"Ryoma… withdraw your troops."

Had he really said that? Had those words really passed his lips? Would this be the end, so shortly after the inception? He felt his hands grow tighter on the sword. The fingers strained: he imagined his knuckles would be white if he could see them through the gloves.

The samurai was staring blankly back at him, "What did you say?"

"I can't have you attacking my family, Ryoma," he answered, shutting his eyes.

"Your family?!" the Hoshidan prince gasped, "We're your family. The people behind you, they're the ones who murdered our mother. Have you already lost sight of that?"

He opened his eyes again, "None of my brothers or sisters had anything to do with Lady Mikoto's death. On that, I would stake my life."

"What about the monsters ravaging our homeland? Would you so callously ignore them, too? Who do you think is responsible for all that?"

"I…" he glanced to the side, "have my suspicions. But I won't allow you to harm the only family I have ever known to satisfy your vengeance."

"This isn't about me, it's about them! They plan to invade Hoshido off the back of our mother's assassination, and you would help them?!"

"After all I've been through with these people, my dear brothers and sisters… I can't turn my back on them now."

"But you can turn your back on your real family?"

"That's quite enough out of you, Hoshidan prince," Xander scoffed, "Don't try to confuse my brother with your posturing. His declaration was loud and clear: he will support his brethren in Nohr. And I cannot begin to tell him how happy that declaration has made me."

"Silence!" the Hoshidan prince leapt forward, "You… you curs must have brainwashed him somehow, with your fiendish magic!"

Xander blocked his path, "Don't insult me, you contemptuous wretch. Corrin made this decision completely of his own volition."

"Ryoma," Corrin appeared from behind his brother, "I know you likely won't understand my reasoning, and I don't ask you to forgive me, but I've made my choice."

Ryoma swung his blade. Corrin yelped and brought forth the Yato just in time to parry the strike, but then another push came that knocked him to his feet. "I will bring you back to Hoshido, even if I have to do it with you kicking and screaming all the way!" the prince shouted.

Xander swatted his opponent back with the breadth of his own blade, "Get away from him, you coward! You think you're acting in his best interest by jumping up and attacking him, trying to drag him away from what he's decided? You Hoshidans are pathetic. You have my pity. Unfortunately for you, my sacred blade, Siegfried, knows nothing of pity—only of triumph!"

Corrin watched his brothers cross swords, and the sparks flew, shimmering into the air. They glittered in the evening light and scattered into the grass below, scorching it with each movement.

By this time, the Nohrian and Hoshidan royals had closed in on the center of the battlefield, and were preparing to engage each other. "Little prince… No, that's not right. Corrin, go: help our siblings and stop the Hoshidans! I'll put an end to this mouthy 'High Prince' of theirs!"

Corrin offered no comment and complied with his brother's instructions, running back to his Nohrian siblings. He was tempted to jump in and embrace each of them, feeling a lightness in his heart at seeing them all again, but contemptuous stares jabbed at his back. He turned around and saw the Hoshidans approaching. Takumi was at the front, and he loosed a shimmering arrow at the young Nohrian prince, who dodged the attack quite narrowly. Shortly thereafter, the Hoshidan archer was strung up by a bunch of gnarled, knotted roots that strangled him. "Hotheaded fool," Leo scoffed, brushing off Brynhildr. "And you!" he pointed at Corrin, "for gods' sakes, look alive!"

"Right," Corrin nodded, feeling embarrassment rush to his face. He turned to look at the advancing Hoshidans: Sakura was at the back of the line, guarded by the tactician he had met along with his mother… Yukimura? At any rate, in front of them, Hinoka's pegasus was streaking forward through the air, and her lance was pointing straight to his face. He was blown back as the dark, leathery wings of Camilla's wyvern pushed him aside and her axe caught the Hoshidan princess's lance.

"Darling," she cooed, "would you lend your big sister a hand?"

"Don't talk to him like that, witch," Hinoka growled, "That's my little brother."

Corrin stepped between them, his Yato glinting in the sunlight, "Sorry, Hinoka… but you're wrong." She shouted as Corrin swept her off her Pegasus, cutting into her shoulder as she fell. Camilla smiled and held up her axe over the princess's head, but she felt her brother's hand reach across her—normally a sensation she would very much appreciate. "Camilla, don't! There doesn't have to be any bloodshed today. We can end this silly fighting and just find a resolution…"

Suddenly, they heard Ryoma shout from behind them. Xander stood over him, poised to plunge Siegfriend into the samurai's chest, but the sounds of hundreds of footsteps and his brother's gaze halted him. "Damn," cursed the crown prince of Nohr, "Their strategist seems to have called for reinforcements. Corrin, Camilla, Leo, Elise—everyone, fall back! We can't win against an army of this size." The Nohrian royals heard their brother loud and clear and ran back behind the lines, dodging stray arrows and shurikens that shot out from the emerging crowd at their backs.

