The Scion of Light

“You mean, all the time? Leaf, if I can confess to you…I’ve felt the same way. Always. When I was in Tirnanogue, I-secretly hoped for a way to show what I could do; What all my training meant! And then I heard one of the raids-I was so scared, and powerless. But I’m not like that anymore. I’ve-killed people. Crushed some of the empire’s legions-a murder. But, I have that…sense of satisfaction, relief, happiness at their deaths. When I kill a soldier, everything feels so bitter and sweet…” The boy shook his head, letting out another exasperated sigh, but another smile at Leaf, before looking back into the sky.

“Killing the enemies who did harm to us should make us happy. It’s normal to be scared, but when you kill someone who made you afraid for you life, I think that’s perfectly fine. If you were to kill someone who you didn’t know at all, someone who was just fighting for reasons unknown to you, and you felt happy when you killed them just because they were your enemy… that, I would worry about.”

Running into one’s camp with their enemy’s head and being proud of it when the enemy was a complete stranger was the problem. Leaf felt no guilt in stopping murderers by using force. He had heard of the disasters that took place in Isaac as well, and the soldiers that had murdered all those innocents quite deserved what they got. Leaf couldn’t help but feel if anyone was too close to becoming something dangerous, it was himself.

“You’re right,” the blue-haired youth mused. “ None of us really want to start a war and hurt innocents. I guess I am being silly, after all. I just thought... I just thought I would be better prepared for all of this. I’ve had my whole life to think about this.”

The Empire’s actions weren’t forgivable, Celice knew that. He despised what they were doing, ruthlessly murdering and overtaking all in their path. A part of him felt for the enemy and their soldiers, but the parts that were silent, that the fallen enemies were justified deaths.

Well, no, no deaths were “justified”, in that sense. But Leaf was right. He shouldn’t feel bad, trying to put an end to this.

“...I know it’s not realistic, but I don’t want any of our allies to die. I just hope this can all end quickly. We’ve both lost so many friends Leaf... I just feel like I might lose it if any of us were to die. But that is why we’re fighting. I..

“I lived close to the shore when I was younger. It was only a few miles away-it was how our town prospered despite the dry conditions. But-I rarely saw it. I was usually stuck inside the confines. I never had so much time to enjoy it so closely, not this long. Though I suppose the only reason I can enjoy it and not fear it is because I’m with you.

So, I wonder. Have you ever coveted to explore the land, as I am the sea?”

The boy sighed solemnly, and followed Leaf, eyeing the crowd. “Yeah, sorry. I guess I’m not built for dancing.”  After all, dancing was never a part of fighting, fighting which he had trained himself (And with help of others) for.

Guided by Leaf’s arm, he stepped into the silent room, doing another deep sigh. 

“Sorry. Guess I’m not a good dance partner, huh?” The boy let out a laugh, itching the back of his neck, unsure of what to say. He put out his hand, trying to start another dance, but wasn’t exactly sure himself what dance to do.

“No, it’s not you…” It was Leaf, and he knew it was himself, but Celice was still offering? It should have been clear enough by now that the brunet lacked in this field entirely, and while practice was one thing, he knew truly getting the hang of it would be a ways off. Actually, he couldn’t even tell Celice’s level with this after how bad Leaf himself had messed up.

There was hesitation, but they were alone right now. Even if he embarrassed himself, it was only Celice… and vice versa. Many times Leaf had done things in front of others that made him want to just remove himself from the moment, but there was surely no reason to get that nervous here. In part, it was indeed that he was too self-conscious that had led them here, and screwing up so badly with someone so important felt pathetic. But then, neither of them saw themselves as very good, did they? There was very little if any reason for him to worry, though it was a habit he still had yet to break out of.

"I'm sure my tripping showed just how good I was, too." The blue-haired youth said, giving a bit of a shy smile. "If we fail, we fail together. If we have to, let's just take it slow. Do it-our way. I guess that's how we do anything around here, huh?"

