Robin breathed a sigh of relief and removed his hood. Sometimes he just had to get out of his office and the castle, and just be Robin instead of Grandmaster Robin. Sticking his hands in the nondescript coat he wore when he wanted to get away, Robin casually strolled through the streets of Ylisstol.
He loved just watching people go about their lives with no threat of imminent annihilation. It was also nice not to be flogged by citizens whether they touted him as a hero or the monster that got someone they knew killed in his ruthless schemes. Neither image was particularly pleasing to him.
He was perhaps the most controversial man in the country.
Robin smiled politely as a family moved past him. A melancholy gaze struck his features for a moment at seeing the children. He still wondered what it would be like to have children of his own.
That would not do. Robin knew what laid down that thought process, and he had no desire to go down that road again.
Speaking of roads, he had found himself on a road leading to the poorer part of town. It was close to the border between the slums and the normal residential neighborhood. A buffer zone of sorts. He certainly would not want to be there after dark, but it was the fastest way to get to a particular stand he liked to frequent when he went out on his little excursions.
On his way, he noticed what looked like a chess board sitting out on the side of the street. Looking around, he could not see the owner, but the crudely formed pieces were placed as if it was being played. Looking the match over, his analytical mind started to take over. He told himself that he should leave it be, but there was a perfect opening. Moving one of the darker brown pieces-he assumed it was supposed to be black-he set up a clever maneuver if said so himself. Smiling at his work, he continued on his way.
About ten minutes later, Robin arrived at a local flower stand. There were flower stands in the main market, but they were never seemed as good as these. That, and the company just much better he thought.
"Robin!" An older woman with streaks of gray through her hair greeted, "Here for the usual?"
"Yes. One of your finest please."
Amanda laughed, "You're such a romantic. You could learn a thing from him Mitchel."
"Oi! Robin!" The hardy man in worn, brown overalls gave a laugh of his own, "Must you keep making me look bad?"
"Hey, as long as I pay."
"True enough. I'll have your order in just a moment."
"So," Amanda smiled kindly-not the amused kind, the sympathetic kind-while they waited, "How are things going with you two?"
"Better," Robin smiled back. Amanda was kind of like what he imagined a grandmother would be like. Sweet, kind, and somewhat nosey with good intentions. He would not have it any other way. "We've been keeping ourselves busy." They both had been burying themselves in work lately. Bitterly, he thought as to why, but they were pushing through it. They were coping…or were they hiding?
"Here ya go, laddy," Mitchel emerged with a bouquet of daisies-it was their flower after all.
"Thanks," he handed the couple their money and started back toward the castle with a short farewell.
On his way back, he noticed the chess board again, but upon closer inspection, he noticed that someone had made a move. Raising his brow, he analyzed the development. It was a well thought out move, if not a little elementary. Still, his interest was piqued.
Robin thought it out and moved another piece before going on his way.
It was a few hours later before he finally called it a day. He had ordered something to eat seeing as they had both missed dinner again. He knew this was not a healthy lifestyle for either of them, but he kept telling himself it was only temporary.
He distracted himself with something from the pile of books Sumia had lent him until he heard the door to their apartment open. Grabbing the flowers from the vase, he went to greet his wife.
Lucina was a mess. She was positively drenched in sweat, her hair was disheveled and uncared for, and her clothes were covered with dirt. Nothing out of the ordinary. She had taken to training guards and soldiers to the point where even Frederick had called for a break once or twice. Once they were pushed to exhaustion, she trained alone for a few more hours. If Robin's lifestyle was unhealthy, Lucina's was downright self-destructive.
"I got you these," Robin presented the flowers.
"Thank you," Lucina smiled, but the gesture was hollow. Robin hated that hollow smile that he was getting all too accustomed to as of late. He felt so helpless.
Robin told her of his day including the odd chess board, but she simply nodded occasionally and nibbled lightly on her food.
"If you don't like it, I can order something else."
"No, it's fine."
"Lucina," Robin put a hand on hers, "You need to eat."
"I'm fine."
Robin had to resist the urge to tell her that she was definitely not fine! However, he knew that would not do any good right now. Right now, the only thing he knew to do was to be there for her.
Not that he was not hurting himself, but she came first. She always came first.
The following day, he decided to get some air again. He normally did not do it more than one day in a row, but part of him was curious about his chess match. He knew he should not expect it to still be set up overnight, but he was curious and he needed the distraction.
