Why Did You Return?

by beefandrice

When Selena got engaged to Corrin, she thought there was nothing that could ruin the happiness she had been desperately searching for all these year. Perhaps she was wrong. Selena x Corrin

"A toast to future bride to be!" Felicia raised her glass, followed by the sounds of cheering and the clanking of drinks.

"Guys, stop it! You're embarrassing me," Selena scowled, her cheeks crimson red—though deep down she was actually enjoying the attention.

"Look her face is getting all red again! Just like her hair or the blood of our enemies," Peri laughed.

"Aw leave her alone Per," Elfie grunted while taking a large bite off the mutton leg she had ordered instead of a drink, "couldn't you for once not compare something to blood? I'm trying to eat here."

"I'll stop talking about blood when you stop stuffing your face," the paladin stuck her tongue out.

"Watch it smart arse."

"All right enough the both of you," Jakob cut in, "Lord Corrin has left me in charge while he and his brothers scouted ahead, and this bickering simply won't to. We are staying in this inn as guest and we shall behave in a manner that does not embarrass our lords. Is that understood?"

"Yes Jakob," they both muttered.

Selena simply shook her head in amusement before taking a swig from her drink. It had been about a week since the Nohrian amry had set out through the land on their routine delivery of supplies to the more impoverished villages affected by the war by order of Price Corrin. They were taking the opportunity of the current ceasefire between Hoshido and Nohr, as agreed by the Prince Xander of Nohr as well as Prince Ryoma of Hoshido. They had just finished visiting the last village that morning and were scheduled to return back to the capital the next day, where they would report their mission to the royal castle. As the royal retainer to Princess Camila, Selena had been to the castle on several ocassions before; yet now she felt a bit nervous about returning.

She rubbed the gold band located on her finger, currently hidden by her gloves, her mind flooding with concerns, where will my dorm be in the castle? Will I be sleeping with Corrin? What if king Garron doesn't like me? What if he forces Corrin to break our engagement off and pick a "proper" wife? What if this is all just a cruel joke Corrin is playing at my expense? I swear if that's the case I going to take my sword and shove it straight up—

"Hellooooo? Earth to Selena!" He thoughts were suddenly cut off by someone snapping her fingers in front of her face. Annoyed she looked at Keaton giving her a goofy grin while his wolf like ears twitch side to side, "oh good, I thought you might have fallen asleep or something."

Selena snorted, "right, I was asleep with my eyes wide open, because that's a thing people can do. Idiot."

"Well Beruka can do it," Keaton pointed at the blue haired girl sitting quietly amongst them without eating or drinking anything.

"Wait really? I didn't know that," Selena asked genuinely intrigued.

"Yes. I have trained myself to be alert at all times, even when I should be resting. That way nothing can catch me off guard," Beruka answered in her usual deadpan manner.

"Why didn't you ever tell me that?"

"You never asked, and it is not exactly a common topic of conversation."

"You know I'm really going to miss these lively talks with you Beruka; your cheerfulness always did bring light to my usually gloomy day," Selena smirked.

The others couldn't help but snicker at the obviously sarcastic remark, but Beruka's face turned to one of surprise with her cheeks flushing pink, "oh. I never realized you felt that way Selena. I had always thought you only saw me as a comrade in arms and not a close friend."

Aw hell, I forgot she doesn't register sarcasm well, "Beruka I—"

"Unless, you were toying simply with me," the wyvern lord's tone suddenly turned icy cold, sending a collective shiver down everyone's spines—including Peri's.

"N-no of course not!" Selena stammered terrified, "w-why would I toy with my...my...my future maid of honor?"

"...really? Maid of honor?"

"Y-yes?"

"Oh, how wonderful," Beruka said in a tone that seemed devoid of any emotion, "I am grateful that you thought of me first for such an illustrious position. I shall begin training for it immediately," with a small nod the blue haired assassin left the table and headed towards her quarters.

"Soooo is anyone going to tell her that there is no "training" to be a maid of honor?" Charlotte asked nervously.

"Yeah anyone with a death wish," Niles chuckled.

"In that case go right on ahead Niles," Elfie snorted.

"Still angry about my "etiquette lessons" with Lady Elise? There's no need to be jealous Elfie, you are more than welcomed to join us. After all, three is always more fun than two," Niles smiled.

"You miserable little—"

"Hey, no fighting because of me!" They heard someone huff behind them. They turned to see the two Nohrian princess walking towards them. Elise, the small, blonde ball of sunshine wearing a black dress with frills, and Camila the tall, curvaceous woman sporting black armor and purple hair.

"Ten hut!" Selena barked, causing everyone to stand up and salute the royals.

"Oh my, at ease Selena. We're not here for business," Camila chuckled.

"Yeah! We´re here to see our brand new sister!" Elise squealed before jumping onto the unexpected redhead and crushing her into a tight hug, "Corrin told us the great news; congratulations!"

"Lady Elise...my ribs..." Selena gasped.

"Indeed. To think my sweet baby brother had eyes for my darling little retainer. Though I can't blame him, you are so cute!" Camila coed pulling Selena onto her chest for her own hug.

"L-Lady Camila..." Selena stammered, her face burning up.

"Ah, ah, ah, no more of this "Lady Camila" nonesense," the princess tutted pinching the girl's cheek playfully, "We're family now, and I won't have you addressing me in any other way than that. So from now on, when you're not on duty, you will refer to me as "Big Sister". Understood?"

"B-but I—"

"Understood?"

"Y-yes big...big sister," Selena mumbled, causing the others to laugh slightly. She felt embarrassed yet at the same time more overjoyed than she thought possible.

"See, doesn't that feel better?" Camila hummed stroking her flaming red hair lovingly, "but remember one important thing love."

"What is it, big sister?" Selena looked up.

The princess gave her a the sweetest smile she had ever seen, "if you ever hurt my dear Corrin, I will kill you slowly and painfully; and even if you run away, I will chase you down to hell itself and drag you someplace much, much worse."

"Eeep..."

"Camila! Stop threatening our sister!" Elise puffed her cheek in annoyance, "we're suppose to be welcoming her into the family, not scaring her; we already have father for that."

"Oh don't worry Elise. I'm sure our darling new sister is smart enough to never hurt Corrin, so we won't have to worry about that; and why would she? There is no kinder, gentler person than my beloved Corrin, and hurting him would be like kicking a poor lost puppy in the rain."

"Yep, you're really lucky Selena! There's no one like Corrin!" Elise chirped before sitting between Arthur and Elfie.

"Yeah...no one..." Selena muttered softly.

"What was that dear?" Camila asked.

"Nothing, just...talking to myself..."

"Hmmm."

Selena was about to change the subject when she noticed Laslow and Odin coming from their dorms upstairs. Upon seeing that she spotted them, Laslow gestured her outside before stepping out with the blonde spellcaster.

"Excuse me big sister, but I think I need some fresh air," Selena excuse herself. Camila smiled and nodded, stepping out of the way and then taking a seat next to Niles.

"Just don't take too long; we still need to finish celebrating your engagement!" Keaton called out.

"Indeed! Three cheers for our companion and her soon to be happy life!" Arthur raised his mug, followed by another round of cheers.

Meanwhile Selena stepped outside and found her two friends talking to each other; Laslow was standing patiently, his hero attire flowing gently with the wind, while Odin ran by him a list of names and posses, most likely the newest batch for his "epic" attacks for fighting evil.

"I call this one the "Demon Purger", where I crouch low and call forth the darkness within my very soul, before expelling it all force in a glorious blast of golden flames!"

"Wait, if you're calling forth the "darkness" within you, why is the attack gold?"

"Hey, no interruptions! I'm in the middle of something really cool here!"

"Ahem," Selena cleared her throat loudly in order to get their attention.

"Ah, good evening Selena," Laslow smiled at her.

"Indeed! Fate itself has called this meeting between the three of us, the chosen heroes of time and space! We who crossed the boundaries that separate this world with ours and—"

"Will you be quite?!" Selena whispered angrily, causing Odin to clamp down, "and will you stop almost blowing our cover everytime you give one of your speeches?!"

"S-sorry..."

Selena sighed and rubbed her temples, "nevermind that. Just tell me why you guys called me out here."

