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Once upon a time, there was a beautiful, elegant, refined, but lonely girl. One day, an adorably soft-hearted princess offered to be her friend, and the two were inseparable from then on. They spent their days together drinking tea, picking flowers, sharing their deepest fears and secrets, and the formerly lonely girl even joined the Shepherds to help the princess and her siblings protect Ylisse from danger.
When the evil King Gangrel of Plegia used Maribelle to force Ylisse into a war, Maribelle made sure he suffered for it. She stayed by Lissa's side through everything, trained beside her as a Pegasus Knight when the tactician found two magical seals. She held her and ler her weep for the death of her beloved older sister. When the time came to fight the mad king, she dealt the final blow as revenge for both herself and for her beloved Lissa.
Along the way, their friendship had bloomed into love, and when they returned to Ylisse they happily confessed to one another.
But alas, they did not live happily ever after.
The prince married a Feroxi dancer and they had a child, but not long after the Queen gave birth, Ferox stopped by for a visit, and the happy ending came to a screeching halt.
"Another war," Lissa sighed as they made their way north. "At least, that's what Flavia thinks is gonna happen. You think Chrom will be able to talk Valm out of it?" Maribelle frowned. She adored Chrom dearly, and would never think to insult the brother of the woman she loved, but his diplomatic skills still had quite a long way to go.
"He can try," she said. "However, darling...we must consider Flavia's words. Valm is quite stubborn."
"And Chrom is no Emm," Lisa said. "He's trying, he's doing better than he used to, but he gets really pissed when innocents get stepped on. If Valm doesn't back off, there's no telling what Chrom will do."
Valm did not back off, even going so far as to murder an innocent bystander to prove their point. Swords were raised, the clash of metal and the sparks of magic filled the harbor, and by the time the battle was over the harbor was a wreck. Maribelle held Lissa close as she listened to Chrom's apology to Basilio and Flavia, and knew once again that Ylisse was at war.
"Flavia was right," Maribelle moaned as she and Lissa curled up in their tent for the night. "I'm sorry, darling. I should have stepped in to help Chrom myself, I know he's still...well..." But she knew it wasn't Chrom's fault, she knew that no matter who spoke up Valm wouldn't take no for an answer. In fact, she was almost certain that the more people who spoke up, the more civilians would have died.
And to ask Plegia for help, after all this. Maribelle could only hope that the new ruler would be less of a brute than Gangrel.
"It's not your fault." Lissa tucked herself under Maribelle's arm, leaning against her shoulder. "Some people just can't be reasoned with, I guess."
"Still..." Maribelle sighed. "I had so hoped that the end of the war with Plegia would be the end of it all. I was..." She brushed a lock of Lissa's hair away from her face. "I was all set to ask you to marry me, darling. Now that Chrom has had his first child, you and I could have started planning for our future." Lissa's cheeks turned the loveliest shade of pink as she looked up, gazing into Maribelle's eyes.
"Oh, Maribelle...my answer is yes! It would have been if we'd stayed in Ylisse, and it is now!" she cried. "In fact..." She reached to the side, into her pack, pulling out a small box. Maribelle recognized it immediately, her eyes widening at the sight of the treasure within.
"D-darling, this is..."
"The ring my parents had made for me when I was born," Lissa said. "Chrom, Emm, and I, we each have one, and I want to give mine to the person I love more than anything." Maribelle held out her hand, and Lissa slid the golden band onto her finger. Heaven, absolute heaven, she could scarcely imagine a moment more perfect than this!
"I accept it, and I will treasure it for the rest of my life." She flung her arms around Lissa and kissed her with a passion, one filled with promise and determination to keep that promise. They would live happily ever after; after this war was over and they returned to Ylisse they'd have the most beautiful, grand wedding ceremony in existence.
"I owe you a ring," she whispered as their lips parted and they laid down, nestled under the blankets in each other's arms. "And I'll get you the most beautiful one gold can buy!"
"As long as it's from you, it's beautiful to me already," Lissa murmured.