To his surprise, the board was set up again exactly as it was before save for his opponent's move.
Robin smiled to himself, "Alright, let's see what you got." He made another move and went on his way. He stopped by the flower shop again, but decided against buying anything this time. He did not want to overdo it. At any rate, they were wonderful company.
After that, he started to make daily rounds for his chess game. His opponent seemed to get bolder and they were able to do two moves a day. Whoever he was facing was clever. He never came close to losing, but there was a spark of promise in his opponent especially considering that they may have been rather young as there were not many adults outside in that part of town at that time of day. He wanted to fan that spark, but to do that, he had to find his opponent.
Easy enough.
Lucina noticed Robin's absences. She acted like she did not, but she did. Every day at lunch he left for about an hour or so. She may not have noticed had she not been practically dragged from the training yard by her father and mother for lunch one afternoon.
His absence at lunch had been the first giveaway. After that, it did not take long for her to find out he had been leaving at almost the same time every day. Most thought little of it, he had been known to take walks to clear his head after all, but thoughts started to creep their way into Lucina's mind. Terrible thoughts.
She told herself that was impossible, but…she could not help but feel that he was disappointed with her; that he was trapped in a marriage that could not give him what he wanted.
Robin's plan was so simple it could barely qualify as a plan. All he figured he had to do, was to make his move like usual, but instead of going on his way, he would hide and hopefully catch his opponent making a move.
So, he made his move, walked away like normal, and sidestepped into an alley after he deemed himself far enough away. After that, he slowly and quietly made his way back to the board in time to catch a hooded figure examining it looking for their next move.
Robin approached as they were making their move, "Not bad, but I would have moved the knight."
"Wah!" The figure fell backwards causing her hood to fall revealing her face. Robin was surprised by just how young she looked. She had short, light brown hair that reminded him a little of Sumia's in color. Her brown eyes showed her surprise clearly. Something he would need to tend to.
"Woah," Robin put his arms up in a calming manner, "Sorry if I spooked you. My name's Robin, and I take it you're the one I've been playing with?"
"Er, yeah," she replied meekly as she seemingly sunk into her threadbare cloak, "I was playing by myself since no one else wants to play, but I hid when I saw you coming. I decided to see if you would come back and reset the board the next day."
"I see," Robin contained a grin, "You're a rather clever girl. Where did you learn to play?"
"A friend of mine used to play, but then they moved away. Now I don't have anyone to play with. At least not until you came. You're not going to stop playing with me, are you?" The look in her eyes was as if the fate of her entire world rested on his answer.
"I'd love to keep playing with you; however, I'd also like to offer you a job."
"A job?" she tilted her head, "What kind of job?"
"As my assistant. Maybe even apprentice."
"I don't know…" she backed away from Robin warily, but Robin just chuckled a little.
"That's good. I might have to rescind my offer if you accepted just like that." Robin pulled a slip of paper out of his coat, "Here, take this and look it over with your parents you can. If they approve and you want the job, come to the castle gates tomorrow morning and show them that paper. You…do have parents, right?" He made sure it had the royal insignia and that the paper reeked of royalty in the all too likely scenario that none of them could read.
The girl nodded meekly while holding the paper as if it were a sacred treasure, "You work at the castle, mister?"
"I do," Robin smiled-perhaps one of the most genuine smiles he had smiled in a long time.
"What do you do?"
"That's somewhat complicated. The letter explains it all. I hope I see you tomorrow, uh, excuse me, but I never asked your name."
"Morgan."
"Morgan. I hope to see you tomorrow. Now, I should get going. Goodbye."
"Bye."
Robin found himself smiling the whole way back. He hoped that he could really help that girl. Plus, they could use a little excitement around. Their lives had seemed so…colorless lately.
That night, when Robin handed her something to eat and pretended that she did not look like something that had washed up on a riverbank, Lucina felt even more guilty about her suspicions, but they still festered like an infection.
"Lucina? Are you okay?" Robin looked at her with a slight smile, but his eyes shown with concern driving the dagger of guilt even further into her heart.
"Sorry, you were saying?"
Robin let her behavior drop and repeated what he had said, "I may be getting an assistant soon."
"Oh?" A female one? Part of her mind asked.
"Yeah, it's quite the story," Robin seemed to relish that she was actually showing interest in something he said, but he did not seem to pick up on why she was interested.