Serlis had goals to worry about: Get Manfloy, get Julius, and somehow save Leaf. He kept thinking on ‘What would he do?’ and that didn’t just apply to Levin, it also applied to Leaf. All options settled on the youth he trusted right in front of him-but the youth was different, and opposed him. Both were tense out of there wits, and Serlis knew that. If the fight continued like this, someone was going to get hurt and probably killed-but how could it get better? If he tried to halt the battle, reinforcements would come, and eventually, the inevitable.

“The man who saved you is a lie! Haven’t you realized what’s happened?! He might be trying to wipe out what you call traitors, but he is Death! All are killed before him! He’s killed people of all ages, and I’ve seen this first-hand! If you leave now, he’ll kill you, and, and, and….If you can’t believe me, then…” The words fluttered out of his mouth without thinking. “Let my friends and family speak with you! Lana, Fin, Sety, Delmud, Faval, Tinny, Nanna, Hannibal, Altenna, your sister! If you can’t believe us, then step aside, and see it for yourself!  

At first, Leaf had started to hold back when he realized how genuine the other’s panic was, and while he would’ve only repeated the same words about Fin, he comprehended as far as Delmud before the string of names became a blur to him.

…Sety? It sounded familiar, but it also stung. It was almost frightening how close he felt to remember something, but he did know that name hurt. It wasn’t because he recognized the name to be something he associated bad memories with, but because he knew there was no Sety on the side he currently fought for. He knew that name, but if there was nobody on this side who had that name, did that mean this person he’d declared his enemy was on the correct side? As much as Leaf didn’t want to think he’d been saying all these things to the wrong person about the wrong people, the spoken name had glued itself to him, and he was left trying to form an image of the person in his head. The name of a person who was… very important to him…

Seeing the tears on his cousin’s face, he stopped movement completely, not even sure what to do now. It also hurt to see this, and he didn’t understand why. His sword arm was pushed back by the force against it, and he didn’t do a thing to stop it. His arm had been slightly cut from it, but he was so distracted that he almost didn’t notice.

"I-I..." Had Celice not been prepared? He had thought saying something, or even his combat style would trigger something, but nothing seemed to be working. Nothing...! His cheeks looked swollen and red, his face hot with emotion. He couldn't even comprehend what Leaf was going through-not that he was really registering what Leaf was saying or acting, only catching small bits.

"I really don't want to kill anyone..." Celice said, trying to make out the blurs through his tears. That was an exaggeration, if not a complete lie. The blue-haired youth remembered that dark mage's boast before he entered the castle; Celice had all intentions to rush to the top and slaughter him. He was one of the few people that Celice could never forgive. Not ever.

Celice stopped moving his sword, wiping away his tears, mumbling. "You reaaaal-really, haaa, you are important to me. Don't you remember our promise together? To continue before our fathers before us? Please, Leaf. Please come back with us... Even if you have to sit back and think, I'll protect you from anyone. You'll never be my enemy."

Wow. Leaf’s hair looked different today. It was very red. Red. Red…

Oh. This was Celice’s own blood. He had just hurled up blood, which had splattered across his entire body. The large wound was also spitting blood, turning his sea-blue robes into a night-sky purple.

The boy glugged, trying to speak, which only resulted in more blood dripping out of his mouth.

He couldn’t think. Was this death? He could feel himself slipping, slipping away, just barely hearing what Leaf could say. Was he really….

A sensation warmed over him. A staff…He couldn’t tell what was happening. His blood loss was slowing down, but he couldn’t tell. He gripped onto Leaf’s words-whatever they were. He couldn’t think-

And then, Celice closed his eyes, unconscious.

Waiting was painful… and he didn’t want to do it anymore. People had been taking turns looking over him and healing him every so often, and many of them had thanked Leaf. If he hadn’t been there, sure, they might really have lost him back then… but what good did that do if it failed in the end anyway? It was entirely probable that the prince was just overthinking this, but after everything he’d seen since he began fighting what felt like ages ago, it didn’t feel too off to think that the worst really could happen even now.

Deciding better of just sitting around while others took charge during various points throughout the day, Leaf moved from his place outside the tent Celice was kept in. Maybe, just maybe, he was taking this whole responsibility a bit far, but he was still attached to the older teen. There was something else there besides being close friends, and after a while, he’d figured out what it was. Besides for that… he’d lost many things in his life from being too weak, and he couldn’t lose someone so important because of the same problem.

