Well, wasn't this harrowing? Sat on the footsteps of some house, a diminutive sized girl sat, swinging her legs upon the terrace. To be honest, she was waiting for news from her brother. She'd finished an examination of skill and performance just yesterday - a test to determine if they'd allow her into her brother's unit or not. He was the head of the 113th Regiment, or according to the nickname amongst the higher ups, "The Red Lions of Ylisse". Apparently the nickname came about during the battle for Thanis, those years back, when her brother returned to camp, bathed in the blood of his enemies, with his sister -the girl swinging her legs - in his arms. And now, years after, that same girl was hoping she could join. She owed it to Ylisse, as well as to Aldan. And the siblings together would make for a good team, would it not?
"Anrien!"
The girl, Anrien, turned to the voice. It wasn't her brother, but it was his best friend. Sethis, the second in command of the Red Lions, and an expert sniper. They'd grown up together - and, well, they were really close. All of them were really close. Even though Bregnen lost his leg, he was still close to the others. Right now he was asleep, or perhaps awake and thinking - he and Anrien lived together since moving into Ylisstol, after all - but yeah. All of their little circle of friends were still alive. And that was a miracle.
"Hello." Anrien smirked over to the archer. "Why are you here so early?"
"Aw, shucks." The archer went and sat next to Anrien, patting her head. She grinned - wishing he didn't have to actually touch her, but otherwise didn't make any protest- "You really hate me, don'tcha?"
The girl playfully brought her dutiful sword up to the archer's throat; a teasing sparkle in her eye.
"I'll stab ya."
With that, they both broke down into fits of laughter, chortles and snickers together. Anrien felt light. Really. Light-hearted; as if things had always been like this. As if the Thanis Disaster had never happened. As if none of that had ever happened. But no matter how much she played with her brother's - and by extension, her own - friends, it wouldn't erase the past. Nothing really could, unless those rumors of time travel were actually true. Finally though, they settled down.
"Yeah." Sethis started, with a grim frown on his face. "So. Aldan. Arguing again with old Thrias over stupid stuff. Politics. Things like that." The archer let out a weary sigh, casting a wanton look nowhere in particular. "Swear to god, half the time we're just tussling with other Units over what to do. Shit's gonna be the end of Ylisse, I'm tellin' ya."
Anrien looked at him sympathetically. The Red Lions have been particularly targeted by Thrias' troupe for quite some time, or so it seemed. Both units kept running into each other, finding themselves taking the same missions, the same patrols. It was as if they were trying to outshine the Red Lions and keep the newer unit in check. Thrias and his team had been around for a long time, after all; considered to be part of the old guard. What good was a young, upstart team to them?
That pissed Anrien off. A brief moment flashed where she considered just killing him, but that passed.
"Whatever." Anrien made to get up, quickly fastening on her breast plate, and hooking the scabbard of her sword into her belt. "I'm heading over. Wanna come with?"
"I'm fine." Sethis offered the girl a wan grin. "Gotta say hello to our one-legged buddy. Had enough politics for one day."
It wasn't long until the girl made it to the ornate halls of Ylisstol palace, hearing her brother's voice tumbling against an older, gruffer voice. They were still at it, Anrien sighed.
"We're better equipped. We've been at it for much longer than you whelps. We should be the ones at the front lines!" Thrias barked out. "Your unit's still young. Should just stay in mainland patrol."
"Most of my team lived around the border their whole lives, Thrias!" Aldan shot back. "We know the terrain better, and we can travel faster to respond to threats!"
Both men glared at each other, seething. Anrien, in a fit of impulsiveness, smacked her scabbard against Thrias's heavy armor, making a resounding clang.
"Brother!" She nearly shouted. "While you were arguing over useless things, I was waiting all day! Will they let me join?"
Thrias let out a 'harrumph.' and left the scene, muttering something about 'Fine, let's watch you get killed out there as Plegia or other bandits strike', seemingly out of steam. Aldan made a triumphant little gesture in hugging his little sister. The siblings exchanged a significant mutual smile before going into business.
"You're fast." Aldan stated simply. "They noticed that too. You're really, really fast. You know how to make up for being small by using your speed. But on the other hand, that's your only advantage. Speed. You get what I'm saying, sis?"
Anrien's face fell, just a tad.
"But if I wear any more armor, I'll-"
"They want to see how you do with real combat experience. And they think I'm the best one to supervise you." Aldan's smile grew wider. "You're in, sis. You're a Red Lion."
With a squeal of glee, Anrien let out a goofy grin. She had trained so damn long for this. Suffered so much for this. And it had finally paid off. She could stand alongside her dear beloved brother now.
"We're heading to the Plegian Border by nightfall." Anrien scratched at his head. "Don't forget. I'll tell the others, too."
And thus, Anrien was one step closer to realizing her dreams.