He proceeded to recount what he had been doing when he left every day. Chess. He had been leaving to play chess. On top of that, he was helping a little girl. If she had not felt terrible before, she certainly did now.
"I see," was her only reply once he had finished his story.
"You should come by some time. Meet her."
Was he trying to…?
"Maybe, some time. If it works out."
Despite the non-committal response, Robin seemed rather pleased with himself.
Morgan looked down at the paper and then up to the monolithic castle. She felt even smaller than usual. She was tempted just to turn back then and there, but she was intrigued. Besides, surely nothing bad would happen in the castle. Exalt Chrom was renowned for his kindness and would never allow anything bad in his castle.
The girl cautiously approached the intimidating guards, "Um, excuse me."
"Huh?" They both looked down at her, "What do you want?"
The other guard elbowed him for his gruff response before kneeling down to talk to her, "Sorry about him. Can I help you, young lady?"
"I was told to give you this," She held out the paper for the guard to read.
"So, you're the one Grandmaster Robin was waiting for. Alright," the guard tapped his spear on the cobblestone signaling for the gate to open, "Give this to the woman waiting inside. She'll take you to see him."
Morgan did as she was instructed and was guided through many big corridors that continued to make her feel smaller until finally arriving at an oak door. The maid knocked and Morgan was ushered in before the maid took her leave.
"Ah, Morgan!" Robin dropped what he was doing and stood up, "I'm glad to see that you accepted."
"Um," Morgan looked around and the office, "What am I supposed to do?"
"Well," Robin leaned against his desk like he had seen Chrom do, "I actually wanted to evaluate your abilities for a bit. I'll have you do a few menial tasks so I can technically classify you as an assistant and therefore pay you, but I want to focus on your testing for the time being."
"What kind of tests?"
"Just some stuff to see your potential as a tactician."
"Tactician? What is that?"
"Hmm, I make plans regarding the military. Stuff like armies. Think of it like real life chess." A gross oversimplification, but the heavy stuff would come later.
"Oh," Morgan went silent again for a few moments.
"So, I'd like to start with a few questions. For starters, can you read or write?"
"No. Is that a problem?"
"To be honest, I kind of expected as much. It's why I chose the fanciest paper I could find to write that letter on. Don't worry, I'll teach you."
Morgan's eyes lit up, "Really?"
"Yeah. I don't quite remember learning myself, but I'll figure something out."
"With that out of the way, shall we continue with your tests?"
Just as Robin had predicted, Morgan showed a great potential for learning in general and strategy in particular despite what he imagined was a fairly stinted development thus far. She was understandably rough around the edges, but the spark of intellect and cunning was definitely there. He just had to help her refine it.
By the end of the day, she had warmed to him slightly, and while he considered that a small victory, he was a bit disappointed that Lucina had not paid them a visit.
"Same time tomorrow?" Robin asked as he grabbed his coat.
"Sure," she walked beside him though she seemed sad to leave, "I'd like that."
"Tomorrow I need to see about getting you some new clothes," he commented absently as he led her through the castle corridors. He turned his head and gave her a brief smile, "My apprentice should look the part after all."
"Apprentice?" she tilted her head.
"Yes," Robin laughed, "You passed. If you want to, I'll train you in the ways of a tactician."
"Wow," her mouth hung limp in awe, "Thank you!"
"Heh, don't mention it," Robin stopped at the gate, "Well, we're here. Be safe and hurry home before it gets dark."
Robin smiled and waved when she waved him a farewell. Yes, he would try to make sure she did well.
That night, Robin regaled Lucina with tales of Morgan's potential. She seemed to be listening for once, which Robin thought was a good sign. At least, he did until she abruptly excused herself and retired to bed leaving Robin alone at the table.
Robin sighed rubbing his hand through his hair. He was too excited about Morgan to realize that it was probably the last thing Lucina wanted to hear. How could he be so insensitive?
He just wished that he could make her happy again. She had every right to be upset, but he hated seeing her so depressed. He knew he was partly to blame too. He wanted a family and she knew it. Lucina being the way she was, she inevitable felt as if she had let him down. He was disappointed, yes, there was no reason to deny that, but he certainly did not blame her. He just wished that he could convince her of that.