"Well first off we wanted to congratulate you for the big news," Odina explained dropping his usually theatrical speech, "and also, to do this!"

"What are you—HEY!" Selena was cut off when Odin grabbed her in a bear hug, picking her off the ground and spinning her around, "Put me down you oaf!"

"Can't, I'm way too happy!" Obin laughed, "Our friend is getting married!"

Selena groaned and place her hand on her face, "why am I friends with you?"

"All right Odin, that's enough," Laslow laughed, "I understand you being excited, but let's not go overboard. This is suppose to be Selena's special day, so let's not make her angry."

"You guys are no fun," Odin pouted putting the red haired hero down.

"In all seriousness though, congratulations. Lord Corrin is a good man, and I believe you two will be happy together," Laslow said giving his friend a less aggressive hug.

Despite herself Selena couldn't help but smile as she returned the hug, "thanks guys."

"Now tell us how it happened; did he make a grand gesture? Were there witnesses around to see it? Was it epic? Come on, spill the beans!" Owain asked excitedly.

"Yes Odin. Corrin rode in a flaming field on a white stallion with the entire Nohrian army present to profess his love for me while wyverns flew above us," Selena rolled her eyes.

"Okay I know you're making fun of me, but that does sound pretty epic. Mind if I use that?"

"Knock yourself out."

"Ignoring our friend's foolishness, I am curious as to how you two got engaged. Lord Corrin does seem a bit short on the bold side, so I'm having trouble thinking how he managed to get the courage to ask for your hand in marriage. No offense but you are a bit aggressive to say the least."

"Well, actually," Selena laughed sheepishly, "it was...kinda...my idea..."

"...what?"

"We had been spending more time together, and he was always really nice to me even when I wasn't. Then a few days ago he bought me a yukata that was exactly like the one I lost, and he said he was "fond" of my more...fiery personality, so I may have...sorta...dared him to marry me," Selena finished feeling her face grow hot.

Laslow and Odin just stood there in shock, unsure of what to say next. They weren't even sure if Selena was being serious or if she was just being her usually snarky self; but the blush on her face and the way she was wringing her hands soon dispelled any doubts they had about the authenticity of her claims.

And it was at that moment that they both burst out laughing.

"H-HEY!"

"You know what, I'm not surprised at all," Laslow said between laughs.

"Indeed, and to think that I suggested that she would be the fair, delicate maiden who would have been swept off her feet by a dashing prince. It's more likely that Lord Leon played pretty princess with Lady Elise," Odin chortled.

"Or that Prince Xander tells a joke in the middle of the dinner table. I mean serious—OW!"

Both men were suddenly cut off by the searing pain of having Selena grab them by the ear and pull them down.

"I'm sorry were you two saying something?" She smiled thinly, ignoring their complaints and tightening her grip, "because there's this really loud noise cutting you two off; and I think it's getting louder," she began twisting their ears.

"OW, OW, OW, OW!"

"Now then, what that you were saying about me?"

"Nothing! We didn't say anything!"

"Other than you being smart, beautiful, and strong!"

"Thought so," she smirked letting go of their ears, "now is that all you guys called me out here for? I enjoy spending time with you two as much as anyone else, but there was no need for all this secrecy if you just wanted to congratulate me. You could have just done it inside with everyone else."

Laslow's face suddenly turned somber,, "we know, but there is something else we wanted to discuss with you. Something we know you wouldn't want the others to hear, especially Lord Corrin's family."

Before Selena could ask him what he meant, Laslow nodded at Odin, who returned the gestured. The dark sage extended his hand in front of him, his palm open and facing the sky, and he began to chant.

"Oh darkness that guards the gateway to the world beyond, I command thee to open and bring forth that which I have kept away from this realm!"

Once he finished chanting a pool of dark vitriol began forming in his palm, spinning around out of control. Eventually it settled down and began to fade, until it disappeared completely leaving in its place a small key.

A very familiar looking small key.

Selena drew a sharp breath, "that's—"

"No theatrics in my end," Laslow chuckled, reaching into his shirt pocket and pulling out his own key. He held it out next to Odin's key in front of Selena, "I believe these belong to you."

"You kept them..."

"But of course. You asked us to be the guardians of your darkest secret, and we promised to do so. We have carried these keys with us since that fateful day, waiting for the time when you would be ready to face the most challenging obstacle in your life," Odin mused.

"And we think it's time. Whatever you do with these, well that's up to you," Laslow finished as they both handed her the keys.

"I...I don't know what to say...I hadn't thought about it in such a long time," Selena said softly, looking at the keys she was holding.

"Perhaps that's a sign that you are ready Selena," Laslow said putting his hand on her shoulder, "enough time has passed, and you seem to be ready to move one. You've found a new home, made a new life for yourself, and are soon to be married. You have taken the right steps to start over, and now you can take that final step."

Selena gave him a small smile, "the only reason I managed to make it this far is thanks to you two. I don't know what I would have done without you."

"You sell yourself short friend," Odina grinned at her, "even back home you were much stronger than you believed; and not just in physical strength, but in resolve as well. Never the less, it has been an honor being a part of this journey with you, and hopefully we will remain together for a long, long time."

The red haired mercenary could feel her eyes watering; before they could stop her she pulled the both of them into a tight hug, one which they reciprocated, "thanks guys."

"Think nothing of it. Now then, let us return with our comrades and celebrate this glorious occasion!" Odin cheered as he ran back into the inn to join the party.

Laslow shook his head and was about to follow his friend inside when he felt someone hold him back, "one moment Laslow."

He turned to see Selena looking at the floor nervously, he face turning red again. He gave her a sly grin, "Hmmm? Could it be that you wish to have one last kiss from yours trul—"

"If you don't stop right now I will tear your ear off," Selena snapped.

"Yes ma'am," the mercenary squeaked.

She sighed, "sorry, sorry. I'm just a little on edge here. The whole prospect of me being married soon is making me feel all jittery."

"Really? But Lord Corrin is a good man, and I can see that the two of you make each other happy. You shouldn't be having second thoughts."

"I know, and I wasn't. I was sure of what I was doing, until..." She looked down at the keys in her hand.

"Oh, I see," Laslow bit the inside of his cheek, "believe me when I say that wasn't our intent; besides, just because we gave you the keys doesn't mean you have to use them now. You've waited this long, perhaps you can wait a little longer."

"No, it's not that. I...I know that what happened back home will stay in the past; and despite all the pain it brought me I can't say that I regret all of it because it would be a lie. I'm done looking back and wondering what could have been, because every time I do I'm just reminded that...that he's not there anymore."

"Then what is the problem"

"I'm not used to uncertainty. Just like I don't like looking back and see nothing, I also don't like looking forward and be unable to make out what's in front of me. What if Corrin...what if he leaves me too? How do I know that it won't happen again: that I open myself to someone only to have them go of and never come back?"

Laslow sighed and scratched the back of his head, "look, what happened back home was a...special case, to say the least. None of us knew the truth, so there was really no way for us to know what was going to happen. I think it's safe to assume that the same won't happen to Lord Corrin; and if you're really scared of that, then maybe it's time that you told him the truth. All of it."

"What?! You're asking me to blow my cover; you know fully well that I can't do that!"

"Then it looks like you're at an impasse: keep hiding from Corrin and hope that history doesn't repeat itself, or tell him the truth and let him know what you are afraid of."

Selene gripped the keys tightly, "I...I don't know."

"Selena, I want you to be happy. I remember when we first left home you were absolutely miserable, not even cracking a smile for the longest time. For a moment Odin and I were afraid that we had lost you, that you wouldn't be the same again; but ever since we became retainers I saw you slowly and surely started returning to your old self. Not only that, but you've grown so much as a person as well these past few years, showing a more mature and caring side of you. I can't tell you what to do Selena, and I don't think I have to either. I'm certain that no matter what you chose to do, as long as you are certain that is the right choice and that is what you want, then you'll be happy."

"...thanks Laslow."

"Don't mention it. Now then, shall we go back inside?"

"You go on ahead, I think I'll stay here a while longer; get some fresh air to clear my head."

"As you wish," with a small bow the man went back in, leaving her alone with her thoughts. She sighed and leaned her arms onto the railing, looking up at the night sky and thinking back of her old life back home; eventually she couldn't help but think of her family, pondering how they were doing back home.

