Beneath the canopy of leaves and in the cool shade the man sat peacefully and at rest. He sat deathly still, unmoving, fixated upon something in his hands. On occasion the figure would shift. A hand would reach up and run through a mess of deep brown hair that covered the top of his head. But no sooner had it appeared, the hand would vanish again, returning to an object he held in his lap. Sitting in plain sight only a few meters away from the path, whomever the man was made no intention of greeting those that passed by unless they would greet him first. Whatever he was holding his hands had the man's utmost attention.

Rob, a shortened version of the name Robin, shifted where he sat in the shade of the tree. Making himself more comfortable he peeled his eyes away from the object in his hands, a thick tome full of writing. Brown eyes darted from the left to the right and back again before returning to the book he held in his lap. People were walking back and forth along the dirt path in front of him. None of them were of any particular interest to Rob. They weren't anyone he knew personally. He paid the passersby no mind. Then again, Robin knew actually very few people outside of the group of Shepherds he had traveled, worked, and fought alongside. Many of the others being only acquaintances or people whom he had helped, or had helped him. Events of months past, among other things, didn't exactly allow Rob to go out and meet much less get to know many people.

Quite frankly, not much else interested Rob besides his reading during these times. Peace was upon them. The war with the Plegians was over. And everything seemed to be on the mend for the foreseeable future. Chrom had taken Sumia as wife not long ago. The memories of that lavish and expansive celebration were still fresh in Robin's mind. His friends he had made in the Shepherds had remained in Ylisstol to help rebuild, a few would venture away for a number of days to their homes only to return again to continue their work. Ylisse was at peace now. There was a buzz of freedom in the air. Robin, of course, had no complaints in the reduced risk of impalement or decapitation. But in his mind, while it was all fine and dandy, this new peace was actually quite…boring…Chrom was busy with his new responsibilities, so thus Rob had to find his own ways to occupy his time.

Nonetheless, it was days like this that Robin did enjoy his time away from any responsibility, as well as anyone else. The young mage Ricken had let him borrow a random book this day for reading. A book of short stories often told to young children, fables, fairytales, and those sorts. Rob had just pulled it off the shelf without taking note of the title and content. Ricken and Gaius would often have a plentiful selection of books and tomes to pass to the tactician. This sort of reading was rather abnormal for Robin. He had no use for this kind of writing besides entertainment value. Yet having a tome in his hands with text to read allowed the man to take a load off his feet and cherish his time to himself. And finally being able to read a book of stories, instead of tactics or war, also wasn't too horrid of a change in the long run.

Robin gave the tip of his right index finger a swift swipe across his tongue. Using the dampness he flipped the page and began reading again. His eyes moved in a mechanical like fashion, passing over each word as he stored it in his brain and put them together to form sentences, to paragraphs, to pages, and chapters. A small smile inched across his face. The story he now read was quite entertaining. The story had taken a turn to where the main character had to turn to his friends for help to solve a problem, such action resulting in rather interesting and humorous situations quite far from what the protagonist had intended.

A faint noise of the rustle of branches and a scramble of feet on bark tore Robin from the pages. The sound had come from down the path, the direction leading back to Ylisstol. Turn his head, the sight which greeted him brought Rob into a silent, yet comical, laughter. Robin stayed quiet and watched the scene unfold…

Wrapped around the circular truck on the tree was a black and grey mass of clothing with a crown of red hair. Gaius, a rather odd fellow, had himself attached with all his might to that old tree. A look of determination was showing on his face that stared up into the tangle of branches and leaves above him. He stayed deathly still for the longest time. And while Robin couldn't see this from the distance from where he sat, Gaius' eyes were darting from branch to branch, looking for something with the twitching eyes of a suger-highed hawk, if there were such a thing. Arms and legs wrapped around the tree, the thief paused. He waited for the faintest motion.

Black and yellow bees zipped by Gaius' face and up into the green leaves. The thief took off. His hands and feet scrambled up the tree with astonishing skill. The man's fingers and feet slipped into the smallest of openings as the redhead propelled himself skyward. And no sooner than Robin had noticed him, Gaius vanished into green of the tree with only a few slowly falling leaves signifying where he had once been.

Robin didn't take Gaius for a botanist. So watching Gaius scramble up the tree seemed only a little off, if not more so. The tactician looked on, sort of dumbfounded at the sight of the thief vanishing into the lush green leaves. He was surprised he didn't notice Gaius sooner. Then again, Gaius was a thief; not being seen was sort of in the man's skillset. Robin still didn't know why Gaius would be out here in the first place. It was only after the redheaded man fell out of the tree did Rob get his answer.

