Chapter 1
The Girl in the Fray
"Ooh, why does it have to be so hot? I think I'm actually melting..." Sumia moaned as she guided her pegasus to Cordelia's flank. The silver-haired queen was patting at the nape of her neck with a hankie while simultaneously tugging at her chest plate. The pale pink of her armor glinted in the blazing sunlight, absorbing just enough heat to feel as though she were cooking from the inside out, something Cordelia knew all too well. Her own silver plating attracted so much angry sunlight that she half-contemplated simply discarding the offending armor. She might be exposed to enemy arrows but at least she'd be cool.
"Perhaps you should fall back? It wouldn't do to have our queen succumb to heatstroke, especially this high off of the ground." Cordelia replied, the smallest amount of concern lacing her voice. She tried not to scowl at her dear friend but her mind was already occupied with plenty.
"Huh? And leave you to guard the skies alone? Don't be ridiculous, Cordelia! I was a soldier way before I ever became a queen!" Sumia debated back. Her face was becoming more flushed by the second but she hastily stuffed her hankie back into the open space at the pointed collar of her chest plate, as if to prove that she could handle both the heat and battle. "It may be hotter than a barbarians boot but that doesn't mean I have to be useless!"
Somehow, Cordelia seemed to forget about Sumia's affinity for providing unnecessary assistance.
"I wasn't implying anything, Sumia. But if you're not well, then you shouldn't fight. Besides, I won't be guarding alone. Cherche is just on the other side of the fortress. I could pair with her if need be."
"But I thought you didn't like Cherche?..."
Now Cordelia really couldn't help the ugly scowl.
"I like Cherche just fine. It's her wyvern that I dislike." Cordelia answered, a bit too harshly than she had intended.
"But Minerva is such a sweetheart! Er, once she's been fed, that is..." Sumia said, holding a finger to her chin as if remembering some incident with the hideous beast.
"I'll take your word for it..." muttered Cordelia. If it hadn't been for that one time when Minerva had tried to make a meal of Icarus, Cordelia's gelding, then the Pegasus Knight might've considered giving the wyvern a chance. But that was some time ago and right now, she couldn't be bothered with forgiving the nature of an oversized lizard. She had other things weighing heavily in her thoughts, as it were.
Seemingly sensing an impending sigh of epic proportions, Sumia nudged her steed to fly a little faster to keep up with her companion.
"Cordelia? Are you alright?"
Cordelia kept her eyes locked on the looming fortress ahead of them, her gaze steely and thoughtful, and just a tiny bit angry. The knight wasn't known for her happy demeanor, nor her welcoming of being humored for it. She was often lost in some ill feeling that, try as she might, always managed to get away from her. She never meant to make those around her uncomfortable with her negative energy; the last thing she wanted was to alienate her friends. But as of late, her life felt like nothing more than a joke. For all of the things that she worked so hard to achieve, her accolades just weren't enough.
"Yes, I'm fine, Sumia. I'm just troubled is all..."
Sumia dropped her own gaze slowly, her features looking a little perplexed as she tried to piece together the puzzle that was Cordelia.
"Ah, um, this isn't about-"
"NO." Cordelia snapped firmly, twisting her head to finally glare at her friend. Her long, cherry-colored hair whipped around to tangle in the hot wind. "I've already told you, I'm done with that."
Sumia pursed her lips together as she gripped her reigns sheepishly. If her cheeks weren't already red from sun exposure then Cordelia could've sworn that the royal knight was blushing, embarrassed by her immediate assumption. Cordelia would never admit that she was partially right...
"I know..." Sumia ventured timidly. "Sorry, I'm just trying to help..."
Cordelia gritted her teeth. If there was one thing that Sumia was able to do without tripping up, it was getting what she wanted. Rumor had it she was so good in fact, that all she had to do was bake the prince a few pies to win his affections. Not to mention the nasty theories set forth by Miriel, about how Sumia feigned weakness so as to garner more attention from her male comrades. Of course, being the level-headed and loyal friend that she was, Cordelia didn't believe a word of any of it; if the rumor or the mage had even a shred of merit, then she would have devoted all of her free time to becoming the best baker in all of Ylisse, and no sympathy would be felt every time Sumia took a stumble. No, Cordelia was much more intelligent than that. Even so, Sumia could be quite the pain in the rump.