I wonder what they would think of Corrin? Mother would probably be fine with him, but I don't think daddy would be too happy. After all, he did chase down Inigo when he gave me flowers for my birthday that one time, she chuckled at the thought of that event, I really do miss them...I hope I can one day see them again; and I do want them to meet Corrin just as much as I want Corrin to meet them. But if I go...I'll have to tell him everything...

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt a pair of arms wrapping gently around her waist from behind, "hey..."

"Hey," she smiled turning around to face the kind face, grey white hair, and red eyes that she had come to know and love, "what took you so long?"

"We got caught up with some bandits at the outskirts of town. Nothing serious, but still warranted our attention or else they would have set out for the neighboring villages," Corrin answered.

Selena sighed ran her fingers through her fiance's soft hair, "always running straight into trouble."

"Only when others at the ones in trouble; you know I can't just stand around and let people suffer."

"Yeah, yeah, I just wish you weren't so reckless," she muttered.

"Come on, you know you love me for it," he said leaning in for a kiss, only for her to bow down her head causing him to kiss her forehead.

"Still no ready?" He sighed despondently. He wanted nothing more than to give her a proper kiss, one that fully expressed just how much her adored her; but he knew that Selena was still hesitant in showing too much outward affection, even when they were alone. If they were inside with the others she wouldn't even have let him kiss her on the forehead. Though he did find her shyness endearing—even adorable in some cases—he would be lying if he said that it didn't bother him a little that he still hadn't been able to properly kiss his fiance. It was a sore issue between them, one that always ended in them bickering. Realizing that an argument of the issue was imminent, Selena decided to change the subject.

"So we're moving out tomorrow morning right?"

"Actually, that's also part of the reason we were late just now. While we were fighting the bandits Xnader, Leo, and I came across another mercenary group that helped us protect the village. When we went to thank them we introduced ourselves and then we started talking and then...well realizing the rare opportunity at hand we came up with an idea."

Selena frowned in confusion, "what do you mean?"

---

"All right men, listen up. We have a long morning ahead of us so let's make the best of it," Prince Xander said while standing with the rest of his siblings before the rest of the Nohrian forces. It was early, barely past the crack of dawn, and most of the troops were still groggy haven woken up recently, "I know it's early but we came across an opportunity that doesn't come up often and I believe we should take it: a full scale battle drill with another group of fighters of equal skill."

"Forgive me for asking Lord Xander, but is it wise for us to be staying here another day rather than returning to the front lines and fighting the Hoshidian army?" Beruka asked.

"Don't worry dear, there is no rush. Our border patrol and spies have reported that the Hoshidian army is still recovering from their last disastrous attempt of an invasion of our borders. They're not even planning a next assault, since their hands are full trying to take care of their wounded; in other words, we have plenty of time," Camilla explained.

"Indeed," Leon nodded, "and though it would be advantageous for us to march in and push our campaign deeper into Hoshidian territory, the temporary ceasefire we agreed with Prince Ryoma stated that fighting would only resume after the wounded from both sides were taken care of. If we break that agreement now we will be branding ourselves like the villainous barbarians the Hoshidians make us to be, and I for one refuse to give them the satisfaction. Just a reminder though, that was all Corrin and Elises' plan."

"Hey!" Elise complained.

"Okay, okay settle down you two," Corrin laughed stepping up to address their troops, "anyway, as Xander was explaining, this is a drill to test out our newest tactical strategies that we have been developing lately. As such our opponents will be using the village as their fort and we will be trying to seize it. The drill is over if we incapacitate and or capture their leader, or if they manage to hold the fort and defeat our troops. The villagers have been informed and evacuated for this drill and we provided them with the proper compensation for their troubles; under NO circumstances are you to destroy property, and if you do it will be coming straight out of your pocket. Any questions?"

"Yes, are we going to be using our standard practice weapons for this?" Silas asked.

"Actually no. Our opponents showed us a neat little trick that we will be employing from now on. Niles, could you step up for a moment? I want to use you for a demonstration."

"Certainly," the outlaw purred walking up to the prince. Selena bit her cheek in annoyance; the man had never made it a secret his "interest" in Corrin—in fact he pointed it out every time he was around Selena just to get a rise from her—and the man had little (if any) understanding of appropriate boundaries.

Corrin pulled out the bronze sword that he had been carrying by his side before presenting it to Leon. The blonde prince extended his hand over the blade and began muttering an incarnation; when he was finish the blade looked the same except that it was covered with a light blue aura.

"This is a fascinating spell that coats any and all weapons with a protective barrier," Corrin explained as he raised the sword so everyone could see, "the sharpest blade becomes dull as long as the spell is in place, and even magical tomes affected by it are unable to kill even a fly. However, that's not the best part. Now then Niles, I'm going to have to hit you with my weapon in order to demonstrate this next part. Is that okay with you?"

"Oh don't worry about me, feel free to be as rough as you like," Niles grinned.

Okay that one was on purpose! Selena fumed.

"Excellent. Now raise your arm slightly please," Niles did as he was told, "everyone, observe what happens when my weapon makes contact with his arm," Corrin smacked Niles' arm with the broad side of his weapon, causing it to go limp and drop back to his side much to his—and everyone's—surprise.

"As you can see, once the weapon makes contact with the subject´s body, it will cause that part of the body to go limp and become effectively useless for the rest of the drill. Hitting any of the enemy's four limbs will incapacitate that limb; however, hit them in the chest or head," the prince poked Niles in the chest, causing his eyes to roll back and fall just as Leon caught him, "and they will be rendered unconscious."

"Oooh I get it. Hitting their limbs is like incapacitating an enemy to capture them, but hitting their chest and head is like killing them," Silas hit his hand in realization.

"Precisely. Now we've already applied the spell to the weapons in the cart behind us. We brought in everything; swords, lances, axes, arrows, and tomes. Pick whatever you are most comfortable with and prepare yourselves. Once our opponents arrive we'll start the drill."

While everyone made their way to the caravan and rummaged through the available weapons, Selena could help but eavesdrop the conversation between Corrin and the awakened Niles.

"I'm sorry for that Niles, but I figured you wouldn't mind being part of a more physical demonstration," Corrin said apologetically.

"Oh, no need to apologize prince. I found the whole ordeal quite...stimulating. Don't hesitate in asking me for more physical demonstrations in the future, I am more than happy to assist you."

Selena rolled her eyes an annoyance, "gods, how does anyone work with that man?"

"You get used to him; he does have a certain charm once you get to know him," Odin explained while weighting two different tomes in his hands.

"Do you think Corrin would mind if I "accidently" hit that dastard in the back when no one is looking?" Selena asked picking up a steel sword and examining it.

"I think he would, yes," Laslow chuckled.

"Ah, good morning to you!" They heard Corrin say behind them, "good to see that you could make it. We've just handing out our troops their weapons and we should be ready to go in about five minutes. Just give us the signal whenever you and your men are ready Sir...Sir...oh dear, I seem to have forgotten your name. I'm terribly sorry, but could you repeat it?"

"Relax Sir Corrin, it's not the first time my name's been forgotten," the person laughed.

Selena, Laslow, and Odin froze.

That voice...

It...it can't be...

Selena whipped around, her eyes going wide.

Standing before the royal siblings was a man roughly around Corrin's age, with tanned skin, messy white hair, and hazel eyes. He had a small scar over his right eye, a silver sword strapped to his side, and was wearing a purple and black travelers cloak.

"My name is Robin."

---

Laslow and Selena were crouched behind an alley way, having managed to sneak past the enemy's defenses. Their orders were to scout ahead and then hold their positions until Peri and Silas arroved to provide backup so that they could advance to the next sector. However, Selena had other things on her mind at the moment.

"He's here...he's actually here," she kept repeating to herself, as if she didn't really believe it.

"Selena no might not be the time to be talking out loud," Laslow whispered before peaking over the side of the alley to see if there where any enemy units around, "we don't want to give our position away just yet; if we're spotted before Silas and Peri arrive we'll have to make a run of it and I don't like our chances."

"How can you be so calm?!" Selena snapped at him, "did you not see who was leading our opponents?!"