It was the same as usual when Leaf was there, doing little besides keeping a close watch on the other’s breathing and working with a staff occasionally. While he didn’t mind moving slightly away for other varied purposes so long as he remained in the tent, he always found himself looking back. He hadn’t realized how much time had passed until Sety had gone looking for him, making it a point to check on him several times afterward to make sure he hadn’t passed out overworking himself or anything of the sort.

Every once in a while, he would a whisper, but it faded out like a singer's song. It was such a gentle, voice. A part of him wanted to ask "Could you please speak again?", but he remained quiet, staring at the infinite expanse of space, land, and sky. He could sleep here, but he wanted to see how pretty it all was before leaving. After all, someone like him had to get up and moving often nowadays. Sitting him, a pleasing crunch spilling from the warm snow due to his movements, he picked up a petal.

These petals were so small. So fresh. They didn't deserve to be blown away by this wind, as good as it was.

As if on cue, the blank slate of color twisted before him, wind, snow, and plant life kissing his face. Still at peace, just-less so then he was before. He could make this work. He could stay here. He just needed some food, housing, company... The snow felt increasingly bitter. For a brief second, dancing blossoms became ancient oak leaves, snow becoming an entaglement of colors and smells, all familiar. But, like normal, it faded into a black blink, and now he was somewhere else.

All white was green, and he heard a voice. A woman's? A young man's?

His patient smile broke out into a teasing grin, afterwards.

“Well,” he playfully considered aloud. “I never would have considered riding my father into battle.”

He laughed at his poor joke, but waved his hand-it was friendly, just like Leaf himself was to Celice. Celice envied that. How did people view him? A leader? A friend? Or perhaps something different? He could never be quite sure, but sitting here, with Leaf… Peace. He wanted this peace to last forever, not before the next eventual battle.

Not only that, but this looked like it was going to be a lengthy war. Not necessarily in years, but the days to get through even a year would be harsh and wear them down. Even if Leaf had managed to grow from his last war, even if he had managed to change so he was no pushover now, how could he be sure of how he would end up by the end of this? He could be even more violent by then, or just terrified of so many things. Not knowing how he would end up growing and changing from this was almost frightening.

“Hey, have you… ever been afraid of the future? What you might be like in the future? I’ve just… already changed so much, and before, I was grateful for any assistance I could get. Now, I’m really upset with the people who left me despite the wars not being over, and I’ve been so much more ready to kill people. I wasn’t like that before… Do you worry that you might be… colder someday?” Maybe to Celice, it would sound odd based on the lead in conversation, but Leaf was sure he wasn’t the only one who was going to change.

"You mean, all the time? Leaf, if I can confess to you...I've felt the same way. Always. When I was in Tirnanogue, I-secretly hoped for a way to show what I could do; What all my training meant! And then I heard one of the raids-I was so scared, and powerless. But I'm not like that anymore. I've-killed people. Crushed some of the empire's legions-a murder. But, I have that...sense of satisfaction, relief, happiness at their deaths. When I kill a soldier, everything feels so bitter and sweet..." The boy shook his head, letting out another exasperated sigh, but another smile at Leaf, before looking back into the sky.

“Loptosu sages!” Silver had screamed. Those words triggered in Celice, a suppressed rage leaking out onto his face. If there was one internal change Celice acquired from his journey that could be considered foul would be revenge. He wanted to murder every last one guilty Loptous cultist. They took everything away from everyone! Nothing like the war would ever happen again.

Yet, he feared for the girl’s safety-she wasn’t in her standard battle conditions. He thought quickly, eyebrows knitted. They could run for it, but if they continued chasing them into the desert, it could be the end, the last thing he wanted. But if they charged in, they’d get swamped. And if they had a Fenrir tome-they had to hurry.

