Chains
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
A/N: This is basically a universe in which the ceremony at the table went wrong, and Grima wasn't able to fully take control of Robin's body. As a result, Chrom wasn't killed but imprisoned and Grima/Robin decided to raise their children while expanding her reign(will be touched on more later).
Most of the Shepherds are killed off, with the exception of a few who hide in the shadows and occasionally fight back while raising children of their own. Lucina grows up under Grima's care, so her personality is quite a bit different from canon.
There will definitely be Chrom!Morgan, Chrom!Cynthia, and Lon'qu!Severa in this story. If you have any suggestions for any pairings then go ahead and tell me, since I wanna know what you guys would like to see, and I don't really have a preference unless it gets in the way of plot.
It smells.
That is the first thing Lucina notices. The hallway to the dungeon stinks like rotten fish and something much worse, its scent so wretched that Lucina feels she will throw up. The dark is just as bad. It frightens Lucina, and the little princess wonders what monsters and bad men lie in wait for her the further she goes inside.
Lucina clutches her mother's hand, attempting to hide behind the woman's thick cloak. Her mother makes a disapproving sound in the back of her throat. She sets a gloved hand on Lucina's head, patting her.
"It's alright. They're just E-level criminals," Mother says it like it's supposed to mean something to Lucina, but the girl just shakes her head, furrowing her brow.
She looks up at the woman, waiting for her to elaborate.
Mother smiles. Her hood is up, so the most that Lucina can see is her high cheekbones and lower face. "That means that you can beat them in a fight if you had to," the woman explains. Without another word, she lets go of Lucina's hand and walks on.
It just confuses Lucina more. The princess doesn't see how she's supposed to be able to win against older, more experienced fighters. Her mother sounds sure of it, though, and Lucina always listens to her mother.
The little girl nods to herself, pinching her face into a scowl. Of course. She can do this. She's a princess after all. So she runs after her mother, stumbling now and then as she hurries to catch up.
Mother tilts her head to her when she catches up, acknowledging that Lucina is there. "I'm going to teach you another lesson," she tells her, eyes set on the hallway in front of her.
"Like with swords?" Lucina asks, raising an eyebrow. "Down here?"
"No," her mother responds. "I'm going to give you a little bit of a...political lesson, if you will. I'll be teaching you about the criminals we keep here."
Her mother's long, hurried stride stops as the light from the torches illuminates a door. It's small and bolted shut, but the strangest thing about it is that it has no doorknob. Her mother still reaches out a hand, though, and in that second, Lucina realizes the trick to it.
Magic.
Her mother's glove seems to come alive with electricity. Yellow sparks dance across her fingertips before jumping out at the door. There is a loud zapping noise, and then a click, before the door creaks open.
Lucina begins to clap enthusiastically, wide-eyed. "Amazing, Mama!" she exclaims. "Your magic is so pretty."
No matter how many times Lucina sees it, it'll always excite her. Maybe it's because Lucina herself doesn't have the affinity for magic, and she'll never get to experience the feelings that come with it. She's surrounded by mages. Her mother, Tharja, Henry. Everyone except Lucina can control magic.
Mother beckons to Lucina, interrupting the girl's thoughts with the motion. Lucina follows, letting her mother lead her into the darkness. The door closes behind the pair closes with a thud.
There are rows and rows of cells on each side. Lucina can make them out with the torchlights' dim glow, but she only sees the faint outline of prisoners inside the cells. They're all eerily quiet, which is the complete opposite of what Lucina had thought they'd be.
The girl had imagined them clawing at the bars of their cages, spitting out curses at Mother and her as they walked past. But they are still, the only sound being that of ragged breathing. Maybe it is her mother's presence that silences them, which hangs like a heavy cloud of doom.
"If someone has committed a minor crime," Mother began to explain, "we usually hold them here for a few days, then transfer them to a larger prison. The only criminals kept here for longer than a week are those who have murdered someone or committed treason. They're ones we execute."
"Execute?" Lucina wonders aloud. "How do you execute them?"
"Mostly hanging. There've been a few...oddities, of course, but we almost always take care of it with a noose."
Lucina nods. The casual talk of death is not new to her. The princess has grow up around it; her mother still fights for the crown she wears, so there is plenty of assassinations and scuffles between her supporters and the rebels. As soon as Lucina could walk, she was taught to defend herself in case someone tried to use her to get to Mother. Besides, she feels important when her mother talks to her about serious things like this.
"Who feeds them?" Lucina inquires, peering at the scrawny figures inside the cells. They don't move an inch, completely frozen even at the sound of Lucina's voice.
"A servant from the kitchen gives them scraps. They get enough," Mother states, brushing off the question.
Her mother comes to a complete stop now, as they've seemed to reach the end of the dungeon. A wall looms in front of them, and though at first it seems like any other ordinary wall, Lucina manages to sight of it.
"What's back there?" Lucina points at the small door, hidden in the shadows.
Her mother glances at the, then looks away. "Long-term prisoners," she says, voice tight. "They're kept in the back, kept out of the way, and kept under tight lock and key."
She grabs ahold of Lucina's hand. "Don't worry about it, honey," her mother's mouth is turned upwards in a smile now, a sickenly sweet one. "We never have long-term prisoners here."
The dungeon is the same as it was when Lucina last saw it. It's dark, and it's gross. There's a thick layer of grime on each and every brick that forms the walls, and the ground below is damp and squishy.
The difference this time around is that her mother isn't taking her here. Instead, Lucina is guarded by a soldier. He is a tall, dark-skinned man with a thick beard, and he dresses in the robes of Plegia, the robes of Grima's kingdom. Lucina can't remember his name, but she remembers just last week that she'd been giving him orders in battle. Now, though, the man leads her in chains.