Of course, that was not the only reason she was depressed. She wanted a family too. For such a long time, she considered it only a dream. She came so close to that dream though. She had finally allowed herself to believe that she could have her own family, but then that dream was wrenched frim her grasp. It had been understandably hard on her, and Robin did not know what to do.
Robin blew out the last candle and slowly made for their shared bedroom.
The next morning, Robin made for the library before Morgan came by. He perused the children's literature section for books to help teach Morgan to read, but he honestly felt like he was in over his head. He did not know how to teach someone to read. He did not even remember learning himself.
He was looking through the shelves when Sumia came up to him with little Lucy following behind her.
"Robin, what brings you by here?"
"Hi, uncle Robin!"
"Hey," he smiled at Lucy before addressing her mother, "I was looking for some reading materials for beginners."
"Oh?" she cocked her head, "Why's that?"
Robin proceeded to tell her about his new apprentice and his plans to educate her in the ways of strategy.
"That's nice. I would love to help if you need anything."
"Well," Robin rubbed his head awkwardly, "I could use your help with this reading business."
"Right, you don't remember being taught," Sumia smiled, "I'd love to help!"
Sumia eagerly went about helping Robin picking out materials for Morgan. He appreciated the enthusiasm, but he still felt a little out of his depth. Especially against Sumia's daunting enthusiasm.
Still, Robin did his best to begin her studies. He would start with the fundamentals before moving into strategy proper. However, after lunch, Robin took Morgan to get fitted for some new clothes to replace the rags she wore. Morgan was a little apprehensive, but Robin chalked that up to a strange new environment.
Despite his own misgivings, Robin thought that Morgan's training was going well, but his home life was another story. He still had no idea how to break Lucina out of her depression. He toned down his praise of Morgan around her though. The last thing she needed to be reminded of was children.
"I have something for you," Robin told Morgan one day as she walked in.
"What is it?" Morgan tried to look behind Robin's back.
"Here you go," Robin handed a box to the girl which she quickly pulled open to reveal her new clothes. They were nothing extravagant, but they were fresh and clean. He even had a pair of boots behind his desk.
"Wow," she pulled out the shirt before catching Robin in a hug, "Thank you!"
Robin chuckled, "I'm not done yet," Robin freed himself and went behind the desk and pulled out the boots and a miniature version of his revised coat-Grimleal symbols removed of course, "I thought it might be fitting since you are my apprentice."
"It's so cool! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
"Don't mention it. Now, go on. Go try it on. The maid will take you somewhere you can change."
She followed her instructions and soon she came back garbed in her new clothes, "How do I look?"
Robin smiled, "Like a little tactician."
After lunch, Robin decided to quiz Morgan while they walked about the castle.
"Uh," Morgan counted her fingers, "Seven?"
"Very good. Now what is–" Robin was distracted when he saw a familiar figure walking toward them, "Lucina. What brings you by?"
"I was just on my way to the training yard," her expression then fell on Morgan who looked back curiously.
"Ah, Lucina, this is Morgan. Morgan, this is Lucina. My wife."
Lucina did not say anything. She just stared. That coat. It looked so much like his. She had thought in the past how cute it would be to have a little tactician running around. Their little tactician.
"Lucina? Is…something wrong."
"Excuse me," she unclenched the fists she had not realized that she had been making and walked away without another word.
"Mister Robin, what's wrong with Lucina?"
Robin sighed, "She's been really sad lately."
"Oh no!" Morgan gasped in shock, "Should we do something? Maybe if we give her a flower bracelet."
Robin smiled weakly, "Thank you, but I don't think that will help right now."
"Oh," Morgan deflated, "I hope she stops feeling sad soon."
"So do I," Robin looked back at the direction Lucina had walked off to, "So do I."
That night, Robin braced himself for when Lucina came home.
"Lucina," he started as soon as she entered the door, "Can we talk? What happened earlier?"
"What happened?" Lucina stared at him in disbelief as her emotions started to break free, "You dressed that child up in a coat like yours and parade her around the castle like she's your own! That's what's wrong, Robin! She's not though! She belongs to someone else."
"Lucina…" he pulled her in for a hug, "I'm sorry if you think I'm trying to make up for what we can't have. Maybe I am in some way. I'm sorry, Lucina. The last thing I wanted was to hurt you."
Robin could feel her sobbing, "I would have loved to have our own little tactician running around in a coat that was too big, but we can't have our own…because of me. I'm so sorry you're stuck with me."