One of the Loptosu mages kept Silver in his sights. She was far more vulnerable to attack, and without a mount, it would be extreme difficult for her to dodge properly. Not even the equally scorching orange sands could provide cover. He looped his free hand in a full circle, conjuring a stream of red fire and sent it skyward, and with another quick grab of the air he launched the stream at the teens– the flamethrower shot at their feet, crashed to the sand and sent bits of black ash into the air, and Silver covered her eyes as soot rained down on her.

The Mage chuckled and balanced the heavy Elfire tome on his wrist.

“That’s right, kid, dance for me,” He snapped his fingers and produced three more fireballs, juggling them in his hand. He hurled them at Silver again, and suppressed a sickeningly childish giggle and she dodged, weaved, and jumped to avoid them, completely scared out of her mind.

It felt like an eternity before Silver managed to mount Arden safely. She clawed her way onto his saddle. Her heart pounded in her ears and sweat dripped down her face in a flood. She stared at Celice, eyes wider than dinner plates, and mind racing a mile a second for their getaway plan to be put to motion.

“Well, at a time, we had a bunchload of thick, bright pink string. Too thick to patch up holes, and we had plenty of rope. We also had a door that opened outwards of-Oh. This when I was a young. I lived with some other people my age.”

“Hey!”

A masculine cry broke them out of their fun. Silver turned around and stared up at the golden walls, only to lock eyes with a hooded figure, tome clutched at his side.

“Intruder!” he screamed, waving a hand to an open door nearby. “Intruders on the south wall! After them!”

‘Shit!’ Silver thought. A second hooded figure pulled up next to the first, wisps of brightly colored orange energy pouring from the open page of his own tome. “I got it covered here.” he told the first. “You block them off at the main exit!” His superior nodded and raced to the far end of the floor, bolting down a thick wooden ladder along with three other powerful looking mages.

"Loptosu sages!" Silver had screamed. Those words triggered in Celice, a suppressed rage leaking out onto his face. If there was one internal change Celice acquired from his journey that could be considered foul would be revenge. He wanted to murder every last one guilty Loptous cultist. They took everything away from everyone! Nothing like the war would ever happen again.

Yet, he feared for the girl's safety-she wasn't in her standard battle conditions. He thought quickly, eyebrows knitted. They could run for it, but if they continued chasing them into the desert, it could be the end, the last thing he wanted. But if they charged in, they'd get swamped. And if they had a Fenrir tome-they had to hurry.

Seliph took a deep breath. Right, topic change.

“Really? Fin is…a nice guy. I wish I had more to bring up with him, sometimes…he protected you through thick and thin..I guess he’s like your ‘Oifaye’…Ugh, sorry. I shouldn’t say things like that.

You know though, that would be amazing if you could train yourself in every weapon. That would be a big help…I can’t say I don’t want to force it upon yourself, honestly. I want you to do as much as you can…for all of our sakes, honestly. Including your life.”

“You know, I always wondered if horses were a good thing:I know Oifaye never ever gets off his horse anymore, but…our troops had to cross the desert, and everyone lagged behind. Levin said he’d get me a horse when I got more accustomed to fighting, but I want to use both styles of fighting-especially if the horse got injured.

If a leader represented a team, of course he was much better at it than Leaf ever was. It was true the adults were better off leading them more than just guiding them, but it was always the two of them thrown into this leadership position than neither felt they could handle. Leaf found it worse in his case, always thinking of himself as immature and unworthy. How could he lead anyone into a normal life if he couldn’t lead to begin with? Actually, how could he lead people into a normal life if he, and apparently not only himself, didn’t know what a normal life was?

Perhaps it should have been Fin who took over for Cuan. Leaf was only bound by some duty that was invisible to him. There were things he wanted for his country, but for him to rule? That duty was given to him by birth; not by choice. Sometimes it made him want to back out of it, and just run away from what he was supposed to do. It was far too pressuring; especially for someone who already had enough on his mind.

“No, it’s okay. Fin really is like Oifaye in that sense, I guess. Besides, he’s the one I trust to help me when I get stuck or need emotional support. You too now, but Fin’s been with me since I was born. He’s… basically my father. I just hope he believes in me enough that he’ll let me try using every weapon I can. Being able to only use a sword isn’t very convenient, even if I can attack from a distance with magic swords. Besides, I don’t have major holy blood from either side of my family. I need some kind of advantage when I fight.”