"That's right… run away, traitor!" Corrin heard Takumi shout.

"Corrin!" he heard Ryoma, too, "This isn't over! Soon… you'll see the error of your ways!"

The battle was over. They retreated. There was Hoshidan blood on the Yato's tip, which the prince only noticed when it gleamed in the moonlight as they all began to retreat. The blood had dried onto the sword: it was impossible to wash it off now. In a way, Corrin thought it would be more disrespectful to try, even if he could.

The light of day gradually gave way to the ever-present dark of Nohr as they began to step beyond the borders of Hoshido, listening to the methodically clop of horses' hooves and the rattling of armor. Eventually, Corrin saw his eldest brother turn around and look behind them for the first time in a few hours.

"We'll make camp here," Xander told them all, raising his hand as a signal, "The Hoshidans wouldn't dare travel this close to the Nohrian border."

Corrin prepared to step off of his horse when he thought he heard a whisper behind him that stopped him in his tracks. He heard the noise again and stepped down, looking around. Suddenly, his eyes were attracted to a nearby bush, where he saw the long aqua hair that could only belong to Azura poking out. He glanced over his shoulder, finding his siblings just coming to a stop and not looking his way. He sidled over and greeted her, "Azura?"

"So… you really intend to leave Hoshido in favor of Nohr?"

"I don't expect you to understand, but—"

"No, I understand."

He blinked. "You… you do?"

"I'm not sure I agree, but I understand completely. Nohr is your home, and these are your siblings, regardless of what anyone else tells you. I know the feeling," she nodded, "I… don't know if we can walk the same path, however."

"Oh," his eyes fell, "I hadn't even considered that. Well, no hard feelings, Azura. You're free to choose just as I did. To be completely honest, I'd feel really bad about fighting against you, but…"

"Rest assured, I won't be doing any fighting," she answered, "I just need… to think. I'm going to go back home and think for a long time about this."

"All right," Corrin nodded, "On the unlikely chance that you do want to come back to Nohr… well, I'll see to it there's always a place for you."

Her eyes widened a little, "Thank you. That's… very kind. Now, I have to be on my way."

He nodded and saw her off. "What a strange woman," he thought out loud, "I can never quite figure out what she's thinking."

"Corrin!" he whipped around at the shout of his name. Xander was waving him toward a small campfire.

"Are you going to spend the whole evening staring at plants?" Leo chuckled, cocking an eyebrow.

"Oh! Sorry, I was… distracted," he explained, walking over and taking a seat.

"That's understandable, given what you endured today," Xander nodded.

Camilla scowled, "Hoshidan filth! How dare they scold my precious Corrin and make him feel bad for denying their schemes!"

"Brother," Xander looked him in the eyes, "I know I already said as much on the battlefield today, but I want to reemphasize how important your decision is. Even knowing what you do about your past, you chose the people who have always treated you like family. That is a kind of dedication and loyalty that I can never adequately repay."

"And my, the fire you had in your eyes when you stood against that prince of theirs," Camilla giggled into her palm, "Why, I felt a stirring within my own heart just seeing you like that."

"I hate to admit it, but," Leo shrugged, "it does feel good having you on our side. Your form was off, and your strategic thinking and situational awareness need a lot of work… but, it's nice to know that you think of us like that."

Corrin nodded, feeling a smile creep onto his face, "I could never abandon you all, not after all the time we've spent together. Besides, I don't have all the facts about this situation. I'd like to speak to father about it and gain some Nohrian perspective before I go blindly believing some Hoshidans I've never met."

"Spoken like a true prince," Xander smiled, "You impress me already with how much you've grown. You'll come to see what an inspiration you can be on the battlefield with an attitude and dedication like that which you displayed today."

Corrin nodded and turned his head to see Elise's long blonde hair drooped in front of her face, "Elise? You're uncharacteristically quiet tonight."

She lifted her head, "Oh! I'm sorry, I was just worried about you fighting today. I guess I'm not quite over it yet."

Xander also turned to face her, "That's right, you've never been on a battlefield before, either, have you, sweet Elise? No doubt you're a bit shaken up by what you saw."