Sigh...
And there it was, a sigh so infamous that it's reputation preceded itself. An apology and explanation was in order.
"Don't sound so frightened, you of all people know that I don't mean to snap."
"It's okay, Cordelia! Really!" Sumia tittered enthusiastically. "I can tell that something has you frustrated. I'm you're friend, I know these things."
Cordelia slumped her shoulders, defeated in spirit and energy.
The pair continued to steer their mounts circular around the massive fortress, hunting down any thieves that may have escaped the Shepherds initial attack. The structure sat solid, it's interlocking stones and slabs creating a buffer of super dense protection. Robin and Chrom had decided to lead an advance squad into the thieves hideout to weed out the rest of the criminals, as well as locate the stolen property of some local villages. The aerial units and some ground units were left stationed outside to guard against any surprise encounters.
"I'm just bothered by what that girl said to me before she dashed off for the keep." Cordelia said, trying to remain focused on her task at hand without having to resort to shooing Sumia away. Cordelia had always been good at multi-tasking.
"Girl... Oh! The one with the pigtails and attitude?" chirped Sumia, the proverbial lightbulb flashing on over her head.
"Yeah... Call me crazy but, I think she knows me. At least, she was talking like she did. She even said "Oh, Gods, it's you..." before I had even finished approaching her."
"Hmm, and she doesn't look familiar to you?"
"No! Not in the slightest... Well, she sort of looks like someone I might know? I mean, her features look a little familiar, I think. No, I can't recall ever meeting her." Cordelia replied with finality. The girl certainly was unpleasant and Cordelia would remember someone with the amazing ability to be an enormous brat. "She was so rude, too..." She uttered the last bit to herself as she remembered the girl's scathing words.
"Really? How so?"
"She said some things to me. Things like how all I care about is Chr-, the army," Cordelia corrected herself quickly, glancing sideways to see if her companion caught the slip. "And that if I ever cared at all then I would stay out of her way. I don't even know this girl and she's already telling me what to do."
Sumia pondered for a moment.
"She's probably just mistaking you for someone else. Unless..."
Sumia never got to finish her train of thought. In that same moment, the two pegasus knights saw a burst of flame explode high in the air, a flare signaling to the two fliers that they were needed on the ground. Banking Icarus around and holding her silver lance steady and ready, Cordelia lead the way back to the entrance of the fortress where Henry stood sentinel, flailing his arms wildly to catch their attention. Then, with the skill of a seasoned Pegasus Knight, Cordelia brought her mount in for a landing, having him gallop the rest of the way to the entrance once he touched down. Sumia did the same, although she grunted as her landing wasn't nearly so perfect.
"Hey, Cordie, you're Highness, hehehe." He chuckled, greeting them respectively upon their arrival. He was flecked in blood with nearly half of his face covered by a fine layer of the red stuff. A purple tome was clutched in the crook of his arm, and his dark cloak hung thick and heavy around his thin frame. His white bed-head was also speckled with droplets of blood and a large vulpine grin was plastered to his boyish face. He looked positively vampiric and if it weren't for the blinding sunlight shining down on him, then Cordelia would've been convinced that he was one. As much as she tolerated him, he still gave her the willies.
"Please, stop calling me that." She said as she swung Icarus around so as not to trample the Dark Mage. "I'm fine with 'Cordelia'."
"Aww, you're no fun. It's a heck of a lot better than what Gaius calls you, ahaha."
Cordelia frowned, perfectly aware of what Gaius called her.
"Just cut to the chase, Henry. Why did you summon us?"
He slapped a pale hand to his temple, mussing the platinum locks that hung sticky with blood.
"Argh, right! You're needed inside! They're really taking a licking and need back-up!"