Plummeting out of the tangle of branches and leaves, Gaius fell onto the grass in a cloud of dust and candy. The bags of "emergency snacks" the thief often held hidden on his person exploded outward when his body hit the ground. Colors blasted forth from Gaius' black cloak. It was like a rainbow of sugar and sweetness. Yet, Gaius held something tightly in his arms. Robin's question was finally answered. It was a honeybee hive. Finally, Robin broke out into laughter. The sight of Gaius getting to his feet and starting to sprint down the path toward Ylisstol was simply too much. The man held the hive above his head as he ran. Gaius really was a true thief, even when being chased by a swarm of rather angry buzzing bees.

"Oh, Gaius…" Robin sighed happily to himself, returning his eyes to his book with a slight shake of his head.

Still with that amused smile on his face, Rob's eyes continued down the page, continuing down the text where he left off. He almost couldn't concentrate. Thankfully Gaius had taken off back to the city instead of toward him. Robin didn't want to deal with a buzzing cloud of stingers. In addition the book had mentioned something about how odd the main character's friends were. This little bit of information made Robin think of his own companions. None of them were exactly a textbook definition of a normal person. Whether it was a thief with a severe sweet tooth or an axe wielding warrior who consistently referred to himself in the third person, the Shepherds Robin knew didn't exactly fit in anywhere else. But that was probably why Rob had taken to them so easily. When he himself wasn't normal, being stuck into a group of abnormal individuals was sort of made Rob feel normal anyway.

Robin didn't get much farther in his reading before something else caught his attention. The sound of footsteps stepping off the dirt path and into the grass came to Rob's ears. Each little step was almost silent; whomever this was light on their feet. Just above the top of the book the man could see two slender legs moving ever so slowly towards him, pausing for a few moments before moving forward again. This action repeated multiple times over. Robin was able to flip the page one final time before a soft voice brought his eyes upward.

"Uhm…E-Excuse me…Robin?" The voice peeped quietly.

Looking up from his book, Robin gazed toward a woman who was standing over him. The sun briefly blinded his eyes. As the light faded from his vision he began to pick out the details. Long and finely brushed light link hair, flowing clothes, light skin, and a face with a light red blush greeted Rob's eyes. Yes, Robin knew who this was.

"Oh hello, Olivia!" Robin said with a smile as he shut the story book and set it in the grass besides him on his right. This woman was the newest Shepherd Chrom had pulled into their company thus far. Olivia, a dancer, joined their ranks just before the end of the war between Ylisse and the Plegians. During those final days her dancing had inspired many men to go above and beyond what they thought they could, Robin included.

Olivia's slender hands latched together and she placed them on her chest, thumbs twiddling nervously. Her eyes glanced from side to side as her head slouched over. The dancer's cheeks turned a darker shade of red. "H-Hello, Robin." She muttered quietly. Olivia couldn't make eye contact with Rob, her eyes still going from side to side. "I'm sorry…I mean…Well, I hope I didn't disturb you just now."

Rob looked down to the book sitting in the grass besides him and smirked. He shook his head a little as he returned his eyes to the dancer. "Not at all, you're fine, Olivia."

"I know how much you like your reading…So I really hope I didn't…" Olivia seemed to have missed what Robin had said. She just kept on with her apology.

"Olivia!" Robin said, a little louder, trying not to laugh.

"Oh…Yes, Robin?" She replied quickly, her eyes finally meeting Robin's for the briefest of seconds. At last Rob had broken her apologetic trance.

The smirk on Robin's face widened. He gave her a little nod of reassurance. "Ha-Ha, you're fine. Don't worry about it. No harm has been done, Olivia." To Robin, and probably everyone else, Olivia had a rather severe self-confidence and shyness issue. He found it rather odd that Olivia could be such a talented dancer, yet be as shy and sociable as a field mouse. The girl's face would turn red as a summer strawberry the moment she stopped dancing, racing to get out of everyone's sight as soon as she could. And whenever she wasn't dancing, it was hard enough getting her to speak in coherent sentences without having the word "sorry" being ever other word. One detail about her contradicted the other. Although through the past weeks and months, Rob was able to get to know Olivia from what she said in their few short conversations.

"T-That's good, I guess. I didn't want to…" Olivia began again. She was going to start making excuses and apologizing once more.