"Lucina," he pulled her back and looked her square in the eyes, "I want to be with you. It's not your fault. I did want kids someday, but I'm still more than happy to spend my days with you, Lucina. You make me happy. Things may not have turned out the way we planned, but we'll keep moving forward. Together. I love you, Lucina."
Lucina sniffled, but the tears had mostly stopped, "I love you too. I-I'm sorry that I've been so distant lately. I just…I felt like I had let you down, and I...I didn't realize how much I wanted them too until I found out…."
"I know," he wiped a tear from her cheek, "You had to work through your grief, but you don't have to do it alone. I'm here for you."
"I know, and I'm here for you. I am sorry I made a hard time harder."
"Think nothing of it," he kissed her forehead, "Like I said, I love you."
Robin awoke before Lucina for a change the next morning. He was glad to see her get the rest she needed so he did his best not to disturb her.
While lying there, he thought to what Lucina had accused him of the night before. Was he trying to make up for his loss?
His mind wandered back to when Lissa first broke the news to them. In hindsight, maybe they should have seen it coming. Lucina had grown up in a desolate waste land. She regularly operated on very little sleep and food, and what food they did have was not typically of great quality. Even the "clean" water they could find was not free of contaminants that they could not always boil away due to the threat of being caught, and the air was heavy with ash. Really, it was not too surprising that it had a lasting effect on her health.
When they were told that there was a ninety-nine percent chance they could not have children and that even if they did conceive, they would probably lose the baby and maybe even Lucina, Lucina did not cry. She barely even reacted. She just excused herself and left, but it quickly became apparent that she took it harder than she wanted to admit.
Last night had been the first time she opened up to him since then. As he admired his wife's sleeping form next to him, he hoped that it did her some good. He knew it was not easy for her to do that despite how close they were.
His attention was then caught by Lucina's stirring, "Hmm, Robin," her eyes quickly gained their focus upon seeing him, "I'm sorry I yelled at you last night."
"It's okay," he took her hand, "You may have had a point. Maybe a part of me was trying to treat her like my own child."
"Hmm, but that's no reason not to help her. If you think she has potential, then you should help her reach it. I-I would also like to make it up to her. I was rather rude yesterday. Do you think we could do lunch?"
"I think that'd be great," he kissed her lightly, "Unfortunately, I do have to get up now."
"Well, I'm ready for lunch," Robin closed the ledger and Morgan looked up from her own papers with an assortment of letters on it, "How about you?"
"Uh-huh!" she nodded enthusiastically.
"Come on then," Robin stood and made for the door with Morgan tailing shortly behind him.
"You remember Lucina, right, Morgan?" Morgan nodded to the affirmative, "Well, how would you feel about meeting her for lunch?"
"Is she feeling better?"
"I think so. We talked last night and she had a good cry."
"She cried?" The concern in Morgan's voice was touching.
"Yes. Sometimes a good cry can make you feel better though. She had been keeping her sad thoughts to herself and didn't let them out. It just made her feel worse."
"What was making her sad?"
"Er, I'd rather not talk about it."
"Does it make you sad too?"
Yes. "Yeah, but I'll be fine," he ruffled her hair, "Don't you worry about me."
Robin was spared any more conversation in that line when they arrived at the picnic table in the garden that Robin and Lucina liked to visit from time to time.
"Hello, Morgan," Lucina greeted with a smile. Robin noticed that it did not look as forced as her smiles typically did recently, "I would like to apologize for my behavior yesterday."
"It's okay!" Morgan beamed, "You were sad. I don't like being sad either, but it's better now, right?"
Lucina looked into her expectant eyes, "I-I suppose I am feeling a little better."
"Yay!" Morgan smiled.
"So, uh, what are we eating?"
"Oh," Lucina hefted a basket off one of the seats, "I prepared a little something."
"You did?" she had not cooked since the news.
"I may not be as good as mother, but I wanted to give it a try. It's nothing too fancy though."
"I'm sure it's fine," Robin gave her a chaste peck on the cheek.
"Robin," Lucina blushed, "Morgan is right there."
"Er, sorry Morgan."
Morgan did not reply, but she seemed intrigued by the way they were acting. Throughout the meal, Morgan seemed intent on making sure that Robin and Lucina were happy, and Robin could not help but smile at her attempts to cheer them up. All in all, it was a pleasing time. Morgan even seemed to genuinely like her sandwich.