"I'll admit I was a bit surprised—"

"He's alive Laslow! Robin is alive! After all these years he finally shows up again, right here in front of us!"

"Selena calm down. We don't know if it's really Robin; our Robin that is."

"How can you say that? Or course it's him! And it's not just the fact that it looks exactly like him, but also the way he walks and talks. Who else could it be but him?!"

"Shhh, quiet down!" Laslow clamped his hand over her mouth and pulled her against the wall just as platoon of enemy footsoldier passed through the entrance of the alleyway. Once they were gone the hero released his friend, "listen, I'll admit that the resemblance is there and that it's uncanny to say the least; but let's be real for a moment here. The possibilities of him being our Robin, and that he would appear not only in the same world as us but in the same village at the exact same time we were here is a million to one."

"That doesn't mean it's not possible," Selena said defiantly.

"Selena he saw us. When he and his men came over to meet our troops, he saw all three of us; and he didn't say anything or even acknowledge that he recognized us. Does that sound like something Robin would do?"

"I...I..."

"Besides, in the improbable chance that it was Robin, what exactly are you going to do?"

"It is Robin; and what I'm going to do is ask him where the hell he's been all these years," Selena snarled sheathing her sword and walking deeper into the alley.

"Selena what are you doing?!" Laslow whispered furiously.

She ignored her friend completely and began climbing the wall of on the side of the alleyway, making sure no one else saw her. When she reached the top she pulled herself up onto the roof and scanned the area around her. Based on the sun's position she guessed that she was near the eastern entrance of the village; and she knew exactly where to find Robin.

"When you have to hold down a fort against an enemy attack, the best thing you can do to gain the upper hand is to draw your opponent's attention away from there main objective."

Selena jumped onto the next rooftop and becan running to the center of the town.

"The fort?"

She ducked behind a chimney right before an enemy archer saw her, holding her breath and hoping that he would move on.

"You'd think that, but actually that's not the case. In almost every capturing campaign the enemy will either capture or execute the leader of the fort. Why? Because he or she knows the fort better than anyone, and if they get away they'll know the best way to take it back when the enemy least expecting it. So, if you ever find yourself in the situation where you must hold down the fort, never stay in the fort; hide amongst your troops and take the enemy by surprise when they believe they have captured your base. Personally I like to place myself amongst the infantrymen, since it's the one with the weakest defense and therefore the least expected."

Sneaking out of the chimney she struck the person's back, causing them to fall unconscious.

"Yeah right! No army leader is dumb enough to hide amongst the front lines! That's the stupidest plan I've ever heard. Just stay back like any other tactician would. "

She hid the unconscious body behind the chimney and continued her way to the middle of the village.

"True it's risky; but as long as I fight side by side with my comrades, I know that I am safe. I trust every single one of them, especially you."

"H-hey! W-what do y-you think y-you're saying?!"

"Sorry, sorry, I couldn't help myself. It's just, you look so adorable when you're flustered."

"Let's see how adorable you think I am angry," Selena growled jumping to the next rooftop. Eventually she reached the town square, a plaza surrounded by several tall buildings and holding what she assumed to be the mayor's office in the center. Squinting her eyes she noticed a group of soldiers standing by the main entrance as well as the two side entrances; and squinting hard she could see another group of people inside the building through the windows.

But she knew Robin was not among them.

Sneaking from rooftop to rooftop she began scanning the area, confirming that the area was indeed crawling with different groups of three to five soldiers waiting behind corners and within alleyways. Anyone attempting to storm into the plaza and head straight for the mayor's office was in for a nasty ambush. Eventually she found him: crouching behind a building with a mercenary and a spearmaster watching his back, his sword drawn and apparently writing something down on a piece of paper.

"I got you now," Selena quietly crawled to the edge of the roof, slowly getting herself down without them noticing here. Once she was at a safe height, she dropped down on them, whacking the two guards on the head rendering them unconscious immediately. Robin turned around but before he could raise his weapon Selena thrusted her sword and held it centimeters from his neck.

"Drop it, and don't even think about calling for help; these weapons may be dulled, but it will still hurt like hell if I jab your neck. Hard."

"Okay calm down. Let's not do anything—"

"I said drop it!" Selena hissed.

The man let go of his sword, which fell to the ground with a loud clang, "there, I'm unarmed and you have me at your mercy. I suppose this means your team wins. I must admit, I wasn't expecting you catch me so quickly; either I'm not as good as I thought, or you're much better than I expected. Guess I need to brush up more on my tactics."

Selena didn't say anything, the tip of her blade still held centimeters from the man's neck.

Robin cocked his head confused "Forgive me for asking but, what are you waiting for? You all you need to do is strike me and this game is won; you either have me as a hostage to force my men to surrender, or you can "kill" me and watch my troops fall into disarray. So why are you just standing there?"

"I'm waiting."

"For what?"

"For you to drop the act!" Selena growled.

"Excuse me?"

"Don't play dumb!" She snapped, surprising Robin, "I know it's you, and you know who I am. So drop the act and start explaining yourself right now!"

"I—I—" the wait haired man stammered nervously.

"Where have you been?! Why didn't you come looking for me?! Why did you leave?!"

"I-I'm sorry but I think you have me confused with someone else," the tactician swallowed nervously.

"I TOLD YOU TO STOP PLAYING—GAH!" Selena was cut off when something hit her arm, causing it to go limp. She turned around just as something else hit her square in the leg, causing her to fall on her knee.

Damnation not now!

"Sir Robin! Are you hurt?" Someone asked as they approached them. Selena looked up and saw it was a young archer about her age—maybe a bit younger—with short, sandy blonde hair and green eyes. Her bow was drawn and Selena realized that she had been the one to have hit her with her arrows, "forgive me for the delay, but we were ambushed in the northern quadrant by a enemy forces. I see now that it a ruse so that they could send someone to sneak up you."

"It would appear so; good work Sun, but it's not over yet. If they managed to get one of their men this close to me it means that they know of our fake out in the mayor's office. We need to mobilize our forces and evacuate the building; they could have prepared a countermeasure for our trap."

"What about her?" She asked gesturing at the incapacitated Selena.

"Taking her as a prisoner is a liability at this point. We don't know how close the enemy is to our position, so we can't waste any time securing her and taking her with us. I'll take care of her, you go and tell the others to get away from the mayor's office immediately."

"Yes sir!" Sun saluted before running off to do what he asked her.

Robin picked up his sword that he had dropped earlier, "I must admit your strategy is...well it's definitely unlike anything I've faced before. I don't know what your team is planning, and that's a first for me. I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I don't know how I'm going to win this. So, kudos for that. Now then, let's make this quick, I got a a simulation to win."

Selena's eyes narrowed at him, "don't you dare—"

She was then cut off when Robin gently poked her forehead with his sword, causing her vision to go completely black and lose consciousness.

---

"I must admit, you gave us quite the run for our money; it's a miracle we managed to defeat you at all," Corrin laughed shaking Robin's hand. They had just finished the battle simulation with the Nohrian forces having achieved victory by capturing the opposing forces by ambushing them and forcing them to surrender. It was already the afternoon, with the sun beginning to set in the horizon.

"Not at all, you are quite the strategist yourself. You caught me completely off guard, and let me tell you that is not an easy thing to accomplish," Robin smiled.

"You give me too much credit, I had plenty of help. My brothers are always helping me craft my next strategy, so trust me when I say that without them I would have been wiped out in an instant; but you, you manage to hold you're your ground by yourself. I mean it took three of us to equal and surpass you. I dare to see you might even be able to outwit Xander and Leon by yourself. How did you do it?"

Robin shrugged, "what can I say? I just like tactics. But make no mistake, even if you claim that your brothers helped you, you're still quite the formidable foe yourself. I mean, sacrificing in a lone fighter to distract me while also blowing a hole in my trap, I genuinely didn't see that coming. Forcing me to pull my men out from the town square so that you could ambush us, that's actually pretty clever."

"Right...clever," Corrin said confused. To be honest he had no idea what Robin was talking about; in fact, he was under the impression that them finding Robin and his troops withdrawing from the area was just a stroke of luck.

Maybe it was just a new trick Leon has been working on. He always does like to make sure his strategies are perfect before telling us about it.