"Then we're finished here." She stated, spurring Icarus forward to gallop further into the keep. With a quick glance back to Sumia, she noticed Henry staying put, his maddening smile fading the farther she got away from him. She didn't feel bad for leaving him behind though; he was more than capable of defending the entrance on his own.
The clatter of hooves on tile echoed loudly through the vaulted corridor as the two knights rode swiftly to the fray. Cordelia held the reigns tightly with one hand as the other lofted her lance high, ready to strike out should an enemy ambush them from the shadows of the pillars. It didn't take them long to encroach on the chaos within and in a matter of seconds, Cordelia spotted the advance team holed up on one side of the great hall. Directing Icarus to them, she called for Sumia to follow.
"Oh, thank the Gods..." Chrom heaved when they trotted up to the exhausted team.
"Oh, Chrom! What's going on?! Henry said you needed help!" Sumia burst, jumping down from her mare to embrace her husband. Cordelia shifted her eyes elsewhere.
"It's the gang leader. He's taken a number of his men further into the citadel. If we're going after him then we need all the help we can get."
Someone cleared their throat as obnoxiously as they could. It was the girl.
Chrom shook his head, exasperated.
"Also, Severa is refusing to leave here until we rescue her friend."
"Severa?..." Cordelia trailed off.
"Ugh, that's ME. GAWDS, I don't remember you ever being THIS slow." The girl scowled, flicking a long pigtail over her shoulder with too much sass.
"E-excuse ME?!" Cordelia stammered, unable to believe that anyone, let alone a stranger, could have to gall to speak so callously of her.
"Geez, just forget it! We're wasting time standing around. The longer we wait, the less likely we'll get to Holland! Now, let's MOVE!" Severa shrilled as she held her sword to point their way.
With Falchion in hand, Chrom issued orders for half of the team to leave with Robin in the direction of Nelson, the gang leader. The other half were instructed to follow Severa, protecting her from enemy attacks so that she could locate and rescue her friend. Cordelia sighed heavily when she was placed on Severa detail.
With their orders given, the two smaller teams deviated from the main hall and rushed to their destinations. Severa ran headlong through the maze of corridors, either oblivious of her surroundings or simply not caring because more than once, Cordelia and her fellow Shepherds had to throw themselves into an enemies path of violence, guarding her from harm. It definitely didn't help matters that whenever she looked the young mercenaries way, she was either glowering so furiously or watching the Pegasus Knight with mixed admiration and fear. Cordelia had to double take, just on the off-chance that she was seeing things. Seriously, what was this girls issue?...
Before long, the team made their way down a smaller hallway, ending in a large room where a few more thieves stood guard over numerous chests. Again, Severa rushed forward, calling out to a young man with a pot on his head and patched clothing on his body.
"Severa, wait!" Cordelia cried, kicking Icarus into full gear to chase her down before anyone of the startled enemies could harm the girl.
Just as she feared, a hostile mercenary charged from the shadows, swinging his sword and lunging for her. With equal speed, but far less strength, Severa brought her own weapon up to parry the attack, stopping dead in her tracks as she slipped on the smooth tile of the floor. She shrieked in surprise as she landed hard on her back, her sword still held firmly in place against the edge of the enemies steel blade.
In the time that it took for him to draw back for another strike, Cordelia raced to their location, pulling back on her lance then thrusting it forward with enough force to impale the mercenary on the spearhead.
"Get away from her!" She cried angrily, the weight of the mercenary pulling her arm back as he was dragged across the floor while Icarus continued in his hot pursuit.
Shortening the slack of the reigns, Cordelia brought them to a halt and made a disgusted face. Killing another human being, no matter how much of an enemy he was to her, never got easy. She had to remind herself that it was either him, or Severa, and despite the girl being a loud-mouthed stranger, the sight of her running to an almost-certain death stirred something in her. Something melancholic and eerily familiar. Hopefully, Severa would treat her with a little more grace from now on.