After that, Lucina continued to improve. She was still haunted from time to time, but she was willing to talk about it at least. Robin also felt relief at getting to let out some of his concerns as well.
Morgan continued to advance in her schooling and was picking up her letters and numbers at-according to Sumia and the royal tutors-an exceptional rate. However, Robin did notice that she always changed bag into her rags before going home and kept her new clothes in his office. He thought that maybe she did not want to get them dirty, but he still found it a bit odd.
One afternoon, Sumia paid Robin and Morgan a visit with Lucy in tow, "Hello, Sumia. What brings you by?"
"Oh, I was curious to see your apprentice," she saw Morgan looking at her curiously in her mini tactician's garb, "She's adorable!"
"Robin, who is that?" Morgan looked uneasily at the nearly bouncing woman.
"This is Sumia. A, er, friend." Robin decided not to mention the fact that she was both queen and Lucina's mother, "And this is her daughter, Lucy."
"Hello!" Lucy beamed, "Do you want to play?"
Sumia looked to Robin, "Do you mind?"
"I think she's earned a break. What do you say, Morgan?"
"Sure!"
Lucy and Morgan proceeded to enjoy the lovely weather playing as children did with Robin and Sumia watching them to make sure no one lost an eye.
"I noticed Lucina has been different lately," Sumia observed, "Better."
"She finally opened up."
"That's good," Sumia nodded, "She wouldn't talk to me about it. Not sure I can say that I really blame her given that I…don't know what she's going through."
"She's been through so much. I wish she didn't have to go through this too."
"Or you. You've been through more than you should yourself."
"I guess, but it pales in comparison to what she's been through."
Sumia silently conceded and they watched as Morgan and Lucy ran around the garden, "Morgan seems like a sweet girl. Who are her parents?"
"I don't actually know. She never talks about them."
"That's odd."
"Maybe, but she might just be embarrassed about her home life being here in the royal castle."
"I suppose."
The two dropped the subject and sufficed with small talk until Sumia took Lucy for her next lesson. However, Robin still wondered about what Sumia said. Did she even have parents?
One night, their lessons went a little late. Robin was concerned about her walking home alone so late and offered to walk her home.
"You don't have to do that," Morgan replied uneasily.
"No, I kept you late, and I don't want anything to happen to you on your way home." He grabbed his coat, "Shall we?"
She reluctantly agreed and they were on their way. She was oddly quiet on the way to her house, but Robin thought that she was probably just embarrassed about where she lived after spending so much time in the castle.
"This is close enough," Morgan stopped, "My house isn't far."
Robin eyed her suspiciously with the thoughts of his conversation with Sumia coming to mind, "Maybe, but it's almost dark. I can't just let you walk around alone."
Morgan relented, but she still looked nervous. She barely uttered a word when they arrived at her house. Robin had to admit that he was not expecting what he found. Apparently, she lived in the poorer part of the area that they had first met. The house did not look much larger than his old apartment from when he was single.
Robin walked up the creaky steps and knocked on the door. Nothing. He knocked again, louder, and finally heard a string of curses before the door opened to reveal a man who reeked of alcohol and looked the part of a drunk too.
"What do you want?" he grumbled.
"Er, excuse me, sir. I'm Robin, your daughter's employer. We ran a little late tonight so I thought I'd make sure she got home safely."
"Employer? That runt got a job?"
"Um, yes, sir. She is my apprentice. She didn't tell you?"
"No, she didn't," he eyed his daughter, "Come on, Morgan. We have a lot to discuss."
"I hope you won't be too hard on her for my sake. She is a wonderful apprentice."
The other man said nothing and simply eyed Robin before shutting the door in his face. "Well, um, guess I'll go."
The entire way back to the castle, Robin could not help playing the evening's events through his mind. The way Morgan seemed almost…mortified about Robin coming to her house and the fact she had not told her father about their arrangement. Robin's blood ran cold when he started to piece together a theory and he had to force himself not turn around. He had no proof, but in the back of his mind he wondered, "Have I made a terrible mistake?"
The next morning, Robin got very little done. Morgan was late, and he was worried. Eventually, he grabbed his coat from the back of his chair and left for her house.
About halfway there, Robin realized that he had no plan. If his fears were right, a visit might make things worse. With little else to do, Robin decided to see if he could find anything out about her home life.
