10Chapter 2
A lone figure made his way through the busy Ylissean marketplace, passing vendors yelling about fantastic prices, fortunetellers beckoning customers with gnarled fingers, and street entertainers juggling… well, anything flammable. His armor clanked behind him in storage as he bobbed and weaved through the oblivious crowd, breastplate digging into his back through its cloth sack. A light tug adjusted it to a better position.
Towering above the masses, the brunet swept his eyes around, looking for a messy red ponytail. He huffed a little (just as much as he would let himself) when he couldn't find his target. If only she wouldn't move her stall around so much…
He continued onwards, but stopped a few steps later when a small child approached him, arms held up in a begging motion. He took a moment to look at the tangled hair framing her dirty face, and reached behind himself to grab some gold from his pouch. Yet instead of reaching for some gold, he gently grabbed the arm of a boy approaching from behind, one hand reaching for the man's pouch. He tutted at the duo's horrified faces, lightly wagging a finger at them, before a piece of gold fell into each of their hands. The two's awed faces were mostly missed as the man moved forwards.
Arriving at another empty stand with a sign posted in its middle (Property of ANNA. Talk to me about rent!), he hummed. He couldn't really blame her for not being at this space, under an overhang and out of the way of the crowds, on such a sunny day. So if this spot wasn't taken, that left…
His head tilted as he sighed. He'd been hoping to avoid going there…
Turning slowly to ensure he knocked nothing over with his bag, he left the alleyway and reentered the flow of the civilians, all rushing downstream. The tall man let the current take him to an all-too-familiar area outside the castle front: the barracks.
The barracks were tucked away in a corner of the castle where it lay between the Commoners' area and the Royals' quarters on the other side of the wall, so it wasn't too imposing for anyone wishing to meet with a Shepherd. Those were the conditions the current Exalt Chrom had laid out when the Shepherds' quarters were built several years ago, and it was something many respected him for (with a few notable, noble exceptions).
But often ignored by Ylisse's resident special operations unit was the square patch of land just next to the door, manned by an enthusiastic redhead. Maybe "ignored" was the wrong word; everyone always waved or said hello to the shop owner as they passed by or entered the barracks. However, few actually thought of it as a stand for buying things, let alone a place where they could get the best prices the bold merchant would allow.
One exception was the small boy currently at the stand. His face was screwed up in concentration as he looked between the sale percentage pasted on the wall and the price written down for him, his large hat wobbling with each movement. He eventually nodded, slowly, and laid out exact change on the table, entering the barracks with a proud smile covering his face and a thick, dusty book in his hands. Though, judging by the counter-girl's wicked smirk after his departure, he'd been quite successfully conned.
The brunet had approached the booth from the side during this exchange, edging far around the boy until he was nearly side-by-side with the merchant girl when the boy completed his purchase. "What did Ricken do to you?" he asked in a soft tenor.
As usual, Anna started. But unlike most others, she took it in stride, turning to him with a big smile. "Oh, nothing much. But a fool and his money are soon parted, y' know?"
He raised an eyebrow, and she shrugged, completely unrepentant. "Hey, it's hardly my fault no one can count higher than 200 gold around here." She refocused and cheerfully appraised him. "But, whatever. What can I do for-"
Her gaze finally landed on the cloth sack of armor behind his back, and her red eyes widened. "Hold it… Kellam, are you…? You're going to look for her?"
Kellam tilted his head up, still slightly smiling.
Anna stared at him another few seconds, then opened up her counter with a clack to let him through. "Alright. Then you'd better come to the back."
He entered and stood behind Anna while she put up a 'Be back soon!' sign, then followed her through the shop. A few moments later, she stopped next to a chest hidden away in a back corner. "I can't believe you're actually doing this," she muttered, kneeling and fumbling with her keys. "I still kinda thought you were joking, even after you asked me to go through the prep work."
"I wouldn't joke about something like this."
She threw him a vaguely exasperated look. "Honestly? I still dunno what you'd joke about. You were the last person I'd expect to talk about Gangrel's underwear and a brothel, but there you were, at a banquet dinner no less…"
He chuckled at the memory. "I think you were the only one who heard it, though."
"Thank Naga for that. I doubt the others would've survived their surprise."
