#laslow is a real sweetie when hes not being a huge dork

[fe-fictions]

Laslow x Corrin commission (Corrin is also a mercenary that’s come over with Laslow, Odin and Serena! It’s a bit of a different take, so I hope you like it! :3)

“I know that this is probably a lot to ask of you, but I’m just not sure what else I can do.” Xander looked apologetically to the young retainer in front of him. You tilted your head, curious what exactly could have the high prince of Nohr so very exasperated.

“What seems to be the problem, milord?”

“It’s Laslow.” He sighed, “That man is just…getting to be more and more out of control whether he’s at the Castle or he’s running around town, doing gods know what. I know that you two are close, and that you’re pretty good at keeping him, er, in check, so to speak.”

You quirked an eyebrow, trying to fight the inappropriate smiling that was threatening to cross your lips. “Are you asking me to babysit Laslow and keep him from chasing skirts?”

“I am afraid that is exactly what I am asking of you, Corrin.” Xander sighed again, clearly exasperated. “We are all grateful to Laslow for his talents, and he is a highly skilled swordsman and an excellent retainer. But the behavior he exhibits outside of battle - and sometimes during - is a poor reflection of Nohr, and has the potential to get him into more trouble than it already has. Can I count on you to help keep him in check?”

 You grinned, and bowed deeply to your liege. “I’d be more than happy to, milord. Laslow’s behavior is nothing I can’t handle. And now that I have explicit permission to do so…well, you won’t have to worry about scandalous reports anymore!”

“I do not mean to sow doubt or make you feel as though I lack confidence in your abilities, but I want to be certain. Can you rein him in, despite the fact that you two are close?”

“Aww, don’t worry about that.” You laughed, waving a dismissive hand. “We’re close, sure, but we wouldn’t be this way if we weren’t honest with each other. If he needs to be put in his place, then I’m the one he’d trust most to do that! Well, besides Serena or Odin.”

“Right. Well, then we will put our faith in you and trust that you will be able to handle his less than savory exploits. The reputation of the entire army rests on your shoulders, Corrin!”

You bowed deeply, withholding a brighter grin for when you were out of Xander’s sight. After all, you didn’t want him to think you were being disrespectful or making light of his request. 

But it would be a lie if you said there wasn’t a skip in your step.

Rather, you were quite elated with this new challenge.

The four of you had known each other for a long time. Being the daughter of a renowned thief with a penchant for sweets, you were quite happy to be among so many friends. You stuck together like glue; you knew each other better than anyone else.

As much as you enjoyed the company of Serena and Odin, you were the most fond of Laslow.

It was silly; he was an absolute mess of a human being, but he made you smile and laugh more than anyone else. And most importantly, you seemed to do the same for him.

But now, it looked like you were in charge of fixing up a rather precarious situation he’d gotten himself into. With a skip and a giggle, you scampered through camp in search of your target.

Thankfully, it did not take long for you to locate him. He was already bothering a poor sweet pegasus knight, who seemed to be doing everything she could to shrink away from him.

You grinned to yourself and made your way over, though Laslow seemed not to recognize it until it was far too late.

“So you’re saying you’re free for dinner tonight, hmmm?”

“I-I didn’t say I was free, I just said I didn’t have plans with you!”

“We could change that very easily. Shall I escort you to your table tonight, milady? I would truly be honored if you might grace me with a few minutes of your time.”

“I really shouldn’t fraternize with someone above my station, especially as Prince Xander’s-”

“There you are, sweetheart.” 

Laslow jumped when he heard your voice, only to be caught by your arm wrapping around his shoulders and pulling him into your side. Granted you were much shorter than he was, which meant he was quite awkwardly slumped over. 

You looked at him with a knowing smile and a wink, before giving an apologetic look to the innocent knight who seemed to be standing up only because she was grasping her spear so tightly.

“You can go on ahead- I need a moment alone with this troublemaker.”

“But I was just-”

“Now, now. I’m sure she has much more important things to handle besides your nonsense.”

Laslow watched with a deflated sigh as the woman bowed and scampered off. He looked back to you with an annoyed glare, but you knew he wasn’t mad.

How could he ever be mad at you?

“Come on, now- I was this close to getting a date.”

“You know, you’re always saying you’re close to getting a date, but whenever I see you trying to flirt, it seems more like you’re trying to scare the poor girls off.”