"Robin! I haven't seen you in a while. How have you been?" Amanda asked with a smile
"Better, mostly," Robin went on to explain recent developments with Lucina.
"That's good, dear."
"Yes, but I wanted to ask you about something else."
"What is it?"
"Do you know a girl named Morgan?" Robin went on to explain the recent situation.
"Yes, I know her. Sweet girl. Shame that she's the daughter of that man. He drinks something awful. Her mother isn't much better I'm afraid."
"Do…do they hurt her?"
Amanda sighed, "I don't know, but I wouldn't be too surprised."
Robin clenched his teeth, "I need to find her. Do you know where she might like to stay?"
"I'm sorry, I don't."
Robin sighed, "Thanks anyway. See you around."
Robin made off to search the entire neighborhood if he had to. He spent the better part of the morning searching for any sign of her until he finally came across her sitting in an alley with her chess board.
"Hey," he said softly as he sat down next to her, "You should move your rook to take that pawn."
"I know."
"Morgan, I was worried. Why didn't you come in today?" No reply, "Is it your father?" Again, no reply. He leaned forward to get a better look at her face and nearly gasped when he did so. She had a large black eye marring her face. She turned away, but Robin had already seen it.
"Morgan…did he do this to you?"
Morgan whispered out her response, "I…fell." Unlikely. That was not from simple disciplining either. That was abuse plain and simple.
"So why didn't you come in today?"
"I didn't feel well." Now that, he believed.
"Morgan, tell you what, why don't you come by and you can have the day off. We can just talk. Maybe Lucy will be free to play. I might even be able to convince Lucina to make those sandwiches you like so much. What do you say?"
She seemed hesitant, but she slowly nodded her consent. Robin picked up her chess board and pocketed the pieces in his many pockets before leaving the alley with Morgan in tow. Despite his calm appearance though, Robin was seething.
Robin left Morgan under the careful watch of Sumia while he attended to another matter.
"I'm afraid there's nothing I can do," Maribelle told him after he finished telling her what had happened, "You can't just go arrest someone without proof. Chrom probably could if he really wanted to, and he'd probably listen to you if you told him to, but we have laws for a reason. If you cannot get her to testify, then you have no case."
"B-but I can't just leave her with them!" Robin uncharacteristically raised his voice.
"I hate to be the one to bring this up, but have you considered that you might be a little too close to this?" Her words instantly deflated him, "You are usually able to keep calm under pressure, but you and Lucina have undergone a serious grievance. Are you absolutely sure that you are not so protective of this girl because you cannot have children of your own?"
Robin said nothing and after a moment, Maribelle sighed, "I apologize for being so blunt. Believe it or not, I am actually quite fond of you. I realize that I do not have room to talk on the matter, but I do not wish to see you do anything rash."
"Maybe you're right," Robin stared blankly, "Lucina said something similar a couple of weeks ago. Maybe this has affected me more than I realized. Maybe I am trying to make up for what I can't have."
"There is nothing wrong with trying to help this girl, Robin. Do not believe for one moment that I enjoy her predicament, but we must work within the law."
"I know…I know."
"I will check the laws relating to this. See if I can find anything."
"Thanks, Maribelle," Robin took his leave.
At lunch, Robin knew that Lucina noticed Morgan's face, but she did not say anything and only gave Robin an inquisitive glance which he replied with another look telling her that he would tell her later.
Later that night, Lucina asked him about it. When he told her, he could see the mix of shock, horror, and anger flush across her face.
"How could someone do that to their own child!"
"I don't know."
"Can we do anything?"
"I talked with Maribelle. She says that unless Morgan testifies or we can find another witness or some form of proof, there's nothing we can do, and Morgan is unwilling to testify. I think she's terrified of her parents. For now, we just have to be there for her and make her feel safe."
"I don't like this, Robin. I feel helpless to do anything."
"I know, but maybe if she gets more comfortable, she'll testify."
"I hope so. I just don't see why anyone able to have children would treat them so terribly."
"Neither do I, Lucina. Neither do I."
Over the next few weeks, there was a combined effort from Robin and Lucina to make Morgan feel safe with them. Robin even made sure that both Morgan and the guards knew that she was welcome anytime. Lucina had even taken to talking to her some.
However, their efforts never drove her to testify.
"Morgan's already reading," Robin commented as he plucked his boots off, "It's amazing how far she's come."