Kellam laughed again as Anna finally opened the chest with a click. She rummaged through the large bin, rustling and clanking coming from within, before she let out a cry of victory and popped back up.
"Got it!" she cried, waving an old, rolled up parchment above her head. She moved to the table and unrolled the parchment, revealing it as…
"A map?" Kellam looked at the merchant with raised eyebrows. "You actually did it?"
"Well, I didn't do it. This is a really old map. Like, really old. Before Old Hubba old."
"Impossible."
Anna grinned. "Probably. But point is, this thing is ancient. I'm almost doing you a disservice giving you a map this old. The Outlands are always changing, so this thing is gonna be next to useless." She furrowed her brows. "…I'm actually kinda wondering if you should take it at all…"
"As long as the topography's the same, it'll be very useful."
"Yeah, forests will still have trees and whatnot. But you'll need an updated map for the gates."
Kellam cocked his head. "I thought it was impossible to be totally updated. Aren't new universes born all the time?"
Anna grimaced. "Yeah. And new gates pop up as entryways for those universes, sometimes depending on what happens in other universes. But that's why you really need a more recent map." The merchant fully turned to the lancer. "…I hate to say it, but the chances of finding Robin in the Outlands are next to zero. The few rumors I've heard from my sisters all say that those Robins showed up inside one of the gates."
"But it's been two years since Grima's fall."
The redhead shook her head. "Nobody knows when the Robins reappear. Sure, maybe she appeared a while ago and is out looking for us now. But it's just as likely that she hasn't even…"
She looked down, not completing her sentence.
"It's alright." A hand fell on her shoulder, and she flicked her eyes up. "That's a chance I'm willing to take."
"…Yeah. I know."
They stayed like that for a few moments, before Anna shrugged the hand off and reattached the smile to her face. "Well, map issues aside, you're gonna need something aside from armor to protect yourself."
Kellam hummed in agreement. The redhead shuffled through the back of the shop, muttering inanities, while the man carefully rolled the map up and put it in the side of his armor sack. As he retied it shut, Anna returned with a pale white lance.
Kellam's eyes widened. "Anna, isn't this…?"
The girl handed the weapon over. "Yup, it's a luna. One of the few we've got left."
The brunet gazed at it with raised eyebrows, examining its wide tip and extended blade on one edge, clearly meant to rake through armor. "Anna-"
"If you say you 'can't accept it,'" she warned, emphasizing with air quotes, "Or some other bullcrap, I'll throw you out right now."
The brunet exhaled, lips curved upwards. "Then I suppose I can't say no, can I?"
"Nope. You're one of my best friends, and you're not going to the freakin' Outlands with anything less than the best."
"How much do I owe you, then?"
"Nothing for now. Hey, knock it off, I'm feeling fine!" the merchant protested when Kellam tried to check her temperature.
"You can hardly blame me. That was not something I'd expect you to say."
"I said nothing for now!" she huffed. "You'll be paying me all right, with interest, too." Anna looked up into Kellam's eyes, an unusually serious expression on her face. "You're gonna pay me everything the day you come back home with Robin."
The brunet blinked, then nodded with a smile. "I will."
"…I know."
Kellam took a breath, about to say something, but Anna couldn't help herself. "Are you leaving now? Like, now now?"
"That's the plan." He cocked his head. "Why?"
"Well… uh, what about your kid? He or she never showed up, so what happens if he does?"
"I'll trust you to handle him. Or her."
"Then, what about…"
Anna fumbled for a proper response. But after a few seconds, she sighed and slumped, leaning on a post supporting her tent. "…You've gotta go now, huh?"
Kellam looked to the side and slowly ran a hand through his hair. "…It's been long enough. I told her I'd look after two years, and the second anniversary of Grima's defeat was three weeks ago now."
Red eyes cut to brown ones. "If I recall correctly," Anna said drily, "she forbade you from doing that."
"You're the one helping me," Kellam countered, "And I forbade her from killing herself. So, I'd say we're even."
The redhead stared at him for a moment, wide-eyed, then shook her head and chuckled. "Jeez… 'I'd say we're even?' That was such a Robin thing to say."
Kellam smiled, wistfully. "…Yeah."