Would Leaf have a horse someday? Hearing about everyone going through the desert on horseback and lagging made him tense. The story went that that was exactly how the Lance Ritter that included his parents was decimated. The desert was nothing good for people on horseback, and if something like that happened to the people in this army too, Leaf knew he wouldn’t be able to handle it. It was just… another reason he had to grow stronger. Much stronger.

His patient smile broke out into a teasing grin, afterwards.

“Well,” he playfully considered aloud. “I never would have considered riding my father into battle.”

He laughed at his poor joke, but waved his hand-it was friendly, just like Leaf himself was to Celice. Celice envied that. How did people view him? A leader? A friend? Or perhaps something different? He could never be quite sure, but sitting here, with Leaf... Peace. He wanted this peace to last forever, not before the next eventual battle.

This is a positive rant about Awakening, or…sorta. Again, you’re free to your own opinions.

A lot of people bash on Awakening for “cliche/trope” characters. While it’s true it’s *seemingly* less prevalent in the other FEs, this is SOLEY because Awakening is a Fire Emblem where TONS of dialogue is incorporated. In addition, there’s also voice acting. That seems like an excuse, but the “tropes” is how you remember these characters by. In addition, in ALL FEs, including Awakening, a LOT of characters are trope mixed with some pure characterization. Let me give a few examples.

Midir, from FE4: Duty is everything, I must protect my lord and rescue her. “Oh, but that’s not a trope!” Sure, it doesn’t SEEM to be executed as quote on quote badly as Awakening is….But after his chapter is done, what happens barring a few conversations? Nothing. He gets hardly any talking events. I think you might be able to see what I’m getting at. If he had more dialouge, it’d be obvious at how “I’m a knight” is. 

Lute, from FE8, whom a lot of people seem to love: I’m the best, and will know everything. Now, take her support with Ross, specifically, her B support. She tells him that he should be how he feels like how he should be. Wow! Great characterization! ….And then she’s the best again, at least to herself.

Jagen, FE1/11/3/12. Teacher/Knight. Not much else. Same with a lot of the Jagens, especially Marcus. Again, characterization is mixed in in later because of supports.

Volke, FE9/10: Badass guy who then reveals himself with money. Money trope is played in a lot of FEs, same with the Badass guy. I hear he does have some characterization moments, but I have yet to finish FE9/10.

Now, to Awakening. 

Lon’qu. Badass, detatched guy. (Sound familiar?) Still, he seems afraid of women. This is explained because his girlfriend was killed right before his eyes, and he could do nothing. He doesn’t want a relationship with any women so he doesn’t have to suffer loss.

Yeah, totally bad characterization. (Sarcasm)

Henry. Crazy guy who speaks with animals, and always smiles. It’s revealed in supports that his smile is hollow because he was neglected as a child, and any animal friends he tried to make were killed, or uncommon, like ravens.

“Oh, but he still acts happy!”

Yes, but we already established why. In addition, this is also because of the English version, in which he laughs and jokes a lot more then the JP version, which he is more backstory based. Well, comparatively, at least.

Speaking of that, that’s why Walhart comes off as a total dick.

He’s more of a detached and get it done kind of character in the JP version, while in the English version…

“I should stick a sword in you and be done with it!”

Ouch.

But even then, we still have plenty of characters who are according to non-awakening fans, tropes.

Tharja, a character whom I personally dislike, but I will still give her credit.

Frankly, she’s a yandere. She enjoys pain and suffering, and wants what she wants (though she isn’t nearly as crabby about it as *cough*maribelle/severa*cough*). Still, while she does threaten and eggs on others, if someone TRULY does not/DOES want something, she’ll understand and do nothing/help out, as seen with her supports with Libra and Lon’qu. 

Tropes are everywhere in FE, and characters who seem one minded really aren’t, in all games ever.

People who say characterization is an issue in Awakening and just that are being naive. If you don’t like the characterization, you know what, that’s fine. It’s not nearly as plot incorporated as some other FEs, like FE4, but saying the characterization is flat out terrible is again, naive.