“I’m afraid you may need to get your  eyes checked, then.” He huffed, arms crossed. “Can’t you support me in my endeavors every once in a while?”

“Because your endeavors involve constantly harassing young ladies in an attempt to get their attention for half a second. Honestly, Laslow, you’re not some casanova that can pull off flirting with everyone and it be seen as perfectly normal. It comes off kind of creepy.”

“Creepy-?!” He choked, indignant at your accusation. “I’ll have you know I am far from such a thing! I’m far too handsome to be considered any sort of creep.”

“Sweetheart, ask literally anybody you’ve flirted with in the last…week.” You mulled it for a second, but the point was made. “Which brings me to the reason I’ve arrived.”

“It wasn’t to bully me and make me feel far worse about myself than any single human should?” He asked, quite deadpan despite the amusing glimmer in your eyes. 

“I was sent here on assignment, Laslow. I’m your new babysitter for the next little while!”

If he didn’t look impressed, he certainly didn’t, now. He looked down at you as if you’d said something utterly ludicrous.

“I beg your pardon?”

“Lord Xander has asked me personally to keep an eye on you for the time being. He’s not happy with your behavior as of late, and wants to make sure you keep the targeting of women in the army down to a minimum.”

He looked absolutely stunned, more so than angered. There was also maybe a hint of embarrassment mixed in as well, although he would never admit that, himself. 

Instead he stared at you in awe, practically shellshocked at the revelation that his own lord would assign him a supervisor. 

“But that’s…that’s utterly ridiculous!”

“Apparently it’s not, dear.” You sighed, patting his shoulder, “He’s gotten a lot of complaints both inside and outside of the army; it’s affecting the image of our troops when our boys are out gallivanting and chasing any and every tail they can get.”

“W-what about Niles?! He’s just as bad as me, if not worse!”

“Well, yes, but he’s a little more discreet about it; he tends to flirt when people approach, rather than chasing them down directly.”

“Oh, come now. It’s practically the same thing! And he’s far more vile than I am.”

“Well, when Prince Xander assigns me to be Niles’ babysitter next, I’ll be sure to let you know. But for now, we ought to focus on getting your behavior back under control.”

“Pah. Unbelievable.”

“Don’t be so grumpy about it!” 

You wrapped your arms around his waist, attempting to disarm him (which, fortunately for you, it was starting to work a little bit).

“How can I not be? He’s treating me like a child!”

“Well, to be fair, you are acting a little foolish around all those sweet ladies.”

“Tch.” He clicked his tongue, looking away bashfully. “Very well, then. If you insist on keeping tabs on me, then we’ll have to put those skills to the test, won’t we?”

“You’re proposing a challenge?”

“Not necessarily,” He winked at you, slipping from your grasp with a rather ominous grin, “I’m just saying. You can’t keep tabs on me if you can’t keep track of me, can you?”

“All right, all right. Don’t do anything stupid.” You laughed, waving dismissively at his revelation. “I’ll be watching you like a hawk, a dancer boy. Don’t think you can escape from me!”

Laslow just waved goodbye and sauntered off to do whatever it was he did when he wasn’t obscenely flirting with strangers. You shook your head, watching him slink away. He wouldn’t be on his own for long…provided he couldn’t stay out of trouble.

-------------------------

For about a day or two, he seemed to hold it together. But it wouldn’t be much longer before that fell apart. 

The poor mercenary was just trying to do his best to enjoy his time alone. Your job made that practically impossible. It was getting to the point that even if a girl did start to show him a little bit of attention, you were still jumping in the way so that he couldn’t even get a shot with her if he wanted it.

Laslow was absolutely annoyed. But worse yet, you were seriously cramping his style whenever he tried to put some moves on.

The good news was that the complaints had stopped.

Xander was quite pleased with the results, and if you were being honest, so were you; somehow, you’d managed to tame the ridiculous beast that was Xander’s retainer.

It really came to ahead when, after about four days of trying to dodge you and win the hand of some lovely young lady. 

He had a few thoughts about this behavior, but he was wise enough to keep it to himself. Something told him it was best not to question the judgment of the woman whom he was being constantly harassed by, lest he awaken some sort of mischievous revenge.