Shaking her lance free from the now dead mercenary, Cordelia turned back to watch as Severa leapt to her feet and joined up with her friend. Whatever she was telling the poor man must've been unpleasant, for she appeared to be giving him an ear-full. The pained expression on his face deepened before softening altogether, though. He nodded, agreeing to whatever terms Severa had laid down before she turned to look forlornly her way.
Deciding that there was no time like the present(the room was also clear of any danger, the rest of the team saw to that), Cordelia hopped down from her saddle and strode back to Severa. She was going to lecture the young girl on the dangers of not looking before one leaps, and finding out just what the hell her problem was. She did just save her life after all, surely she was entitled to at least some sort of explanation.
Severa seemed to sense the impending wrist slapping because she cast her gaze to the floor and shuffled awkwardly.
"I know that you wanted to save your friend," Cordelia started, her brows knitting together in controlled anger. "But that was extremely irresponsible of you. You could have been killed."
Severa clenched her jaw and kept looking everywhere but at the Pegasus Knight.
"In fact, this entire endeavor was nothing more than us acting as your bodyguards. You have no sense of your surroundings and you blindly rush into trouble. If the Shepherds hadn't been here to defend you then you most surely would be dead."
Severa crossed her arms at this point and flung her head back, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. She still refused to look at Cordelia.
"What's the matter with you? Do you have a death wish? And why are you behaving so coldly to me? I don't even know you and yet, you act as if I'd wronged you somehow."
Flicking her pigtails back over her shoulders, Severa still remained quiet, but not totally impassive. Her breathing grew labored as she struggled to control herself, from what Cordelia still had yet to ascertain.
The knight relaxed her posture with another sigh and placed the dull end of her lance on the floor. The girl looked absolutely pitiful, the way she struggled against her feelings of Gods-knows-what. Why she was even running with a band of notorious mercenaries when she had made it clear that she wasn't a part of their schemes was baffling enough. But still, Cordelia found it difficult to stay angry.
"Severa... If you're going to join the Shepherds, then that would make us allies. If we're going to be allies, then the least you can do is be honest with me."
Severa mumbled something under her breath.
"Come again?..."
The mercenary threw her hands up in defeat, her cheeks red from outrage and heat.
"I SAID... I'm your daughter!... GAWDS! How many times do I have to say it?! How obvious do I have to make it?!"
Cordelia stumbled back at the outburst. Her lance clanged loudly against the tiled floor and all she could do was stare in shock. Severa...was her daughter?
Bringing her ironclad fingers to her lips, Cordelia forced herself to speak. "Y-you're my daughter? S-so, you came back...with Lucina?"
Severa huffed, willing herself to calm down and to finally look her mother in the eye.
"Yeah, I did. I've been looking for you ever since."
Cordelia still stood stunned. After all this time, after all of the children that they had rescued, after wondering if she'd ever meet her own, here she was, facing down her rabid, teenage daughter in the most unexpected fashion. When she didn't say or do anything, other than stare with the expression of a trout, Severa rolled her eyes and moved forward to wrap her arms around the knight.
Cordelia stiffened under the tight embrace, unsure of what she should do. She was still having difficulty grasping that her future daughter had just revealed herself to her. It didn't make things any easier, hearing that Severa didn't appear too happy to see her mother. Did she turn out to be an awful parent? What could she have possibly done to the girl to make her resent her so? Cordelia had always known she would eventually want a child. She just didn't think she would end up with one that disliked her...
"Pfft, it's good to see you too, MOM..." Severa growled, letting go of Cordelia reluctantly... Reluctantly?
Cordelia blinked herself back to reality.
"O-oh! I was just..."
The sad look on Severa's face tugged at the knights heart strings.
"Get a hold of yourself, Cordelia" she thought bitterly. "This was bound to happen sooner or later. She's your daughter for God's sake!"
She smiled tenderly at her daughter, reaching out to grip her by the shoulders, drawing her back into her arms.
"I'm sorry. I'm just surprised. I never thought I'd end up with such a beautiful daughter."
"Ha! That won't work on me, mother." Severa scoffed, even though Cordelia distinctly heard a soft giggle. "Sorry if...I'm a little irritable. We didn't have the best relationship back where I come from..."