"Anyway I hate to break it off like this but I need to go make sure my men are okay. Some of your fighters took the whole "these weapons can't really hurt people" thing a bit too far," Robin chuckled.

"Again I apologize for Effie and Charlotte. They can get a bit too into fighting if they're not constantly under supervision," Corrin said sheepishly.

"No worries, though I would love to continue this conversation later. We could meet up at dinner and exchange notes."

"Oh you'll be staying in the inn as well?"

"Yeah I figured my men would like to rest for the night; after all, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow and today's drill seems to have left them utterly exhausted."

"I know that feeling," Robin laughed, "but certainly, we should definitely continue this conversation. Though right now I should also check on my troops," with a small nod both men parted ways and headed back to their respective groups, both of which were currently reviving the unconscious soldiers. Currently Leon was working on waking up Selena, whom they found unconscious near the mayor's office.

After a few minutes her eyes began to flutter open, followed by her reaching up for her head in groan in discomfort.

"Easy there," Corrin said soothingly as he knelt next to her, "just take it slow. If you rush it you're going to be carrying a migraine for the rest of the day. Don't push yourself."

"Yeah thanks for the advice genius," Selena snapped.

Corrin was taken aback, "s-sorry I didn't mean—"

"To be a smart arse? Well you were so great job with that. I don't need you to point out the obvious Corrin, I'm not that dumb."

"Watch your tongue Selena," Leon said coldly, "engagement or not, you are still a retainer and Corrin is still a royal. Talk to him or any of us that way again and I will have you stripped from your rank."

"There is no need for that," Corrin cut in seeing that Selena was about to say something that she would most likely regret, "I'm sure she is just exhausted by today's events; and I'm sure that waking up from a magically induced coma does not help. So why don't we just give her a moment while we go and help the others?"

"Thanks," Selena said dryly. Leon narrowed his eyes at her, but didn't say anything. Corrin simply gave her an apologetic smile, getting up and walking with his brother to assist Arthur.

Selena calm down. There is no need to take this out on Corrin, she took a deep breath and slowly got up, just relax, let all the anger out, and go talk with Laslow. After that we can go and apologize to Co—

She froze. On the other side of the compound she saw Robin helping the archer from before, Sun, wrap a bandage around her arm. They seemed to be talking, with Sun every now and then giggling at something Robin said. Once he was done with her arm she reached out and gave him a light kiss on the cheek, casing the tactician to look flustered but not displeased by it.

And that was when something inside Selena snapped.

She began marching towards them, her vision becoming redder by the second and her mind turning into a storm of anger and rage. By the time she reached the two of them she was practically dispelling an aura of death and destruction around her.

The tactician noticed her first, "oh, it's you again. Sorry I didn't catch your name bef—"

"So this is it? You pretend to not know me because you found someone else?" She interrupted him fiercely.

"I-I'm s-sorry?"

"I could understand you saying you didn't know me to catch me off guard during the drill so you could win that stupid thing, but this?! Are you so low that you would just run off with the first floozy that comes your way?!"

"H-hey! I´m not a floo—"

"And you keep your damn mouth shut, I'll deal with you later!" Selena snapped, causing the girl to step back in fear.

"Now hold on a minute, you do not talk to my friends that way!" Robin stood up to her indignantly.

"YOU have no right to say what I can or can't do, not after everything you've done! Do you know how much time I waited for you? How many nights I wallowed in sadness because you weren't there? You promised that you'd come back, that you would do everything to return, and now that I finally found you pretend like I don't even exist!"

"For the last time I'm not the person you claim I am. I have no idea what you're talking about, I don't even know you!" Robin finally responded angrily.

Those words hit Selena like a hammer to the chest. She felt numb, empty, as if the world suddenly stopped around her; however that was soon replaced with unyielding rage.

"OH REALLY?! DID OUR TIME TOGETHER MEAN SO LITTLE TO YOU?! OR I DID MEAN THAT LITTLE TO YOU!?" Selena roared, tears forming in her eyes.

Robin and Sun looked shocked and scared, taking a few steps back from the angry hero. Selena was about to continue when she realized that the entire compound had gotten eerily quiet. She turned around and saw that everyone—literally everyone—was looking towards her direction. People looking at her with expressions that ranged from every emotion known to man, clearly no one knowing what to make of what had just happened. However, there was one face that really caught her attention; one wounded and confused expression that evaporated all of her anger and instead left a pit in her stomach.

"S-Selena?" Corrin took a step forward.

There was no mistaking the hurt behind that single world, enough to drive a stake through her. Not knowing was else to do, she turned back and ran towards the inn, refusing to face anyone the whole way there.

---

Selena laid on her bed alone, face planted on her pillow. I had been a few hours since the incident with Robin, and she had been in her room alone the entire time, not budging at all. She had expected someone from the royal family to come in during that time; Camilla barging in with an axe to fulfill the promise she made yesterday, Elise crying and wanting to know how she could do something so cruel to Corrin, Leon swearing that he was going to strip her of her rank and demote her to stable girl, or even Xander berating her for embarrassing Corrin and the rest of the army in a way unbecoming of a royal retainer. Yet none of them had come in, or even tried to talk to her through the door. Perhaps they were just going to let her wallow in fear and guilt all night as punishment before really letting her have it the next morning. She didn't blame them, she deserved as much after what she did to Corrin.

Oh gods, Corrin...

She buried her face deeper in her pillow, trying her best to forget what happened but to no avail; she could still see his wounded face when he called out her name. She had never seen anything so heart wrenching, and it was all her fault. No one deserved that, especially not Corrin. If he decided to never talk to her again, she wouldn't be the least bit surprised; thought that didn't make it any less painful to think about.

She got up and walked up to her travel bag, rummaging through its contents until she found it; a small box, about the size of her hand, with two separate locks in the front.

"So are you ever going to tell me what's in it?"

"I told you it's nothing important."

She put the box on the night table next to her bed.

"It sure looks important. Come on, you can trust me. Is it something embarrassing? Please tell me it's something embarrassing."

"Corrin, there are some things that a lady likes to keep to herself; but if you don't stop I'm going to show you what's indie by smashing it open with your head."

She opened the drawer on her nightstand and pulled out the two keys Laslow and Odin had given her the night before.

"Sorry, I didn't think it was such a touchy subject. I was just fooling around with you. I didn't mean to make you angry."

"No, no, I'm not angry. It's just...let's just say it's something that I been meaning to get rid of for a while now. It's just...a bit hard to do so."

Her hands trembling she placed both keys inside the appropriate locks.

"Anyway I can help?"

"Trust me, you already are."

"Come on...just do it," she muttered to herself, her grip tightening on the keys, "just take it out and throw it away. Corrin deserves better than this. You have to do it now. Just...do it...please..."

But she stood there still, her hands shaking slightly but refusing to open the locks.

"Gods damn it," she grabbed the box and put it back inside the drawer before lying down on the bed. Once more she buried her face in her pillow, closing off to everything around her as she wondered what she was going to do.

She heard her door opening slowly, followed by someone walking in and then shutting it behind them.

Time to face the consequences, she thought l bracing herself, maybe if I'm lucky it's Lady Camilla and she'll make it quick...

"Selena?"

...no. Please no...

"I know you're awake Selena; you never fall asleep unless you're on your right side."

Of course he would know that, she turned around to see Corrin standing in front of the bed. She patted down her clothed and straightened her hair before mentally berating herself for doing something so childish at a moment like that.

"Yes?"

"I just want to talk," Corrin said calmly, without of hint of anger behind his voice. Of course not, Corrin almost never got angry, especially not with her; even when she truly deserved it, "I want to know what happened out there today. Why did you say all of that to that man?"

"You know you could just ask Odin or Laslow. I'm sure they'll tell you," Selena said before she could stop herself.

"I'm not engaged to Odin or Laslow; conversely, I'm not going to go behind your back to find out what is going on," Corrin replied firmly, causing Selena to look down ashamed, "I'm not going to approach this like a child in a playground asking around others for gossip; but I'm also not going to force you to tell me what I want to hear. I'm simply going to ask you, and then see what I do base on how you answer. So tell me, what was that all about?"