The pair of you were headed to the bar in town; a village not far from your most recent victory.

Everyone was in high spirits, but you weren’t planning on letting up on your dear Laslow for even a moment. 

Much to his chagrin, you continued to pursue him, and walked right alongside him humming a tuneless song.

“You mustn’t accompany me this time, my dear. It truly isn’t necessary when we’ll all be too drunk to remember what happened tonight by morning.” He attempted to reason with you, but it would not work.

You shook your head with a giggle, bumping his shoulder.

“Of course I have to watch after you! What if the one unlucky gal you try to chat up stays sober? Then we’re both in trouble! You, because, well, you’re you. And me, because my one job is to keep you from sullying the army’s reputation!”

“Come on, Corrin! Cut me a break, just this once!” He was getting more and more annoyed with his situation, and that much was clear.

“I can’t risk it!”

“Oh, I think you can.” He frowned, the agitation starting to show on his face. He crossed his arms, taking quite the accusatory tone. “In fact, I think you’ve been going overboard this whole time on purpose!”

“Why would you say something foolish like that?”

“Because you fancy me, don’t you?”

Your face blanched.

“You…I…what?”

“Ah-ha!” He pointed a finger at you, smirking. “You’ve liked me this whole time, and Lord Xander’s orders were naught but a ruse so you could get closer to me!”

You stared at him for a long moment, trying to decide exactly what to do with the man who was quite possibly the strangest, most ignorant and oblivious creature you’d ever known.

After a while, though, you smiled and shrugged, deciding it best to simply speak the truth.

“Well of course I want to get closer to you. You’re one of the people I care about the most!”

“W-what?” He faltered, his hand quickly falling. “Seriously? I was right?!”

“I mean, I don’t know about the whole ‘I fancy you’ thing, but I certainly do enjoy being around you. And it’s been fun messing with you and stuff, so I haven’t really minded this.”

“Oh, whatever.” He waved you off with a click of his tongue, the agitation returning full force.

You laughed again, brighter than before. 

“I’m sorry!! It’s just that you make it so easy with your bad flirting. Even the drunk girls wouldn’t give a second of their time to you, whether or not you corner them. I just want to keep you out of trouble, Laslow. Let me do my job, huh?”

“So I don’t even get one day off? Not even one chance to try and get my shot in there with some lucky lady?”

You rolled your eyes, resting a hand on your hip.

“You think you can pull one girl that won’t report you for harassment and get us both in trouble?” 

Laslow winked at you, “I’ll never flirt with another woman ever again if I can’t pick up a single beauty tonight.”

At this, your curiosity piqued.

“Really? You’d be willing to stake your flirting rights on one night?”

Again he waved a dismissive hand, and stooped over to pluck a few particularly charming little wildflowers from the path side. 

“Of course! If I must put my all into it, then the game will have completely changed. If you let me try and win over a single beauty tonight, and I fail, then I shall never flirt again. However, if I do succeed, you have to back off.”

“But then I’d be disobeying a direct order from Lord Xander.” You pointed out, not thrilled with the outcome, judging that he’d likely have your head if that was the reason Laslow’s behavior went unchecked again.

“That’s true… Very well then, instead of ceasing your operations completely, you only step in once every five attempts.”

“Every five?! How will I explain the break in my immaculate record?!”

“Hey, if I have to go completely cold turkey, you have to throw me a bone! Come on, these are high stakes for both of us! It’s only fair.”

“Hrmm…” You rubbed your chin, considering the option. It was certainly a gamble, but if it meant keeping Laslow out of trouble for the foreseeable (eternal) future, then…

“Well?”

“All right, it’s a deal.” You held your hand out, which he gladly took up. “You win, then I’ll back off. I win, you’re a virgin forever.”

“I-I’m not a virgin!!”

“That’s exactly what a virgin would say.”

“Shut up.” He pushed you away, earning a cackle as you scampered back to his side. The poor mercenary was at a loss with what to do with you.

The pair of you continued down the path to the village tavern, catching up with the rest of your comrades. 

The festivities were already in full swing, raucous cheers and mead abound in the boisterous place.

It was a delight to see. 

But the real fun was about to begin, once the challenge officially initiated.

Laslow started off fairly strong, sweeping the room with expert analysis in search of a willing participant in the battle of wits.