The merchant studied him for a moment, then leaned away from the support, standing up straight. "Are you at least gonna say 'bye' to the others?"
"Why?"
Anna winced. "…Maybe Chrom would send some people to help you?"
The lancer just shook his head. "No, he wouldn't. It's quite clear what he thinks of her fate."
"They all know she could come back. They want her to come back."
"They want their tactician to come back." Kellam's eyes narrowed as he let some Robin-esque coldness freeze his words. "That was what he said. At her memorial service."
"…I don't think that's what he meant, Kellam," Anna replied quietly.
"Perhaps. But can you deny how they acted when she was here?"
The merchant bit her lip and looked away.
Kellam just sighed in response. "I know you're close to them, Anna… but Robin never was. And neither was I."
"…They'll miss you once you're gone, y' know."
"Once they realize I'm gone."
A noise came from the back of Anna's throat, half laugh and half choke, as her eyes glued themselves to the ground.
"Hey." A large pair of arms wrapped around her, and she looked up in surprise. "It'll be alright. Just hold on until we come back."
After a breath, much smaller arms wrapped around Kellam, barely making it all the way across the man's frame. "Ok," she whispered, pulling away slowly. "But you'd better come back soon, okay?"
"I will."
"And tell the other Annas how you're doing so they can let me know."
"Will do."
"And get a backpack from one of the other Annas, you'll probably need it."
"Okay."
"And-"
"Anna."
The girl paused at the comment, realizing that she'd started pacing back and forth through her tent, ticking off her thoughts on her fingers. She sheepishly met the man's bemused eyes. "You know I'm just worried for you." Her eyes slanted as she looked away, casting around her tent. "…Naga, for once, I really wish I could just leave…"
"You know you can't do that. You need to stay here, with your sisters."
The merchant huffed. "I don't wanna, though. There should be a clause in the Anna manifesto about leaving your position to help your best friend find his wife…"
"'Anna manifesto?'"
"I said nothing like that. Now shoo!" she said, pushing him out of the tent (though making sure he had all his belongings), "Before I change my mind and follow you."
Once outside, Kellam turned, his new lance leaning on his shoulder. "Thank you, Anna," he said, words barely audible over the din of the castle market. "For everything."
Anna leaned forward on her counter and swallowed. "Don't say that like a goodbye, damn you," she ordered, voice slightly shaking. "Just come back with her. I need my two best friends together again, okay? So don't let me down now."
"When have I ever?" Kellam dipped his lance and head forward a little. A farewell. "I'll see you soon, Anna."
"…I'm counting on it."
The lancer smiled one last time for the redhead. Then he bent over, picked up his armor-sack, and slowly walked away at his usual meandering pace. Anna watched his movements, with his head bobbing far above the rest of the crowd, until the distance and rabble surrounding him blurred his form and he disappeared.
The girl let out a stuttering breath, and wiped an arm across her eyes before removing the 'Be back soon!' sign from her shop's counter.
Then, she smiled. For the customers.
The lancer had barely made it a mile past the wide doors of the Ylissean castle gates when he realized he wasn't quite alone.
The forest he was traveling through was a vibrant green, with the sunlight filtering through the translucent leaves and painting the forest floor a similar color. Sounds of insects chirping, the rustle of branches high above, and crunches of dry leaves underfoot only made the ambiance more peaceful.
However, Kellam noted, there weren't many noises from his left side.
The woodland path he was following soon opened up into a clearing, where sunlight previously held back by the trees' numerous arms flooded the area, blindingly bright. Kellam shifted his grip on his lance as he entered, squinting.
A rough rustle came from his left. Kellam spun, dropping his armor sack and whipping his new lance back, accidentally scraping the dirt path. Glancing through the sunlight, Kellam saw a blurred figure leap forward, something glinting in his hand as he reached the peak of his leap. The luna lance in Kellam's hands flipped into a defensive position, held horizontally in both hands, as the man braced for impact.
Unnecessarily.
The figure (now almost certainly identifiable as a thief) suddenly dropped from the air, letting out a shocked cry as he slammed against the ground. Kellam blinked. The offender had an axe sticking out of his back in a surely uncomfortable position, blood leaking out of the wound as he groaned. The thief turned his head over and made eye contact with Kellam, briefly, before a large shadow cast across his body. He shrieked one last time before a snarling wyvern crashed onto him.