Selena was quiet for a moment before looking up, "it's...it's not an easy story to believe."

"Try me, I've seen a lot of unbelievable things."

"I can't tell you everything. I just...I just can't; but I can tell you enough. Please, just keep that in mind."

"I will."

Selena sighed, "okay…"

"Laslow, Odin, and I come from a distant land, one that can't be found in any map; that's because we come from a completely different world. We came through the dragon gate, which can transport anyone who walks into it through space and time. We hail from a far away kingdom, a land that in some respects is similar to Nohr. However, our home was ravaged by a monster, a creature of death and doom that sought to lay waste everything before it. Its name was Grima. It managed to kill my parents, as well as most of the warriors in our realm. Soon there were only a handful of us left, waiting for the inevitable; but one of us, the heir to the throne of our kingdom , came forth with a solution. To travel back in time and save both our parents and our home before the fell dragon rose again."

"Travel back in time?"

Selena nodded, "like I said, the dragon gate allows people to travel through both space and time. Travelling through time is more complicated and risky, but we managed to pull through. We were reunited with our families in the past, and we decided to help them avert the impending destruction of the world."

"I see. Now how does this relate to what happened today?"

Selena hesitated before continuing, "amongst the people in the past there was one man. A wandering tactician who came across the current ruler of the kingdom and pledged his allegiance to his cause. He had amnesia, and didn't know anything other than his name: Robin. He was a brilliant military strategist, always managing to pull us through even in the worst situation. He commanded both respect and admiration from everyone around him; including me."

"At first it wasn't like that though. I butted heads with him often, challenged his plans, and kept trying to prove him wrong in every turn; and yet he would always address me with nothing but respect and patience, even when I was constantly proven wrong. He was more interested in helping me learn and improve than he was proving that he was better than me. It wasn't easy either; back then I was a real...well a real brat honestly. I tended to push people away with my lousy attitude and explosive personality. But not him. He stayed with me even after the horrible ways that I treated him; and eventually I started falling for him."

She saw Corrin tense up at this last part, but he didn't say anything so she continued.

"One day he came up to me and told me that I was unlike any girl he had met before. The he found my passionate disposition to be endearing and charming, unlike anything he had seen before. He even went as far as to say that part of the reason he indulged my little...tantrums, to say the least, was simply because he wanted to spend more time with me. He said that he loved me, that he wanted to spend the rest of his days by my side, and he asked me to marry him."

"And you said yes."

Selena didn't answer. She didn't have to.

Corrin sighed, putting his hand over his face and closing his eyes, "you don't have to answer this if you don't want to, but how long ago was this?"

"A while back. I had just come of age a few months before he asked me to marry him. We were together for about a year, maybe a little more. We went as far as to plan the life that we would have once the blasted war was over; where we would live, whether or not we would have kids, those sorts of things. I was happier than I ever thought possible. He showered me with affection and patience, perhaps even more than my parents ever did. After a life of nothing but death and despair, I finally had something that brought joy in my life; and I never wanted it to end."

"So what happened?"

Selena sighed and closed her eyes, "you know how you can transform into a dragon because of the blood that flows through your veins? Well it was the same for him, but much worse. It turns out that he was the human vessel for the very creature that was trying to destroy the world. Once the monster was strong enough, it would take over his mind and soul, and use his body to wreak havoc upon the land and bring forth the apocalyptic world that we had narrowly escaped. It was only a matter of time."

"I couldn't believe it was true. The man I had fallen in love with in the past was the same monster that took everything from me in the future. I couldn't help but wonder if everything had been but an elaborate ruse to hide his true nature from everyone else, using me as but a pawn in his ploy; at one point I even considered confronting him because of it, and end the nightmare before it began. But when I saw how the revelation affected him, how it shattered him completely, I realized that he had been just as clueless as everyone else. He had no idea that he would be the one to kill everyone he came to know and love, and the guilt of that revelation tore him apart. He wasn't the same after that; he kept insisting that he was fine, but I could tell that a part of him was distant, loss; it was as if a part of him had died when he found out the truth."

"Eventually the day came when we had to confront the monster. We had been preparing for it in advance, gathering up out best warriors in the realm, and performing the rite that provide us with the only weapon that could defeat the beast; defeat it, but not kill it. We were told that even if we managed to strike it down, Grima would not be destroyed, but rather would go into a deep slumber for one thousand years, after which it would try to rise once again. It was a horrible thought, essentially washing our hands of the whole situation and forcing the future to eventually deal with it, but we had no other choice. Or so we thought."

"At the end of the battle Grima was weak and open, needing only one final strike to defeat it. Everything was set for that final blow to be dealt, for the nightmare to end for us; and that was when he did it. Robin stepped forward and, with his own hands, slew the monster himself. I could only watch in confusion and horror as they both began to disappear into thin air. The last thing he did before being gone was smile at me and tell me that he was sorry and that he would return."

She paused for a second, opening her eyes to face Corrin again, "afterwards I learned that Robin had discovered a way to destroy the monster for good. The only thing capable of accomplishing such a feat was Grima itself; and since Robin was the human vessel for the fell dragon, it meant that he was connected to it, that they were basically one and the same. So he could destroy it for good, rid the world forever of its evil; but it would also destroy him. There was a small chance that he would return, that the bonds he had formed would anchor him and bring him back. I held on to that chance, hoping that it was true. So I waited. I waited for three years for him to return, or for some sort of sign that he was still out there; but there was none."

"I was...devastated. Those were the darkest years of my life, since I had lost the most important thing to me. To this day I still don't know how I made it through. I suppose I have Laslow and Odin to thank, seeing how they stayed by my side the entire time. Eventually, when it seemed that he was really gone and he wasn't coming back, I decided to leave. I needed to get away, to be somewhere where the pain wasn't as bad; somewhere where I wasn't constantly reminded that he left and was never coming back. Laslow and Odin insisted that they come with me, even if I told them that it wasn't necessary. So we jumped into the dragon's gate and eventually ended in Nohr about two years ago, wandering around until we enlisted in the training camp to become royal retainers. We passed, we were taking in by the royal family, and then...then I met you."

Corrin didn't say anything, instead opting to look down at his feet.

"Corrin I know I have no right to say this after what happened today but I do...I do lo…lo..." she swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry, "My feelings for you haven't changed. Even if you never knew, I was order by Lady Camilla to look after you from the shadows when you were still held up in the castle. I never understood why, but I wanted to be able to know you better, and when I was finally given the chance I was elated; and when we got engaged I...I can't even begin to describe how happy I was. I thought I was finally ready to move on, to start a new life with you. That's all I wanted; I never expected Robin to show up again, I swear."

"Do you still love him?"

"What?"

"Do you still love Robin?"

"H-how can you even suggest that?!" She asked, her cheeks flushed indignantly, "after all we've been through, standing by each other through thick and thin, how can you even ask something like that?"

"Because you still haven't answered me..."

That last part caused Selena to shut up, her mind struggling to find an answer for him. She wanted desperately to say no.

But...

"I...I don't know," she answered quietly, "my head is a mess. Seeing him again after all these years, and then have him say that he doesn't know who I am. All of the memories I created with him came back in an instant, the good and the bad. The day he proposed and the day he disappeared without telling me beforehand, I can see them both so vividly and I can feel the same emotions I did back then. I just don't...I just don't know anymore."

"...I understand," Corrin sighed. He raised his hand and slowly pulled off the gold band on his finger.

Selena looked at him alarmed, her heart racing, "Corrin I—"

"Just...let me talk," he raised his hand to stop her, "I listened to what you had to say, and now I ask that you do the same. Please."

Eventually Selena nodded slowly, though her heart did not settle down.

Corrin walked up to the bed, lowering himself until he was at eye level with her, "Selena, I love you; I love everything about you. How you strive to be the best in everything you do, regardless of what other people say. Your dedication to my sister and to Nohr in general. Your bravery, your tenacity, even your ferocity. I don't think there's a single thing about you that I don't love. When you told me that you felt the same way about me and suggested that we got married, I was happier than I have ever been. Being able to wake up next to you, for your beautiful face to be the first thing I see when I open my eyes, nothing could make me happier; but not if it's at the expense of your own happiness. I don't want you to stay with me because you fell you need to, and then have you feel trapped for the rest of your life. I just want you to be happy."