You deliberately kept your distance, opting to find a few pints for the two of you while he started sober. It was his best chance at success, after all.

He persisted with stronger-than-usual charm. 

Locating his first potential new girlfriend, his eyes sparkled brighter and his grin was far wider than usual, and he swung in with easily one of his best lines (learned from his father, no doubt).

One of the little wildflowers was presented to a lovely young woman with flowing lavender hair. You watched behind your cup as he spoke some sweet nothings to her, and leaned in closer. It seemed to be going fairly well.

Then she stuck her nose up and turned on her heel, striding away from him in a huff. Laslow’s shoulders slumped. 

You closed the distance with a soft snicker, offering the pint for him to take. 

“So, what are your odds tonight, do you think?”

He took it with a glare, straightening his shoulders again. “I think we’re just getting started.”

-------------------------

Laslow just didn’t get it. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how sweet or tender or empathic he was, the girls just wouldn’t take the bait.

No amount of flowers or polite compliments were getting him progress, neither were his more bold and daring pick-up lines.

The night was nearly over, but he remained empty handed and fruitless in his pursuit. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t getting frustrated, but what made this all the more agitating was the fact that there was so much pressure on this night being successful.

You, on the other hand, were starting to feel a bit bad. His attempts were starting to get more and more desperate, and he was starting to lose faith. 

Not to mention, if Xander saw you letting this happen willy-nilly, there’d be a number of reports coming in about Laslow…which would reflect quite poorly on your job performance.

A deal was a deal, but…this was just getting hard to watch.

The clock was closing in on midnight, and the festivities were starting to die down. If somebody out there wasn’t already passed out and drunk on the floor, there were soldiers hobbling together in an attempt to return to camp.

Laslow, in the meantime, was a bit ditsier, a bit clumsier with some alcohol in him, but he was still doing his damndest to get some results.

“Hey, uhh…Laslow?” You stalked up to him, taking a seat at the bar where he seemed to be resigning his victory. “Should we call it that?”

“No!” He protested, “I’ve still got time! The night can go long into the next day. It’s only almost midnight!”

“Shouldn’t we call it, though? Everyone who’s sober enough to show any interest in you is probably gone by now, and the drunk ones will kick your ass if you say the wrong thing.”

“It has happened twice already.” Laslow sighed, rubbing at the red sore on his cheek. You had not witnessed the slap, but you did hear it resonate across the tavern.

“That doesn’t look like it feels good.” You reached up, tentatively touching his face to inspect the wound. Laslow froze up, just slightly, feeling the gentle touch of a woman (it had not happened in a while).

You stared intently at it, frowning when you realized it would likely swell more than already without a little bit of treatment.

“Laslow, I think we ought to call it. You did your best, but I think you’re gonna have to concede on this one.”

“I just don’t know what I did wrong. I’ve tried so hard, yet I cannot seem to woo like my father did.” Laslow sighed, “I leave him a poor legacy.”

“I doubt you wooed your dad. That’d be kind of weird.” You laughed softly, gently stroking his cheek. “Come on, we should head back. We can celebrate my victory over some dessert.”

Laslow leaned into your hand for just a moment longer, and if you weren’t mistaken…your heart might have skipped a beat.

That’s when something shifted.

Laslow’s eyes opened wide, and he grabbed your wrist, trapping you before you could escape him.

“Corrin…you’re blushing.”

“What?”

“You’re blushing, aren’t you?” He leaned in closer, inspecting your face. “You’re blushing!”

“Am not!” You huffed, trying to tug your hand away. “I’m just red from the mead. I’m a little tipsy!” 

“But you were being so tender, checking my wound, and we’re so close together now, and…you’re definitely redder than before.”

“Shut up.”

“No, no, no! Not so fast,” He grinned, moving from your wrist to your hand. He squeezed it gently, slipping from his seat so he might pull you to his chest. “Corrin, are you perhaps…a little bit interested in your friend?”

You glared at him, though it was to be noted that there was little malice to be found. 

“I’m interested in seeing you put a stop to your antics! Just accept your loss so we can go home.”

“Don’t avoid the topic, young lady.” He slipped his arms around your waist, grinning broadly. “You’re the only beauty I haven’t tried to romance tonight. Won’t you at least give me one more chance before you doom me to bachelordom for the rest of my life?”