A very familiar wyvern.
She tilted her head down, about to bite into the man coloring her talons red, but her rider rapped the side of her head, shaking his head when she looked up at him. Then, ever so slowly, the rider turned the reigns to the side so he and his wyvern faced Kellam.
The two (three, really) stared at each other. A long silence extended far into the distance as Kellam took in the youth's slicked back, light blue hair, lanky limbs hanging off his wyvern, and the scratched up mask hiding his eyes.
He decided to break the silence first. "Thank you. You really saved me back there."
The boy was silent for another moment, then grunted. "You could've handled him."
"But I didn't; you did. So, thanks." Kellam sent a small smile in his direction; one that was promptly ignored as the boy sharply glanced away.
The brunet waited for a reply, but none was forthcoming. So, "…Well. I'll be moving on then."
"Where are you going?"
Kellam stopped walking again, turning back to the wyvern rider. "…What do you mean?"
"You're walking away from Ylisse castle. Your home."
"How do you know it's my home?"
"You're a Shepherd. I don't need to watch you to know where you live."
"But most people don't know that I'm a Shepherd." Kellam raised an eyebrow. "Logic dictates you must have been paying special attention to me."
"…Feh," the boy quickly exhaled, almost spitting, as he again turned and hid his face from the lancer.
Although watching his embarrassment with quiet amusement, Kellam took pity on him. "Any reason you wish to know?"
The wyvern rider didn't turn back to reply. "…I wish to follow you."
The lancer blinked. "Won't you have family who would miss you? Or friends?"
"Neither are issues."
Kellam glanced up at the boy's hair color, and then down at his all-too-recognizable wyvern, sniffing the ground. An unlikely combination… in this universe.
He nodded once. "If you say so, then I'll trust you."
"Just like that?" The masked boy turned back, voice sharp as a wyvern's fang. "What if I was trying to kill you? Or steal from you? Or lead you into a trap?"
"If you wanted to kill me, you wouldn't have saved me. If you wanted to steal from me, you would've let the thief kill me before killing him. And telling me about the possibility of a trap leads me to believe you wouldn't do that, either. Unless, of course, you were being forced to trap me. But your strength suggests that it's unlikely you'd be trapped like that, and your lack of emotion regarding your family or friends suggests it's unlikely they are being used as leverage. So, yes," Kellam finished, watching the boy's surprised visage with quiet humor, "I'll trust you. Just like that."
"Maybe you shouldn't be so trusting," the boy muttered.
"No reason not to. It's just logic." The brunet hoisted his lance into a traveling position, placing its midsection on his shoulder and over his armor sack. "Now, can I ask why you'd like to follow me?"
"…I have my reasons."
His response was nearly inaudible. The taller man snuck a backwards glance at the boy, whose hands and teeth were clenched tight as he collected his tomahawk.
Kellam focused forwards again. "Alright," he accepted, looking up and to the left as wyvern and rider moved to his side. The lancer opened his mouth, and, after a hesitation, asked, "…What's your name?"
"Gerome. …She's Minerva."
"I knew that one."
"…Of course," Gerome muttered to the trees.
Kellam suppressed a smile as he moved forwards, followed after a moment by Minerva's steps, trembling the ground and ripping up the earth. As they reached the edge of the clearing, the dark foliage surrounding the trail swallowed them whole, leaving only the broken body of a thief behind.
AN: For anyone confused: this chapter takes place in a different universe than last chapter.
Shout outs to: pokemon-dot-rhoades, lambyisamazing, NotSoGreatGamerGirl, BalancedHex1232, and E-Parasite for following; NotSoGreatGamerGirl and BalancedHex1232 for faving; and Gunlord500 and E-Parasite for reviewing!
(Also, special shout out to E-Parasite for reminding me what the heck Flora and Fauna mean.)
So, I've always accepted how Robin is usually portrayed as a super-social guy/gal who helps everyone out. And that's probably how he/she's supposed to be, honestly. But it's interesting to think that you (and thus Robin) can go through the whole game without leveling up a single support rank. That's basically the idea for this chapter/universe's Robin.
Alright, that's all I've got for now. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next update!