This time around Robin was quick to avoid the roundabout apology. Instead he was the one who asked the next question and move their conversation forward. "What brings you all the way out here if I may ask?"

Olivia's head slouched down again. She raised her folded hands gave her thumbnails a soft and nervous bite. "Um…I was wondering…Everyone seems to be busy today…" The dancer was having a little trouble assembling the thoughts into a sentence. "…So, I was getting rather lonely and was thinking…" Her face was turning red again.

"…Thinking?" Robin said with a grin. It seems Olivia needed a little help being social today.

"Well…" Olivia began again with a sharp breath in. "…Since everyone seems to have plans today, I was wondering what you were up to?"

Robin gave the dancer a smile. "Reading…It's surprising I know." He pointed to the closed book besides him. "Are you sure everyone is busy? I swore I saw Gaius a few moments ago." Rob glanced down the path, still half-expecting Gaius to be struggling with the swarm of honey bees.

"That's what Maribelle said…Er…She said that I should come visit you." Olivia mumbled, pressing her two index fingers against one another. Her eyes started to look around sheepishly once again. "Maribelle said you don't do anything important and would be free for some company."

"Ah…Maribelle said that did she?" Rob uttered sort of sourly. Classic Maribelle, she would say something like that.

An alarm bell went off in Olivia's head. She immediately sensed the offended tone of Robin. Olivia shut her eyes and cringed. "I'm sorry!" She begged and started to ramble off words as quickly as she could. "Did something I say offend you? I'm sure everything you do is important. I'm sure you'd have plenty of other people to keep you company. Robin I didn't…Oh, this is embarrassing!"

"H-H-Hold on now!" Robin blurted quickly, holding his hands out in an attempt to calm the dancer down. "You did nothing wrong, just calm down a bit."

"You're not m-mad?"

Robin shook his head once again. "Of course I'm not mad…" He had to think swiftly before this conversation spiraled even more out of control. "…and I'd love company, Olivia."

"Y-You would?"

"Uh, yes, by all means I would…Reading a book like this is always better in the company someone else no matter what the subject."

The blushing dancer's face started to regain its normal color. "Uh…So…If you don't mind me asking what are you reading?" Olivia began to inch closer to Robin across the dense grass, finally coming into the cool shade under the tree.

Turning down to his book, he gripped it in his hand, picked it up, and held it out to the woman. "It's a book that Ricken let me borrow for the day. It's a book full of stories. It a little bit different from what I usually read, but it's a nice change."

Olivia grasped the tome in her hands. Something about the mention of stories and Ricken made her eyes light up with joy. "I love stories, especially the romance ones, they are my favorite!" Olivia said with glee, almost shouting.

"You do?" Robin chuckled in reply as he leaned back against the tree once more. He watched as Olivia flipped the book around in her hands. "I'm not sure there are any love stories in this book though. But I never took you for the reading type, Olivia."

"Oh yes-yes-yes I am, well at least the type that loves a good story that is!" Olivia replied again with a childish giggle. "Ricken and I read a story together once…But…It was a different book and he hasn't invited me to read with him since. I-I don't know why…But I think he enjoys reading by himself more than anything." She handed the book back to Robin.

The man set the book in his lap. "Oh, did you now?" He said with a smile and a raised eyebrow. "Do you like reading and sharing stories with others?" Robin stared directly up at Olivia, happy and content with the path of their conversation.

She was quick to notice his gaze. The dancer's face turned a light shade of red once more. "Er…Yes, I do actually…It's nice to share stories in the company of others. I like to do it when I can with friends…And well, when I don't run away scared that is."

Robin let out a small laugh and looked up and down the path on final time. He scooted up a little straighter against the tree he was up against. The look on Olivia's face made it clear that she had come all the way out here in the countryside to find him, so he could at least keep her company if that was all she wished. "Would you like to read this book together? We can start a new story together from the one I was reading. It wouldn't be nice of me to send you back alone and bored if everyone else is busy with something else."

That strawberry red blush appeared again. That is was she wanted in her head. Olivia couldn't possibly ask for Robin to do anything else, otherwise she would be tearing him away from his reading. The exact thing she didn't want to do. Olivia's timid voice gave her response. "Er…Uhm…Well, if it isn't too much trouble." Her eyes looked down toward the green grass just before her feet. "I mean, the company would be nice that is."

"You've come to the right place, Olivia!" Robin said cheerfully. He couldn't deny that he too could use the company and reading a book with someone else would for sure be a new experience. Grabbing the book with his free hand he lifted it up off his lap, using his free hand to flip the cover open to a new story. He looked up to her standing there with that shy blush on her face. "Well then, come take a seat!"

