any, any, Been carrying that torch for a long time...

Maribelle had been acting strange for days, and Lissa was worried.

It wasn't just that she was upset, it was that she was quiet. For as long as Lissa had known her, Maribelle spoke her mind. She made her feelings known even at the risk of rocking the boat, so to speak, and only apologized if she felt someone deserved it. A quiet Maribelle was something that simply did not happen.

It was the night of the grand harvest party, and everyone else was in a fantastic mood; the harvest was enough for Ylisse to celebrate, but Chrom's recent wedding to Sumia and the end of the Plegia war had everyone in enough good spirits to last at least a decade. Everywhere Lissa looked she saw people talking, dancing, drinking, eating, enjoying life. Stahl and Sully chatted, acting every inch their usual selves despite their recent engagement. Robin and Gaius only had eyes for each other, as well as a huge cake they were sharing. Vaike kept teasing Chrom while Sumia just laughed, Virion charmed many young ladies, Frederick even seemed to have loosened up for the evening.

Maribelle sat alone at a table, picking at her food, not looking at or talking to anyone. Glancing between Maribelle and all the happy couples, Lissa had a feeling if she guessed what this was all about she'd be right.

She'd tried to remain oblivous, but Maribelle's affections and words carried something that went beyond ordinary friendship. Her devotion, her constant worries, her obsession with protecting and pleasing Lissa above all else. She'd heard about friendships like this, about the hero whose strategist loved him above all else. The pegasus knight from another time who followed her dearest friend home to the plains without a single thought to her own homeland. The dancer who clung incessantly to a prince disguised as a bard, simply because he'd smiled at her while others sneered. It didn't take someone of Miriel's genius to realize what was going on.

The question was, how did she approach it? She couldn't very well go up to her friend and say hi, I know how you feel about me! Want to run away together? Poor Maribelle would be humiliated! But Maribelle wasn't likely to come to her at this point, so-

"Lissaaaa!"

Or maybe she was. Maribelle had apparently gotten over her melancholy in record time and was waving to her from her table. Lissa smiled, relieved to see her friend happy again, and waved back.

"Maribelle! Come here, I saved you a seat!"

"Nooo, silly, you come here! It's such a beautiful night and I don't wanna share you with anyone!" Her voice sounded different, Lissa noticed. And she kept waving her hand even as Lissa stood up and went to join her. "Good! Those boors've had you long enough! You're mine, remember?"

"Um...of course, Maribelle." There she goes again. Just how long had she felt this way? When did possessive friendship become undying love? Lissa sat down, nervously, setting her glass beside Maribelle's. "It is a lovely night, isn't it?"

"Not as lovely as you, my dearest treasure! Oh, how the moonlight shines upon your golden hair, the way the flowers complement your fair skin! Even that...that new girl looks like a troll compared to you!" Maribelle giggled.

"Um, thanks." Lissa smiled, still dumbfounded by her friend's strange behavior. One minute she was moping about, the next she was babbling like a brook. "You seem happy. I'm...glad. Lately, you've been so-"

"Did you know your eyebrows furrow when you're tired? I bet you never did, since who can see their own face," Maribelle blurted out. "But I can tell! I can see everything about you, every inch of your body...that perfect body, that lovely face...oh, Lissa, do you have any idea of how flawlessly perfect you are?"

"Listen, Maribelle, about that, I think we should talk-"

"Oh, darling Lissa, I simply can't keep it to myself anymore! I've danced around it for far too long and now you and the rest of Ylisse must know!" She stood up, placed a hand to her chest and cleared her throat. "Lissa of Ylisse...I love you! Only you! I could never feel for anyone else even one bit of what I feel for you!"

Maribelle kissed her then, only to collapse to the ground before Lissa could kiss her back.

Everyone else sat there, looking confused before going back to their activities. Lissa could swear she heard a few I knew it remarks among many others. But now wasn't the time to think about that, right now she had to take Maribelle home before she embarrassed herself further.

-x-

Maribelle slept, thankfully without incident, and Lissa remained at the foot of the bed until she woke up.

"Ohhh...oh, I feel just horrid! What in the world happened last night?" Then when she saw Lissa, she shrieked and tried to hide under the covers. "Oh, no!"

"Maribelle, I think we should-"

"Darling, I must explain myself. I...I was completely out of my head last night. Oh, to think I made such a complete fool of myself in front of all those people...in front of you! The things I said, the things I did I shouldn't have had that-"

Lissa placed a finger over her lips.

"You weren't drunk, Maribelle. That was currant juice in your glass."

"W...what?"

"I'm not sure what gave you the idea you were, but you were completely sober," Lissa said. "So I know you meant every word." Maribelle made a sour face and buried her head in her hands.

"Well, so much for that brilliant plan." She sighed. "How did you figure me out? If you knew I wasn't drunk, why were you acting like I was?"

"All I knew was you weren't being yourself. You're outspoken and dramatic, but not to such an insane degree. You were sounding more like Virion!" That got a small giggle out of Maribelle, before she grew serious again.

"So you were just trying to stop me from humiliating myself...oh, Lissa, this is why I meant every word I said! This is why I love you! You've always been there to take care of me, anyone else would have laughed or ignored me, but you...you were truly concerned."

"That's not true, Maribelle. Chrom, Sully, Stahl, Frederick...they would have taken care of you."

"Not like you, though." Maribelle sighed again. "The truth is, I did consider getting drunk in order to loosen my tongue, but one taste of of wine was more than I could bear! It's absolutely vile! So I pretended that currant juice was wine and hoped everyone would think I was out of my head instead of...well..."

Lissa wrapped her arms around her friend, running a hand through her curls.

"I don't understand, though. You've never had a problem telling me how you felt about anything," she said. "Why didn't you just come out and say you love me?"

"Because it's the kind of love men and women feel for each other! I know Ylisse isn't too strict about that sort of thing, but, well...you're of an important bloodline, and I'm the only child of my parents. And besides, I've seen you and Vaike together, and...well, he doesn't deserve you! He's rude, ignorant, much too rough and wild for someone as perfect as you!" The words tumbled from the other girl's mouth in a rush and Lissa tightened her arms.

"First of all, Chrom's the new Exalt and he's more than taken care of marrying and...well, hopefully giving us an heir soon," she said. "But more than that, none of that matters. Vaike's just my brother's rival, he likes to kid me, I don't even think he sees me as a girl so much as a little kid." She laughed.

"Well, that much is obvious," Maribelle snorted. "So you're not..."

"I want to be with you." Lissa rested her forehead against the other girl's. "Even if we can't officially get married the way a man and a woman can, you're the one I want. You're the one I've always felt closest to, and always will."

"Lissa...you truly mean it, don't you?" Maribelle's face brightened a tiny bit. "Even after last night?"

"Maribelle, it takes more than pretending to be drunk on currant juice and talking like Virion to offend me. No, you'd have to turn into a giant bug!" Maribelle laughed, more heartily this time, and returned Lissa's embrace.

"As usual, you've managed to make everything better! How can one person be as perfect as you?"

"I'm hardly perfect," Lissa said. "But I'm glad you feel better now." She grinned. "Of course, there is something I owe you."

And she pressed her lips to Maribelle's.