So, she did turn out to be an awful mother... Cordelia could practically feel her stomach drop to the floor.
"Oh... I see..."
It was then that they parted, Severa stepping back to look her mother up and down.
"You look exactly the same. Just a little bit younger..."
Cordelia nodded slowly, if only for something to respond with.
After several painfully awkward moments, Frederick called out to his team to re-group now that they were finished with their task. Severa turned away to join the rest of the Shepherds but stopped suddenly when Cordelia snatched up her hand. She twisted her head around to stare down her mother, an edgy look to her features and annoyance written all over.
"Severa... You're my daughter, right? Then I swear, whatever I did, er, will do... Gods, this is all so confusing..." She shook her head slightly to gather her thoughts before presenting the girl with a genuinely heartfelt smile. "I'll make it right. Things will be different this time. Whatever happened between us...will not happen again. And I will do everything in my power to give you the life you're real mother wasn't able to. And... I am really glad that you're here..."
Severa rolled her eyes but allowed a small smile to shine through.
"Oh, mom... Don't get all mushy on me now. I wouldn't have come back if I didn't want to see you. And for the record, you were a great mom. The BEST mom. It's just that, sometimes, it felt like I wasn't your priority. That's all... Oh! And you DID die on me! Left one day and never returned! I was so angry at you... Still am... But, I know that it wasn't your fault."
"Well, you don't have to worry about that anymore. You came back to me and I intend to stay with you. We'll save the world together this time."
Before Severa could slip away, Cordelia pulled her back into a crushing embrace and planted a kiss on the top of her head. Severa floundered in her arms, squealing so childishly.
"Argh, stop with the mushy stuff! I already said that I'm glad to see you, isn't that enough?!"
She threw Cordelia's arms off her and straightened up, pulling her shirt down to smooth out any wrinkles and brushing her bangs out of her eyes.
"Geez, I forgot how insufferable you can be sometimes."
"Hehe, whatever you say, dear." Cordelia chuckled. Sure, Severa may act like a spoiled brat, but she had a feeling that it was just a front. If the mercenaries words held any weight to them, it was that she was terribly sad and lonely, and missed her mother like there was no tomorrow. Something Cordelia was now determined to undo.
As the mother/daughter duo went to fall in with the rest of their team(Icarus trotted along behind his mistress obediently), a thought suddenly struck Cordelia like a ton of bricks.
"Hey, Severa? While I'm absolutely thrilled to be your mother, I do have a question... Who's your father?"
Severa swiveled on the spot, her long, blonde pigtails whipping circular around her head, to stare bug-eyed at her mother.
"Whaat?! You're not with daddy yet?!" She screeched.
Cordelia stuttered, taken aback by how weird her legitimate question sounded.
"Um...no? I'm not with anyone. There's really no time for courting when you're at war... Why? Should I be?"
"Pfft, probably still pining for CHROOOM..." Severa muttered sourly.
Cordelia dropped her jaw.
"Hey! You watch your mouth, young lady! You might be my future daughter but you will not talk to me in such a way!" Cordelia berated. She even waved a pointed finger in the young girls face.
Then, Severa did something completely out-of-the-blue. She laughed.
"Bahahaha! Ooh, this is BRILLIANT! I know who you're going to marry but you don't! I could seriously tell you that anyone of these guys becomes your husband and you would believe me! Oh, gawds, that would be hilarious!"
"Don't you dare! That's an absolutely terrible thing to do!" Cordelia glowered. She hardly felt that this was a laughing matter. If Severa wanted to be born in this timeline at all, then she would tell the truth.
"Will you relax? I didn't say I was going to, sheesh! Why would I do that when I have the best daddy in the whole world?"
"Really? So, I do marry a wonderful man?"
"Uh, yeaaah, duuh." Severa replied saucily as she flicked a pigtail back over her shoulder for what felt like the tenth time. "None of these guys hold a candle to my father. He's seriously the best. After you died, he took care of me. We did everything together but then, he died as well..."
"Severa..."