"T-Thank you, Robin!" Excited by the fact that she now had a friend to be with, Olivia took quick steps forward. Racing toward Robin she brought herself besides the tree where he sat. Twirling around on her heels she plopped herself down right beside him, knees resting of the softness of the bit of his dark colored cloak she managed to get under her legs. A bright smile took over her face. She closed her eyes in joy for a moment and leaned over his shoulder, one hand resting the ground while the other held her friends shoulder to steady herself. Opening her eyes again she took the hand off the ground and brushes some of the light pink hair that had fallen out of place away from her eyes.

Strangely, Robin had no reply.

"Let's start reading! This is going to be so much fun! I knew Maribelle was right when she sent me to you!" Olivia said with glee, her head coming over the shoulder on which she was attached to.

A silence fell over the pair. Robin didn't say anything or start to turn the page to the first one of text. Something was eating at him. Olivia couldn't put her finger on it.

"Er…Robin…C-Can we start reading?" Olivia asked, the nervousness slowly returning to her voice at Rob's hesitation. She gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze.

Robin didn't reply right away. His body stayed still and stiff for the longest time before his head turned to look at her straight in the face.

"U-Uhm…" Olivia muttered. She then noticed her proximity to the man. Her face was just inches away from his. That berry red blush came and painted her face that color again. She bit her bottom lip. Her mind began to unwind like a tight string. This wasn't going to end well.

"Olivia…" Rob began, raising a confused eyebrow. "…Could you perhaps…You know…Back up a little. Not that I mind or anything, but you're sort of close."

His words were like a violent explosion rocked Olivia's thought process. Immediately she bounced away from her friend and onto her feet. Her entire face turning the shade of red and her hands reached around her chest in embarrassment to hold herself. "Oh dear, Oh dear, Oh dear!" She repeated, closing her eyes and shaking her head crazily from side to side.

Robin confused now more than anything could only sit there and look confused. He had no immediate response.

"I'm so-so-so sorry." She bellowed loud enough for everyone walking along the path to hear.

Still nothing from Robin, he stared at her with extremely confused eyes. He only had asked her to back up a little, surely that wasn't a horrid enough of a request to cause something like this episode that was occurring right in front of his eyes.

Olivia peeled open one eye and noticed his stare. It was like her entire emotional state had changed. The little mental castle she had erected around herself had come crashing in on itself. When she noticed his blank stare she yelled again. "Stop Staring!" Swiftly turning around on her heels, she started to race down the dirt path back to Ylisstol. Her mouth started to mumble a barrage of words that trailed off into rambles about how she had messed something up the farther she got away from Robin.

And for Robin…He was left sitting on the ground still against that same woody tree, mouth hanging open, with an utterly confused look plastered onto his face.

Author's Note:

Well, thanks for reading this far everyone. I really hope you enjoyed the first chapter to what might be the happiest 'feel good' story I've ever written.

This story, I guess, is my attempt at getting back to really what got me into writing in the first place. It's an ode to how I began writing things that made people smile and feel good about what they had just read. I want people to read this and smile, laugh, and perhaps get that little warm and fuzzy feeling in their heart. While that might not be everyone's cup of tea, I do hope all the readers will understand the point of this story.

Anyway, I'll just state here and now that I'm not any Fire Emblem expert as with anything I ever write. I'll never claim to be. Hopefully you won't expect me to throw out a crazy amount of terms and other shenanigans right off the bat. But I will try my hardest to keep this story true.

Finally, I would like to take a moment here to give thanks to a close writer friend of mine. Kikifoo, a writer here on , has really helped me make this story a reality through editing and expanding my ideas. (Not to mention keeping me sane these past number of months/years). She's always been there to help me out whether it be going through a chapter, throwing ideas back and forth at one another, or just talking as friends…So if you would, take a moment and look her up. Her story "The Bee Hunters" is amazing and honestly one of the best stories I've ever read. Give that a read, and leave a review for her, even if you don't do the same here.

So now that all that is out of the way…

Please drop a review and tell me what you think of the story. It would really mean a lot to me to hear what you're thinking of the story. Reviews are really what keeps me attached to a story and they are what push me to write more and better than I did before.

I'm always open for PMs as well. I always welcome the chance to meet new people.

Thank you for reading,

MrWatch

P.S – PM if you find any error, I'll be sure to fix them ASAP.