fandomweekly | [#100] When You're On a Holiday

Theme Prompt: One Perfect Day
Title: When You're On a Holiday
Fandom: Fire Emblem Heroes
Rating/Warnings: G
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 879
Summary: The beach isn't nearly as bad as Sylvain feared. In fact, it's better than he could have imagined.

Blue Lions path, set after chapter 7, Ingrid's paralogue was completed.

He'd expected to hate it going in. His territory was so close to the scorching heat of the Sreng desert, and even if neither that nor the freezing cold of the Kingdom was ideal he'd take the cold any day of the week. Beaches, by definition, were soaked in sunshine.

So he was pleasantly surprised to find that the beach of Askr was merely warm, not suffocatingly hot. The sunshine was dry, the swimsuit breathed well and left most of him uncovered, and the only moisture clinging to his body was from his earlier plunge into the nice, cold waves.

And of course, Ingrid was here. The luckiest part of this whole excursion was that she'd been summoned to Askr at the same time. Even better, she was enjoying herself.

"Hey." Ingrid sat down next to him on the towel. "I just caught another half a dozen really big fish! We're going to have such a feast later tonight," she said, a sparkle in her eyes. Felix often called that look "strange," but even when Sylvain kidded her about her big appetite he'd rather call it cute.

"So that makes an even four dozen now? That lance of yours must be coated with herring bait," Sylvain chuckled. "Even the professor back home was lucky if she caught more than two Goddess Messengers on a glowy pond day."

"Anna told me it was a very special lance, this must be what she meant," Ingrid said. "You think forty-eight fish is enough for a feast, or should we try for sixty?" She raised her arms over her head, flexing her fingers a little. "Though...to be honest, I wouldn't mind taking a break. I overheard Miss Cordelia talking to the professor and Lady Rhea about all the pretty shells she's been finding."

"You want to go on a shell hunt?" Sylvain asked. "I'll go with you." Ingrid blinked.

"Really?"

"It might be fun. I gotta admit I'm having a better time here than I thought, it's not like Ailell," he said. Ingrid chuckled, stretching her leg out in front of her.

"For one thing, I'm not having to beat up creepy nobles who want to play capture-the-princess with me," she said dryly. "I broke my best lance getting rid of them all, I still remember how much it cost the professor to get it repaired!" She shook her head, little wisps of blonde coming lose from her braid. "But enough about that." Good. Even knowing she could take care of herself he still didn't like to remember her ever being in that kind of danger.

"The worst thing you could get attacked by here's a sand crab," he said. "Or a real crab!" Ingrid's eyes lit up and she grinned.

"Mm, crab...maybe we should look for some, that'd really make for a feast!" Sylvain playfully rolled his eyes.

"There you go again." Ingrid's grin faded and she mock-glared at him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"You've always got food on the brain! I thought we were gonna cut out the fishing and go on a shell hunt!"

"We are! But, if we happen to find a few crabs here and there..." She shoved his shoulder. "And I do not always have food on the brain! Not like you always chasing after pretty girls!"

"Hey, I haven't chased after a single girl on this trip!" Sylvain protested, before realizing that for once it was true, and apparently Ingrid realized it too. They exchanged a surprised look, and Sylvain felt his face go hot. "And believe me, it hasn't been easy, especially..." Especially with you looking so beautiful in that swimsuit, so relaxed, with that big smile every time you pull your lance out of the water with a huge fish attached to it.

But even in such a calm and peaceful place, the thought of actually telling her so made his tongue tie up in a knot and freeze.

"Especially what?" she asked, her cheeks turning pink. Sylvain shook his head. If he did say it he might embarrass her or make her angry, and so far this had been the first truly good day they'd had in four years.

"Nevermind," he muttered. Ingrid shrugged.

"If you say so."

"Hey." He reached tentatively for her hand, shifting his sunglasses so he could get a better look into her eyes. "I'm glad you're here with me." Ingrid's cheeks turned pinker, and the most heartfelt smile crossed her face as she took his hand, squeezing gently.

"I'm glad, too." And for just that one moment, life felt perfect. The calm, the sunshine, the promise of a feast later, just him and Ingrid together in this-

"-look out!" A tangle of seaweed sailed through the air and landed on the towel, just barely missing Sylvain's foot. Prince Takumi of Hoshido stood a foot away, laughing sheepishly. "Sorry about that!" Well, so much for that moment. Ingrid was already getting up, putting her lance down and smiling evilly at the prince.

"And I'm sorry about this!" She grabbed Sylvain's near-empty drink glass and tossed the sticky remnants in Takumi's face. "Come on, Sylvain, we could take him!"

"Not with me on the team," announced princess Camilla. "Two on two splash fight?" Sylvain leaped up, exchanged smiles with Ingrid, and pumped his fist.

"You're on!"

They dashed towards the surf, laughing as though their troubles had never existed.