Cordelia placed a hand on her shoulder, a small gesture of comfort.
"Speaking of daddy, where is he? He must be outside still since I didn't see him in the advance squad..."
"Oh, I wonder who he is..." Cordelia said, perhaps a little too giddily because Severa gave her a funny look.
"Well, you'll just have to wait and see then. Because I'm not telling you until I see him... Ahh, I can't wait! I've missed him so so SO much!"
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited myself. The three of us will be a family, just like the others and their children. I wonder... Could he be Stahl? He's a rather nice man. A bit average though..."
"Mother, please." Severa snarked, holding up a palm as if to halt Cordelia's ridiculous girl talk. "Don't be so dumb. Do I LOOK like a brunette to you?"
Cordelia blinked in surprise.
"Oh! Yes, I suppose you're right, dear. Hmm, you're hair color is on the lighter side of the spectrum... In this firelight it looks blonde..." The Pegasus knight analyzed as they passed under a lit torch that stuck out of the wall. "Is your father Libra? Oh Gods, that will never work... He's so much prettier than I am..." She patted at her cheeks, uncomfortable by the thought of everyone mistaking her husband for her wife.
Severa snickered.
"No, mom, he's not my father. You're not chaste enough to deserve the preacher."
Again, Cordelia left her mouth agape.
"Severa! What did I say not ten minutes ag-... Oh no... Ooh no, oh no!" Cordelia gasped, covering her mouth in horror.
Severa quirked an eyebrow.
"Uh, mom? What are you..."
"Not him... Please, not him. Anyone but hiiiim!"
"Mother? Hellooo-"
Cordelia grabbed her daughter but the shoulders and squeezed.
"Severa, tell me that Vaike isn't your father."
Severa scoffed.
"Eh, what?"
"You heard me! Tell me that I do not marry Vaike. And tell me that I don't do...THAT...with him!"
"Why? Would that be so bad? You'd get me out of it."
"Severa... You have no idea what he's like... If he becomes my husband... I-I just don't think I have it in me..."
"Uh-huh. And I didn't think it was possible to time travel. But if it keeps you from getting sick all over me... You can count your lucky stars because that buffoon is definitely NOT my father."
Cordelia sighed the most relaxing and most relieved sigh she thought she ever had. So, her future self kept her wits. That was an enormous weight off her shoulders.
"I'm glad the feeling is mutual." She laughed.
"Yeah, well... It's like I said... No one is better than my father..." Severa glanced sidelong at Cordelia, her features taking on a noticeably stonier look. "Not even Chrom."
The chuckle died in Cordelia's throat at Severa's words. Her lips retreated into a straight line as she slowed her pace, watching Severa pass on by.
"Of course not..."
They finished their trek back to the fortress entrance in silence. Which was just as well because Cordelia now had even more to mull over in her mind. Apparently, she would never get over her intense infatuation with the Ylissean prince. If Severa could recall her mothers unrequited feelings, then perhaps it was one of the things that caused a rift between them? She had admitted to caring for her mother greatly, nearly bursting into tears during their awkward introduction. But the way she spoke of her father, it was pure adoration and love. Like he could do no wrong in her eyes. Well, he was her father after all, he very well should be her hero. Especially when she had failed so spectacularly at trying to be.
But did Severa know something she didn't? Besides her as-of-yet-to-be-named husband... What if something really did happen in the future, something before her death? Perhaps she abandoned her family for Chrom, in more ways than one? All the way up until it took her away from her little girl?
No, that can't be. She just met Severa and she already loved her. Loved her exactly the way she knew she did and most certainly always would. If there was one thing Cordelia was positive of, it was that she would never abandon those she cared about, and she would NEVER leave her daughter for anyone's affections. She would never willingly say goodbye to her child unless it was absolutely necessary, like for their own protection. If she did in fact leave Severa for anyone, it was definitely for her. Cordelia knew that for sure. Yes, that was a lifetime in the future, somewhere she would never get to, but still, she knew that one thing to be true.