He took her hand and placed his ring on her palm, closing it gently, "I'm giving you the chance to decide what you really want. Stay with me, or go back to him. I won't influence your decision, and I won't force you to choose. Whatever you do, whatever you decide to do, I will respect it, even if you do decide to go back to Robin. Don't worry about me, just think about what you want."

"...okay," Selena said softly.

Corrin kissed her on the cheek gently, quietly getting up to leave the room and close the door behind him. The red haired hero was left alone with her thoughts and the ring in her hand. Meanwhile outside the young lord quickly wiped his eyes before heading downstairs, off in search for the people whom he needed the most at the moment.

---

"Hmmm, pincer move to counter attack...followed by a archer ambush behind the hills...and capture the enemy general by surrounding him with mounted troops," Robin muttered to himself while scribbling down noted on the topography maps in front of him. He was currently sitting in his room alone, focused entirely on the maps and troops information he had laid out on his desk. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door.

"It's open," he called out without looking up, opening up one of the tomes he had purchased a few days ago and leafing through its contents. He heard the door open and someone walking in, "sorry, just give me a minute."

"Take your time."

He spun around, recognizing that voice from earlier. Standing behind him was Selena, the woman that had been hounding him throughout the day. He was about to tell her to leave when he noticed something; her face was softer, almost shy like, and she could barely look him in the eye. All the anger and rage from before was gone, replaced with what seemed to be uncertainty.

"H-hello," he said tentively.

"Hi..."

Well at least she's not yelling at me, "can I help you?"

"I just...I just want to ask you a few questions."

"If this is about what happened earlier I've already told you; I don´t know—"

"Have you lost your memories recently?" Selena asked suddenly.

Robin blinked, "y-yes. How did you—"

"Woke up in an unfamiliar place with no recollection of who you were and how you got there? Yet somehow you have an incredible—almost instinctive—eye for tactics."

Robin didn't say anything yet.

"How long ago did that happen?"

"About five years."

Selena took a sharp breath, "I knew it. It is you, it has to be."

"Now hold on a moment, let's not get ahead of ourselves. I don't know what is going on through your head, but I would prefer that we don't jump to any conclusion."

"Of course it's you! Everything matches us; the amnesia, the time period, everything! I know things about you that I could only know of you told me. Like how you've had that scar over your eye forever but have no idea where it came from."

"What this?" Robin gestured at the mentioned scar, "I got this recently."

"...what?"

"I got this about two years ago during a light skirmish. Thief threw his knife at me and I was barely able to dodge it in time."

Selena's mind began to race, "but...but...your side! You have a large scar on the right side of your abdomen don't you?!"

"Hate to break it to you," Robin shook his head as he lifted his shirt to reveal a toned body without a single scratch on it.

"No...no it doesn't make sense..."

"Look why does it matter to you so much that I be the person you think I am? Why are you going through such lengths to prove something so trivial?"

"Because he just left me without saying goodbye!" Selena suddenly yelled, her eyes filling with tears, "and I need you to be him because I need to know why; why did you just leave and never come back?!"

Robin's face softened, "I...I'm sorry. I had no idea."

Selena rubbed her eyes and looked away, "I don't want your pity."

"I wasn't...look I don't know what you want me to do in this situation. I honestly don't know who you are, much less have any memories of being with you. Therefore I can't give you the answers that you are looking for."

"Of course not. Why would anything go right for me for once..."

"If you don't mind me asking: why are you so hung up on this person anyway?"

Selena glared at him, "what do you mean why? He was my husband, we were married, and, more importantly, I loved him!"

"But you said that he left you, without even saying goodbye. I don't know why he would do that, but is there really an excuse that could ever justify doing something like that? I know that if I were this person and I did something like that, I wouldn't be able to look at myself in the mirror after what I've done, much less at the woman I claim to love. I'd be wracked with guilt, unable to forgive myself for what I did, thinking that she deserved someone who wouldn't put them through much pain and suffering; but that's just me, I have no idea if your "friend" thinks that way too. For all I know he probably doesn't even care."

"It wasn't like that! He had to do it...it was the only way...he..had to..." Her voice trailed off as she sat down on the bed.

Robin sat down next to her, "look I'll be honest; I don't know what happened between the two of you. Maybe he had a reason for what he did, or maybe he didn't. I couldn't tell you because, well, I'm not him. I know you think I am, but there is no way I would forget something as important as being married; because being married means that you always take the other person into consideration, above everything and everyone else. Even if the world itself was on the line, he should have talked to you first, let you know that he was leaving. Someone who would just leave their spouse in the dark, is that the kind of person you really want to be with?"

"I...I don't know," Selena answered softly.

"You insist that I am the same person you've lost in the past. If I was, then what would you do? Would you stay with me hoping that things would just return to the way they were before? You would throw away the life that you managed to build now for that? If this person is as selfless as you make him out to be, do you really think he would force you to leave everything for him?"

"But...he was the first man I loved..."

Robin smiled at her, "but was he the last?"

"...no."

"And he doesn't have to be. I can't tell you what to do, only you can decide that."

"Right. I understand," she looked up at him and smiled, "thank you."

"Don't mention it."

"I think I know what I have to do. Could you...could you close your eyes?" She asked shyly blushing profusely.

"W-what for?" Robin asked nervously.

"Just...please..."

"...all right," the tactician closed his eyes.

Closing her own eyes Selena leaned in slowly.

---

"And that's the situation," Corrin sighed sadly.

"I must admit, that is quite a tale," Xander said putting down his mug. He and Corrin were currently sitting at a small table in the inn's tavern. It was a relatively calm night, so they could talk to each other without having to raise their voices. Xander was drinking a mug of sparkling cider ("a true leader must keep his senses sharp and alert at all times") while Corrin was just stirring a glass a water with his finger, not even bothering to take a sip.

"It's actually not that far fetched of a story. I haven't told you this before, but I actually did go through the dragon gate once."

"Really? What for?"

"Felicia and I saw some of those invisible soldiers getting away with some of our gear and we chased them alongside Jakob and Silas through the gate. We were taken to someplace called Ylisse or something like that, I can't even remember. We even got to meet the local lords and their retainer."

"What was that like?"

"Surreal to say the least. They said they heard of Nohr and Hoshido, but kept referring to it as the "mythical kingdoms", and then Jakob and the other retainer had a contest to see who was more devoted to their liege; have you ever seen two grown men knitting sweaters in the middle of a battle field? It's even weirder than it sounds."

"Why does that statement not surprise me at all? Oh right, because it's Jakob were talking about."

"The point is that I do believe Selena is telling the truth; not the whole truth mind you, but the truth none the less."

"If you're so certain that she's not lying to you than we are you so worried? I've seen you two together, and I can tell that there is a strong bond that connection. Do you honestly think that she would throw it all away for a man who may or may not be someone from her past?"

"...I believe there is a possibility," Corrin said quietly.

"Corrin!"

"Xander you don't understand. You make it sound like the choice is an easy one, that she will just stay with me because it's the "logical" choice; but it's not that cut and dry."

"And how would you know that, young prince?"

"Because I was in a similar position not that long ago."

Realization suddenly hit Xander, seeing where Corrin was heading to, "Oh..."

"I was given the choice of going back to my real family in Nohr, and returning home with you guys. The choice between staying with people who I had only recently met, and the people with whom I had a past with, having formed a much stronger bond that could never be replaced or even duplicated; and which one did I pick?"

"Corrin I hardly think it's the same."

"She was married to him Xander; married for more than a year. They went as far as planning the life that they would build for themselves. When he left she waited for him for three years. We've been engaged for about less than a week, and we haven't even shared a proper kiss yet. How can I compete with that?"

The crown prince bit his cheek, looking uncomfortable and unsure of how to respond, "perhaps I am not the best suited to be answering these question young prince. Maybe you should consult one of our other siblings, I am sure they will be able to give you better advice than I."

"I would but right now Leon and Elise are guarding Camilla to make sure she doesn't ambush and decapitate Selena for what happened earlier today."

"I see," Xander thought carefully about what to say next, "what did you tell Selena?"