They are infused with magic; Tharja had cuffed Lucina with a flick of her wrist, eyes blank and mouth set in a thin line. When they clamped shut on Lucina, she had heard the hissing of dark magic, so any attempts to escape will surely end in a slow, painful death. Tharja isn't known for being merciful, especially not to those who defy Grima.
Lucina expects she won't have to wear them for long. The punishment for treason is death, and Lucina knows Grima will make an example out of her with a public execution. It'll take maybe a week at most to schedule it, and so Lucina won't be imprisoned any longer than that.
Which is why she's surprised they haven't stopped yet. There's been a dozen of empty cells scattered both left and right. Lucina can't understand why the guard doesn't just shove her in one of those. Is it because Grima doesn't want her placed next to other prisoners?
A chill runs down her spine. The thought appears that something isn't right, and it nags at her as the soldier continues to walk, chains firmly gripped in his hands, not revealing even the smallest hint of when they will stop.
Eventually, the torchlight reveals a rather familiar door. Lucina feels as though she's been doused in water. Her entire body jolts in shock, and she stops, mouth opening to let out a silent gasp.
"W-what is this?" Lucina tries to put forth a front of bravo, but the words come out weak.
The soldier doesn't answer. He only looks back, then tugs on the chains meaningfully. His eyes betray none of his thoughts.
No, Lucina thinks. This can't be happening. She's been ready for death-torture even-but not this.
The soldier jerks on her chains again, this time harder, and Lucina stumbles forward reluctantly. She watches as the man puts a hand to the door. Dark purple fog runs from his fingertips to the door, then glides down to the lock a few inches below. After a few seconds, an audible click is heard.
The soldier doesn't seem to be very skilled with magic. If Lucina wasn't chained with Tharja's special cuffs, she thinks as the soldiers pushes the door open and ushers her inside, she would've been able to take him on in a fight.
It's colder now. Maybe that's just inside Lucina's head, though, because she can feel her limbs shake, but she looks down and sees them completely still. Weird. Weird. This whole situation is weird. It isn't what Lucina had been expecting, and so now she's thrown off, doesn't know how to react.
The soldier opens an empty cell with ease and shoves Lucina inside like she's some sort of throw pillow to toss. She hits the dirt floor hard and can hear the sound of the cell door closing. The chains are still connected to her cuffs, and they dig into her stomach as she lands on top of them. Bruises will eventually show up.
Lucina fumbles, attempting to push herself up off the ground with her bound hands. She manages and rocks back on her butt, looking over her shoulder in the direction of the soldier, but all she manages to see is a glimpse of the door slamming shut behind him.
Lucina is in disbelief, and she continues to stare at the bars that cage her in. She clenches her fists, ignoring the ache as her wrists knock against metal. This is...beyond what Lucina had expected.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Her heart beats against her ribcage, frantic, and Lucina swallows the lump in her throat.
She will rot here, she realizes, skin sagging and bones crumbling till there's nothing left but ash. The thought is more terrifying than facing the death penalty, almost as frightening as facing Grima's rage.
Lucina curls up as well as she can with handcuffs and is just glad that no one can hear her cry, ugly tears staining her cheeks and snot dripping from her nose
Or so she thought.
In between loud sobs, Lucina hears a cough. The girl jerks her head up immediately, looking in the direction of the noise. There, in the cell across from her, is a large lump. It's too dark to tell, but Lucina believes it to be a man.
"Sorry," the voice that speaks to her is hoarse, and it cracks. "It's...been a while since I've had any company down here."
"Who are you?" Lucina's own voice wavers. How long had this person imprisoned? She couldn't remember her mother telling her about any new long-term prisoners, and besides-
"We never have long-term prisoners here."
Lucina swallows. Another lie then, one of the many that Mother had shoved down her throat during childhood.
The man shuffles towards the edge of his own cell, closer to Lucina's. A few of his features become more visible. His dark hair isn't very long at all, which is odd, and his skin is pale and saggy.
"I suppose I'm like you," the man says finally. "A traitor to the crown and all that."
Lucina feels a spike of anger surge through her. Her tears seem to have dried, replaced with fury. "What crown?" she hisses. "The one that Grima stole?"
"Hm," the man hums. "Yes, I suppose it would be that one. I did try and stop her, you know. That's why I'm here."
Lucina frowns. "Why here, though? If you were fighting during the first rebellion, then you should've been put in a fort in Regnant Ferox."
"Well, I must be special."
The man acts far too pleasant about the whole imprisoned-for-life thing, and Lucina wonders if solitude has made him go mad.
"What about you?" he asks, interest leaking through his voice. "What'd you do to get a life sentence?"
"I tried to kill Grima. It didn't really work out."
The man whistles. "Wow," he laughs. "I'm surprised she didn't smite you on the spot."
"Me, too," Lucina mutters, looking away from the man's shadowy form.
There's something about his attitude that is frustrating, and it's kind of like it hurts to be around him. A silence passes between the two of them, heavy and drawn-out. It hangs over them for what seems like hours, until the man finally speaks again.
"Chrom," the man says. "That's my name. I'd shake your hand if I could, but…"
"Yeah, I get it." Lucina bites her lip nervously, then tells him, "You may call me Marth."
A/N: Just to be clear, Lucina doesn't tell Chrom her name because she's afraid he'll recognize her as Grima's daughter. Obviously Chrom isn't a supporter of Grima if he's imprisoned by her, and Lucina doesn't want to give her new companion a reason to dislike her, especially if it turns out that Lucina has been responsible for something personal in the past.
Lucina doesn't recognize Chrom's name for a specific reason that will be explained much later. :)
Please let me know what you think!