"What? N-No," she stammered, "I wasn't worried about any of that stuff. I'm a princess of Nohr! I'm not scared of anything!"

"It's all right, Elise," her brother scooted closer to her, rolling up his sleeve, "See? Not a scratch on me. Same goes for both our brothers and our big sister. Everyone is just fine."

Xander smiled. Elise did the same, "I guess you're right. But still… this means we'll be going to war with Hoshido, doesn't it?"

"Most likely," their eldest brother agreed, "but we have to hear what our father has to say about it. For now, just try to relax. Everything will get sorted out in the morning."

"I sincerely hope you're right about that," Corrin chuckled.

Camilla waved at her younger brother, "Now, come here, darling. Rest in your big sister's lap like you used to."

He blushed, "Er, Camilla, I'm not entirely sure that's appropriate."

"Yeah," Elise balled her fists, "if he lays in your lap, then how am I supposed to lay in his lap?"

"And how am I supposed to get to sleep with the rest of you prattling all evening?" Leo rolled his eyes. Elise stuck her tongue out at him.

"That's enough," Xander declared with authority, "Everyone can sleep in their own bedrolls for tonight. Now, no more chatter, let's all of us get some rest." The siblings fell in line with their brother's decree and all got into their bedrolls in the tents that had been set up for them. Gradually, each of them fell asleep under the low gleam of the stars above. Each, with the exception of Corrin, of course.

The Nohrian prince lay with his eyes pointed at the top of his tent, where he could just barely make out the figures of the stars, like polka dots on the fabric. He thought, at one point, that he had fallen asleep, but he realized once he was forced to swat at a gnat that came near his eye that he was only lost in a dreamlike remembrance of the past few days' events: he had realized the truth of his birth, transformed into a dragon, and shunned his birth family for his adoptive one. After a moment, he came to realize something else: he had turned into a dragon, hadn't he? And how did he manage to control the power? He was given a stone by Azura… almost as if she'd had it ready. The prince creased his eyebrows as he rolled over and thought once more of the aqua-haired maiden and her curious song. Maybe it was more than coincidence that had drawn them together. But she was gone back to Hoshido now, so what was the use, he supposed. Their time for interaction was over. Still, she had never said that she wouldn't see him again… The prince rolled over again, grunting in frustration: damn her and her vagueness. Why couldn't she simply say what she meant? Were all women outside of his sisters and retainers this perplexing?

[...]

Azura felt her bare feet dig into the loamy soil underneath them and sighed. She looked up at the sky that towered above her, almost mocking her with its vastness. It was the color of sapphires. She continued walking, her arms folded in front of her chest and wrapping around herself, in part because of the cold and in part because the pose helped her inclination toward thinking, and she had quite a lot of that to do.

So he had decided to rejoin Nohr. Contrary to what she told him, she found it hard to believe. Her fingers drifted to the marks that wove a long and sordid tale up her arm and shuddered when she thought back to that place. She could only think of it as a cold kingdom of perpetual darkness and death. Was it only because he was so sheltered that he made his choice? That he was afraid of new surroundings, that he thought he had nowhere else to go? Perhaps it was too late to be considering these questions: after all, the choice was already made, wasn't it? The more important question was whether or not she could follow him back to his homeland. To her homeland. She let her arms fall to her sides and exhaled: what would mother tell her to do?

"Stop right there, traitor!" She complied and came to a halt as soon as she heard the voice, her eyes suddenly jolting open. Takumi was training his bow on her, "You think I didn't see you slinking away, like a thief in the night? Did you run off to tell your new friend all of our military secrets—our strategies, our weaknesses? Well?! Speak, you Nohrian harlot!"

"Takumi," she gritted her teeth, "I know how this looks, and I understand that you're feeling hurt right now…"

"Hurt?!" he shouted, "Why should I feel hurt?! I never trusted that Nohrian scum! None of us should have! Just like we never should have trusted you!" She heard a waver in his voice and noticed that he drew his sleeve along his eyes as he approached and seized her by the arm.

"Takumi, don't do anything rash," she begged him.

"Shut up!" he shouted, "I'm going to do to you what my mother should have done a long time ago." She gasped. He scowled at her, "What are you giving me that look for?" Azura noticed that there were a pair of spearmen lined up behind the Hoshidan prince. They each took one of her arms as Takumi released her. "Haitaka, Bikira, see her off to the northern prison. She can rot there." Azura breathed a sigh of relief as the men yanked her forward. She had already been in so many prisons. What was one more?