"That I wanted her to be happy and that she should choose what she thought was best for her. Whatever she chooses, I'll respect it; and that was an hour ago."

"You did the right thing Corrin."

"Maybe; but why does the right thing hurt so much?" he felt his eyes watering up.

"Dry your tears young prince. You are much stronger than that; and I won't have my little brother feeling sorry for himself when I know that he is made of harder stuff," realizing that he came off a bit harsher than intended he softened up a bit, "Corrin listen to me. There will be times were you will be forced to decided between what you want to do and what is the right thing to do. If you were anyone else you could choose what benefitted you the most, perhaps even go to bed without a guilty conscious; but when you are like us, born to royalty and destined to lead others, you have to always strive to do what is right. Otherwise you end up like our father and cause nothing but suffering around you. It is never easy, and sometimes it is a road that one must walk alone. For what it's worth, I can say that you made the right choice, and for that I am proud to call you my brother."

Corrin sighed, wiping the tears off, "it's worth more than you think Xander. I think I'm just going to call it a night."

"That sound like a good idea. I shall go check on Camilla; knowing Elise she'll probably be nodding off and unwillingly give her an opening to escape her watch,"Xander smiled getting up.

"Good night Xander."

"Sleep well young prince. I shall see you in the morning."

Leaving a few silver coins at the bar for their drinks Corrin made his way back to his room. On the way there he couldn't help but stop in front of Selena's door, which was closed. He reached out for the handle, only to stop midway.

"Whatever you do, whatever you decide to do, I will respect it, even if you do decide to go back to Robin."

"Good night Selena," Corrin whispered softly.

"Corrin!" he heard someone call out from the other end of the hallway.

He turned around just as a large red blur tackled him, causing him to take a few steps back, disoriented at what had just happened. When his head finally cleared he looked down and saw Selena holding on tightly to him, her face buried in his chest.

"S-Selena?"

"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry," he heard her muffled voice against his chest as her body shook slightly.

"Selena what's wrong? Are...are you crying?"

She looked up at him and he saw that her eyes were indeed red and moist, yet she had a smile on her face, "I'm sorry for putting you through all of this; but I know now."

"Know wh—MMMPPHH!" Corrin was cut off when Selena presser her lips against his, her arms coiling around his neck. His eyes went wide with shock for a second, only for him to close them and wrap his arms around her and hold her close while he returned the kiss.

After what felt like an eternity Selena broke the kiss off, panting slightly.

Corrin looked at her, hope slowly building within him, "does this mean..."

She nodded, "I...I love you Corrin. Robin or not Robin, my feelings for you will not change. What happened in the past will stay in the past, and I have no intention in going back to it. All I want is to start a new life with you. I know I have no right to ask you this after everything I have done today but—"

She was cut off when Corrin leaned forward and kissed her again, which she returned immediately.

Gods it felt good.

---

"Well then, I guess we'll be off then," Robin smiled.

"Same here. We have a long day ahead of us and a war to plan for," Corrin took the tactician's hand and shook it.

"Listen about what happened yesterday—"

The prince waved him off, "don't even worry about it. Yes, yesterday was a bit...hectic to say the least, but we managed to resolve it in the end. If anything I should be apologizing to you; you were the one who had to feel the full force of Selena's anger."

"Yeah she's quiet the fiery one," Robin laughed, "I wish you the best of luck with that one."

"Oh I'll be fine," Corrin chuckled, "after all, that's one of the many things I love about her."

"Anyway have a safe trip friend. If we ever cross paths again, we should have another skirmish to put our tactics to the test; though be warned, there is no way I'm going to lose next time."

"Sorry but next time I'll be more than ready; so bring it on anytime," Corrin grinned.

"Ahem."

They both turned to see Selena smirking at them with her arms crossed over her chest, "unless you two are going to start making out anytime soon, I'm going to break this little meeting up. Lord Xander is calling for you, says he needs you to help him check a few things before we move out."

"I'm going, I'm going. I'll be seeing you around Sir Robin," with a small slute Corrin headed off towards the others, leaving Selena and Robin alone.

Selena's smirk disappeared, replaced with a look of embarrassment as she rubbed her arm nervously, "I just came by to say that...well I'm sorry for everything. For yelling at you, for insulting you, and for insulting your friend. "

Robin smiled, "apology accepted. Quick question though; what was that whole "close your eyes" thing about last night? I did as you asked and the next thing I know you were gone from the room."

"Don't worry about it, it wasn't important. Anyway I wanted to give you something before we left."

"Oh?"

Selena reached into her pocket and pulled out a ring. It was made of silver and gold, adorned with red in some parts.

"A ring?"

"Yeah it was taking up space in this little cute box that I own and I was thinking of throwing it out anyway," she smiled.

"Are you sure you want to give it to me? It looks very valuable."

"It is, but not for the reasons you're thinking of. It was giving to me by someone very special, someone who had a very similar one on him. I was holding on to it hoping that one day he would come back and help me complete the set again; but it's time for me to move on, and this is the last thing I need to get rid of in order for me to do so."

"But I told you I'm not—"

"Maybe. Or maybe it is you and you just don't remember. It doesn't matter though, because I still think it's time for me to get rid of this; and if you're not him, you're still the closest I'm going to get to closure with him. I don't know why he didn't come back, and perhaps I will never know. Perhaps it's better that way. Perhaps he couldn't come back, or perhaps he forgot. I can only hope that he is happy, just like I am now. So please, take it," she said giving him the ring.

Robin looked at the ring, unsure of what to say at first, "if this person did care for you, then I'm sure he'd be content knowing that you've manage to find what makes you happy."

Selena shrugged, "maybe. Or maybe he doesn't care and doesn't think of me at all. I'm doing worrying about what happened, what I can't change; from now on I'll focus on the future, and what I can do to get there."

"Well, I wish you the best of luck with that."

"You too. Good bye Robin," with a final nod Selena trotted back to where Corrin was standing, surprising him by taking his hand into hers when he wasn't looking.

Robin watched them make their way out of the village, the prince leaning forward and giving the hero a kiss causing her to blush and giggle. Once they were gone the tactician reached inside his shirt, pulling out a small chain that held a ring identical to the one in his hand.

"Goodbye Severa."

---

Author's note: don't you just love one shots?

Anyway, as I mentioned in my latest chapter of "To Change the Past" I was a bit disspointed with the female character's in Conquest (as potential partners for the Avatar that is). In fact there were only two female characters that almost made it to the final decision. One was Ophelia, who is basically a female Odin with a full breathy voice; and the other was, surprisingly, Selena.

See I was never the biggest fan of Severa in Awakening; not that she was my least favorite character or anything, her mother won that by a landslide. I was just never into the whole "tsundere" character trope, and she fit in perfectly. To me she came off as a brat who was trying way too hard to act "grown up" only to fail miserably and basically make everyone's life around her unpleasant. So when I heard that she was "returning" in Fates I thought I was just going to bench her once I got another character I liked and not give it a second thought.

But honestly I was surprised with what I got when I finally began playing Conquest. Like, genuinely surprised. Her character has matured A LOT, which is something you don't see as much in continuing storylines in videogames; the developers could have easily left her exactly the same in order to "appease" the fans but they took a risk and decided to change her character just enough. Yes she still has a bit of a tsundere complex (especially in her support with Keaton) but it is much more subdued. She's not as mean spirited or aggressive as before, instead she's just competitive; and rather than having her be like this because "my mom was perfect so I have to prove I'm just as good" she just wants to prove that she is a great retainer in her own right and serve master properly. In short, all of the bitterness and jealousy from the first game is gone, showing a more leveled person who is still insecure about the world but willing to do everything in their power to make it through. Plus, anyone who's proposal included "Grow up and marry me, Avatar! Or are you a scared little baby? Waaah! Waaah!" is just hilariously awesome.

But even then I wasn't really planning on writing this. What changed my mind, however, was when I played with my Robin amiibo and found out that he had special dialogues with Odin, Laslow, and Selena. I thought it was interesting how they seemed to recognize him, but he didn't recognize them. Now they claim that he is an "imposter" but I never really bought that. So this fic came to mind and I decided to write it out.

As always leave comments and critiques below.

Now that that's out of the way, onto the next thing. Awaaaaaay!