“I could, but…I don’t see much fun in that.” You rolled your eyes at him, “Besides, won’t that defeat the whole purpose? If you romance me, then you get to go around gallivanting and romancing everyone again!”

“Not if I can actually make it work.” He shook his head, glancing around the emptied tavern. Rather than subject the poor bartender to more secondhand embarrassment, he took your arm and strode from the place, taking you into the moonlit pathway back home.

“What are you proposing?”

“A truce, perhaps?” His suggestion did make you quirk an eyebrow, and you looked up at him, intrigued. He slipped his arm around yours, starting the slow trek home.

“And what exactly would that entail?”

“If I’m able to romance you, and win you over as I was supposed to win over any of those other beauties in that tavern…perhaps I could consider stopping my more frivolous pursuits, in favor of spending a little more time with you?”

“A little more time?”

“Yes. Just with you, exclusively. And in exchange, instead of trying to stop my romantic gestures that would be solely targeted at you, you allow me to continue to win you over.”

“Really? You’d want to drop all that casanova stuff for annoying old me?”

“Something tells me you weren’t just being annoying without a little bit of cause.” Laslow hummed, “In fact, I noticed a little while ago that you seemed to be noticeably aggressive even when I was starting to find some progress with other women.”

“I don’t know what you mean.” You huffed, “I don’t care what you do!”

“When it doesn’t work.” He smiled softly, “My goodness, Corrin…if I knew you had such a cute little crush on me, I would have stopped fooling around much sooner! You didn’t have to do this whole backwards thing where you bullied me away from other girls.”

“I didn’t- Xander asked me to- you’re such a-!!” You dissolved into laughter, pushing Laslow away. He chuckled, seeing your bubbly personality shine through your bashfulness at being discovered. 

“But you can’t deny it fully, can you?”

“Maybe I can’t. We’re best friends.” You finally sighed, “And I don’t want to mess that up by trying to court you and then it falls apart. I don’t know what I’d do if you weren’t hanging out with me every day!”

“I would never stop spending time with you, even if we tried to be in a relationship and it fell apart. Our trust in each other goes much deeper than that. Besides…even if you can be a pest, I can’t imagine that a relationship with you would be anything but exhilarating and fun.”

You narrowed your eyes at him, and crossed your arms. “Really? After all the annoying stuff I’ve done to keep you from messing about, you’d be willing to date me anyways?”

“Of course I would.”

“Even though you think I’m a dorky little brat, who gets in your way all the time even if Xander doesn’t order it?”

“Er, it’s Lord Xander, but I would not change my answer. I think you’re a wonderful person despite how annoying you can be. Besides, it’s not like I can say anything-- you’re someone very important to me, like Odin and Serena. Though, if we’re being honest…I would not be opposed to saying my affection for you goes a little deeper.”

“Ugh…you’re literally just saying that because you found out that I might like you.” You rolled your eyes to brush him off, but he catches your hand again, drawing you back in with a twirl.

“If that were true, I wouldn’t spend everyday with you! Orders or not, we spend far more time together than we do with the others. I think it’s safe to say that we tend to get along quite well…maybe even more than we do with anyone else.”

“Maybe.” You grinned at him, and you continued your trek home, a contemplative air taking hold of the quiet. “Well…I guess…I wouldn’t be opposed to trying a more serious relationship. But if it doesn’t work out-”

“-Don’t even entertain that thought.” He shushed you gently, “Let’s just see where the wind takes us, hm? We’ve come this far together! I wouldn’t risk our time together for anything- know that I’ll trust you and care for you no matter what happens.”

“Careful, Laslow- that’s starting to sound like a proposal!”

Laslow would be quick to dismiss such a notion- after all, you’d only just agreed to try and date him!

But there would be some truth in what you said; within a few months, that dating turned into a deeper, sweeter relationship.

And not long after that, there was a proposal in the air…an engagement ring, followed by a pair of wedding rings, and a massive celebration.

Naturally, Xander was completely baffled when he found the woman he’d tasked with keeping Laslow out of trouble had somehow roped the playboy into marriage.

Your clear happiness and trust in one another kept him from questioning it too much; so long as you were keeping each other safe and clear of mischief, he was happy to consider your mission a success.

At least until you started getting into trouble as a team…then it was a whole new can of wyverns.