"Nothing matters more than the ones you care about..." She thought quietly to herself, while all around her, the two teams greeted and merged back into one. She saw Chrom and Sumia weave their way to the head of the squad to take charge of their exit.
She still had trouble sleeping at night, remembering her sisters in the Pegasus Knights that had died for her escape, all those years ago. If things could've been different, then she would have died right along side them(of course, if things really could have been different, then they wouldn't have had to die in the first place). But it was something she swore she'd never live through again. The guilt and pain of losing someone dear while she was granted a second chance at life was an awful thing to live with, which was why she trained and fought so hard to be stronger for everyone. Whenever she remembered her sisters sacrifice, she would tell herself to make the most with the time they gave her. Otherwise, it'll all have been in vain...
But things could change! Severa was proof of that! Nothing was set in stone or stars, so long as she made a conscious effort to dictate her own life. Maybe she did feel something for Chrom, maybe in this exact moment she was mildly jealous of her sweet, sweet childhood friend. But if her very own daughter coming back to the past to be with her was indicative of anything, it was that she could move on. She could cast away her utterly useless feelings for a man she would never have, and learn to love someone she could. She could have a husband, and she could have a baby girl, and she could be happy as long as she let herself. If the future could be changed, like they were trying to do now, then why couldn't she?
Resolving to tell Severa everything, Cordelia picked up her pace as she lead Icarus by the reigns to the looming exit. She wanted to catch her rebellious daughter before she ventured off to hunt for her father, had to tell her that all she cared for was their little family.
She caught up to her just as they crossed the wide threshold and stepped out in to the still shimmering heat.
"Severa! Wait! I have to tell you something!" She said loudly, grabbing the young girl by her upper arm and stopping her from taking another step.
"Ugh, can't it wait? I want to find father!"
"No, it can't wait! I think it'll help us both to understand where we're coming from. I just can't bear the thought of-"
Severa rolled her head around in annoyance before looking out down the trail that lead to the forts entrance. She ripped her arm from Cordelia's grasp and practically screamed.
"DADDY?!"
"Eh..." Cordelia started, watching as Severa bounded away down the trail to leap on the back of some unknown Shepherd.
Feelings of excitement and nervousness burst in her belly as she also jogged down the trail, Icarus in tow. Forgetting all about her resolve, Cordelia hurried to her daughter, anxious to discover the identity of her future husband. Severa held tightly to her so-called father as he doubled over, lifting her from the ground while he circled on the spot.
"What the-? Ahaha, what's going on?" He laughed, halting Cordelia dead in her tracks.
He didn't need to turn a full three-sixty for her to know who Severa's "daddy" was. All she needed was to hear his sing-song voice and she could picture his ruthless, yet boyish face. For the third time that day, Cordelia brought a hand to her lips, shock freezing her place.
"Mother! I found father!" Severa laughed. She swung her legs up to wrap around his midsection to ride piggyback style as he struggled to remain on his feet, his confusion mixing with amused laughter.
"Father?! I have a kid?! No kidding! Hahahaha!"
He finally circled to Cordelia's direction, stopping for the briefest of moments when he saw her watching.
"Ah, hey Cordie! Didja hear? I have a kid, apparently, haha!"
Cordelia remained still and silent. This was much worse than Vaike...
"Haha, you're so silly, daddy. She already knows about me because she's my mother and your wife! Our mommy-dearest!" Severa giggled, tightening her hold on Henry's shoulders as she nuzzled into the back of his white bed-head. It was then that Cordelia noticed that Severa really was blonde, just of the platinum sort.
"Wow, really? Man, did I hit the jackpot or what?!"
At a loss for words, Cordelia simply watched the father/daughter antics unfold, a feeling of dread settling over her like a shroud.
This was much, MUCH worse than Vaike.
...
Poor Cordelia. Henry and Severa would be the family from Hell. XD
This does not mean that I'm giving up on Robin and Henry. They will always be my OTP. However, I love Cordelia and Severa and simply wanted to try something new... Plus, a platinum blonde Severa is just too adorable for words(she's super fun to write, by the way).
:3