"She is a sweet girl; I just wish I could do more to help her."
"Well, she showed an interest in learning swordplay after watching us spar. I think she said that we were 'cool.'"
"Perhaps when she is older. Right now, she could barely lift a blade, but I would be more than happy to teach her to defend herself."
Robin nodded and prepared to get into bed when someone knocked at their door. Robin and Lucina shared a look before Robin answered the door. Before he could even ask what was wrong, a small, sobbing figure barreled into him.
"Morgan?" Robin identified the crying form. He pried her off of him and knelt down to look her in the face, "Morgan, what's wrong?"
"D-daddy got extra angry…a-and he…he hurt mommy. She wasn't moving. I think he killed her! Then he came after me, and…and I ran!" She sobbed into his arms again, "I wish I hadn't told you I had a home! I wish I could have stayed with you! You never hurt me like they do."
"Shh, Morgan," he patted her hair, "It's okay now. You're safe. Morgan, I need you to stay with Lucina for a bit while I take care of something. Can you do that for me?"
She nodded her head lightly, "Good girl."
He stood up and faced Lucina and whispered to her, "I'm going to take some guards down."
"I understand," she nodded. Robin had not even fully put on his coat when he left, but she noticed he had both his sword and his tome. Lucina would not have been terribly upset if he used them either.
"Come, dear," Lucina tried to sound as comforting as possible and emulate her mother, "Let's get you something to wear."
Morgan wordlessly complied and Lucina gave her one of Robin's shirts which was big enough to function as a dress for the small girl. Exhausted from her trauma, it did not take much coaxing to get Morgan to go to sleep.
Lucina watched on as she fell into a slumber. She was appalled by what had happened. That girl did not deserve such a hard life. She also felt disgust for anyone who would abuse their own children. Perhaps she felt so strongly because she could not have her own, but she hated the idea of such needless cruelty. Lucina saw the bruises now that she was not wearing a coat, and she was sure that there were more underneath the shirt.
It was half past midnight when Robin finally returned.
"Where's Morgan?" Robin asked while removing his coat.
"Asleep," Lucina noticed blood on one of his glove's knuckles, "Did you actually take any guards with you?"
"Yes," Robin removed the bloodied glove, "Might be why he's still alive."
"So…"
"He killed her mother. Found him drinking at the table like nothing was wrong." Robin clenched his fists, "He won't be bothering anyone again."
"So what about Morgan? What happens to her now?"
"I thought about that," he looked Lucina in the eyes, "I think we should adopt her."
"What?"
"I don't want her to end up on the streets. We are probably the closest thing to family she has."
"What if she has other family though?"
Robin sighed, "Then we'll have to let them take her, but I don't think she does. Lucina, we're all she has. At least not any close family. I won't do this without your support though. We have to be in full agreement."
"I-I want to help her, but…I'm not sure that I'm ready."
"Nonsense, she likes you, and you've been bonding with her lately."
"Being her friend is not the same as being her mother."
"I know, but I think we can do this."
Lucina thought it over looking into her husband's eager eyes, "Very well."
"Thank you," Robin smiled, "Now, let's get some sleep. We can ask her tomorrow."
Robin and Lucina waited for Morgan to wake up so that they could discuss their plan. She understandably slept late, but when she finally did awake, she was greeted by Robin and Lucina's sympathetic faces.
"Hey," Robin sat down on the bed.
"Hey," she looked at him, Lucina, and then back to him, "W-what happened to mommy and daddy?"
Robin swallowed, "Your mother is gone, and your father is in custody."
"Oh," She did not seem particularly upset about that, "Where will I stay now?"
"Well, we've been talking about that, and we would like it if you stayed with us."
"What?"
"We want you to stay here, Morgan," Lucina put her hand on her husband's shoulder, "We want you to join our family, if you want. The choice is yours. You do not have to if you do not want to."
"Y-you mean it?"
"We do," Robin smiled, "We may not be experienced as parents, but we promise that we will do our best. What do you say?"
Robin's response came in the form of a hug as Morgan tried to enclose him in her small arms.
Robin laughed at her response, "I take it that's a 'yes?'"
"Uh-huh," Morgan wiped her eyes, "I'll be the bestest daughter I can!"
"I know you will," he ruffled her hair.
Soon, Morgan would become an official member of their small family. These people had found each other hurting, but together, they would mend. They would become a family.