Chapter Text
Frederick's heart twisted at the sight of his liege in tears. Holding Chrom's newly mended cape in one hand, Frederick gently knocked on the tent frame even though the tent flap was slightly ajar. "Milord? May I come in?"
"You may," Chrom sniffed. He stuffed his head into his pillow in an attempt to stifle his sobs. This in turn only frightened Frederick. From the way Chrom was holding the pillow, it was far too easy to asphyxiate without anyone noticing. Even though Frederick had eagle like eyesight, Chrom may be too emotional and actually attempt to suffocate. Frederick wanted to rip the pillow out of his hands until he heard Chrom's quiet "thank you".
Frederick longed to comfort Chrom as a friend and not a retainer, yet he had no idea how to begin with that. It was a foolish thought to indulge in, but Chrom needed someone to depend on. "Do you need a cold compress for your face, milord? It may take away the stinging from your eyes."
"Please leave me alone."
Frederick flinched at the eerie calmness in Chrom's voice. He expected his liege to be in the training grounds destroying dummies with each swing. Frederick half-expected him to find Reflet to prepare a counterstrike against Plegian forces. Literally anything except sit on his cot and cry into his pillow. Leaving Chrom alone in this state unnerved him for reasons he'd rather not speak aloud to anyone. "As you wish," Frederick finally replied as he cracked open Chrom's tent flap to air it out. The last thing his liege needed was stale air. "Maybe I should find Reflet. She would soothe Chrom enough to talk him out of whatever he might contemplate."
Chrom's sobs resumed the second Frederick moved away from the tent. Frederick needed to find Reflet as fast as he could.
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Frederick sprinted into the common area, tuning out the hustle and bustle as he searched for a woman with hair as white as snow. Reflet usually tended to the rest of the Shepherds this time of day, but Emmeryn's death also shook her more than she'd like to admit. Frederick weaved through the soldiers before landing in front of a familiar pegasus knight duo . "Cordelia! Sumia!" (I just skimmed their support chains with Frederick to see if he called them 'Lady' or not. I settled on using their first name since he never directly addressed them as 'Lady Cordelia' or 'Lady Sumia'. I may be wrong, but I will definitely fix it if I am!)
"Frederick! How's Chrom?" Sumia asked, leaning against a rather unstable coat hanger. It tipped over within seconds, so Cordelia grabbed her friend's arm to steady her. "Is he doing better?"
"I can't believe Lady Emmeryn..." Cordelia whispsered, holding her hand over her mouth as it slipped out. "I'm sorry, Frederick. Are you here to fetch something for Lord Chrom?"
"No, but I'm searching for Reflet. Have you ladies seen her around her? I thought she was assisting Tharja with a hex this afternoon."
"If she isn't in her usual haunts, I have no idea where to find her. Sorry, Frederick." Sumia stated before plopping a small cookie into her mouth. How Sumia could stomach the sweetness at a time like this was beyond him. She offered him one after she noticed him staring at them. He shook his head, his legs carrying him away before he even realized he was moving.
He decided to check Reflet's tent first in case she returned early from whatever she was doing. As luck would have it, Reflet entered seconds after Frederick. "Frederick? What are you doing in my tent?"
Frederick raised his eyebrows. "Are you all right? Your eyes are rather red."
Reflet plopped onto her cot, slinging her legs over the edge as she covered her face with her hands. "I killed the Exalt because my gambit failed, Frederick. Of course my eyes are going to be red." Frederick's heart crushed from her statement. She sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "It was all my fault."
"That isn't true, Reflet," Frederick assured her. He knelt before her as Reflet began to sob, her shoulders heaving with every labored breath. "Lady Emmeryn sacrificed herself for Chrom and Lissa. You cannot blame yourself for something that wasn't predictable." Frederick sucked in a deep breath before gently patting Reflet's knee. "Chrom and Lissa don't blame you. As a matter of fact, I think you can reach Chrom in a way I can't."
Reflet glanced up, tears and snot dripping from her face as she sniffed. "What do you mean?"
"Milord is rather fond of you," Frederick phrased as delicately as he could, "so I hoped you could talk to him. Comfort him by listening and being there for him. Be the friend I can't be."
"Do you really think that would work?" Reflet asked, her head in her knees as she listened. "I don't want him to hate me."
"I doubt he will ever grow to hate you, milady," Frederick mused more to himself than to her. "But, in the rare case that he does, I will assume responsibility for the idea. Does this sound fair?"
Reflet nodded, about to wipe her nose with her sleeve until Frederick withdrew a handkerchief for her. "Thank you. I do have a request for you though."
"That is?"
Reflet wrapped her arms around his neck, holding tight as she recomposed herself. "Take some time for yourself too, Frederick. For Chrom's sake, if not for yours."
Frederick smiled, a rare sighting from him. "I will try. Good luck, Reflet."
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Six Days Later...
Watching Chrom bounce back under Reflet's careful guidance brought Frederick a tiny bit of peace. That, alongside a glimpse of the war's end, restored hope for Frederick and most of the Shepherds. There were still times that Chrom and Lissa cried over Emmeryn, but they composed themselves enough to lead their army to victory. Now that the tide was turning, the remaining royal siblings could focus on reconstruction. While the war's end was nigh, nothing prepared Frederick for his newest concern:
Lissa.
"Frederick, you seem distracted. Is something on your mind?" Reflet inquired as she rolled up her maps. The war council adjourned for the evening and everyone rushed to claim their meal before bed--save the hard working Reflet and distraught Frederick.
"My apologies. I was just thinking about something odd."
Reflet leaned against Frederick, pushing her hair away from her face and flashing him a shit eating smile. "Care to share, Freddy Bear? Or do I need to coax you with some scrumptious bear jerky?"
Frederick would have pushed her if he had half a pint less of self control. "I thought I said to never use that ridiculous nickname ever again."
"Come on, Frederick! Diverting is nothing like you!" Reflet suddenly gasped. "Oh, are you having lady problems?! Is that why you're so dazed recently? I tried to get Sumia to come talk to you--"
Frederick shook his head before Reflet prattled any further. "I'm not experiencing 'lady problems', Reflet. Not like the one you're more than likely imagining."
"So you do have a problem with a lady? Who?!"
Naga, Reflet was awfully pushy about this. He'd never seen her so excited over anything not tome related before. "It's not necessarily a problem either. I think Lady Lissa is casting strange looks at me."
Reflet deflated within seconds, tucking her map under her arm with an eyeroll. "Seriously? I thought Lissa always shoots you weird looks. It's kind of her thing."
"She does, but this wasn't her normal mocking self. She seemed almost upset every time I caught her staring. I wonder if she thinks I'm angry?"
"Angry? Over what?"
"That's the strange part. I can't seem to think of anything that would truly enrage her. Maybe I'm misinterpreting her expression."
Reflet pat Frederick's armored forearm. "If you think something's off about her, investigate into it. Your instincts are rarely wrong about anything that isn't related to me."
Frederick lightly smacked her arm, which caused her to giggle evilly. "I think I'll take you up on that idea, Reflet. I'll talk to her at dinner."
Reflet watched him exit the meeting tent with slightly parted lips. "Naga, did I accidentally send Frederick into a death trap...?"
To Be Continued