Lissa's protests shook the walls of the throne room. "But Chrom!" she exclaimed desperately, gritting her teeth and clenching her fists. "I can help you! You know that Ricken taught me how to use magic, and even Robin said that I was an exceptional mage!" Tears began cloud her silver eyes.

Chrom voiced his reply with unwavering resolve. "No. There's no way you're coming with us. Validar is dangerous…and now, he has the Fire Emblem. I don't care how strong you are, I won't allow you to be put in that kind of danger."

"I'll be okay! I swear it! I can protect myself. I promise I won't do anything stupid, I—"

Lissa's pleas were suddenly interrupted by her brother's warm embrace, Chrom's war-hardened biceps softening into gentle arms as he wrapped them tight around his younger sister. Her head was pushed against his chest and she listened to the rhythmic thumping of his heartbeat. They stood like this for a few moments, Chrom's warm, deep breaths contrasting his sister's unsteady inhales. In the silence, Lissa tried to match her erratic breaths with his cadenced heartbeat.

Chrom's voice broke the silence. "I'm sorry Lissa," he said slowly, as if this speed gave his words more weight. He broke away from his embrace, depriving Lissa of the calming metronome of his heart. He lightly gripped her shoulders and looked into her reddened eyes, which threatened to leak tears at any moment. "I know how capable you are. You're strong and kind and selfless…just like Emm…" He had to pause after speaking their sister's name; neither could accept that she was gone, even two years after the fact. "But I still can't let you come." He continued before Lissa could protest. "I've lost so much, Lissa. So many of my friends are gone because I was an incompetent leader. I couldn't protect them. Even…even Sumia…" his wife's name just barely escaped his lips before he had to pause again, the memory of a Risen soldier's spear piercing through her body fresh in his mind. "I couldn't even protect her. And now Lucina will have to grow up without a mother. I keep losing people, Lissa, because I'm weak." His voice remained collected and controlled, but Lissa could almost see the sobs that begged for release. "I can't lose you, too."

He released his hands from her shoulders and hung his head down, heavy breaths escaping his lungs. Unable to argue, Lissa conceded defeat. "I…I'll stay here then," she said softly. "I understand. But please…please be careful. I need you to return here. I need you to win."

Chrom lifted his head to look at his little sister, quickly wiping the remnants of tears from his eyes. He smiled, and his once crying eyes shone with determination. "Who do you think I am, Lissa?" he said, "of course I'll win!"

The Shepherds set off for the Dragon's Table the next evening. As Lissa helped Robin prepare a horse for travel, she couldn't help but notice an important figure absent from the party. "Where's Chrom?" she asked as Robin finished strapping on a saddle.

"He said that he needed to get something important and ran back into the castle." Robin noticed the uneasy expression on Lissa's face and did her best to quell it with a comforting smile. "Don't worry, Chrom is a strong leader. He'll be okay, and you can trust me to watch his back. We'll grind my bastard father into dust."

Lissa's only response was a weak smile. She trusted Robin, that was true enough, but she knew how dangerous Validar was. How a single command transformed their loyal tactician into a mindless puppet. What if something went wrong? What if Validar could take Robin again? What if…no. Lissa had to put her faith in Robin. She had always been by her brother's side before (so much so that she was surprised that he proposed to Sumia rather Robin) and she had never done anything to betray the trust that the siblings put into her the moment they found her lying in that field. "Thank you, Robin," Lissa said, "make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." They laughed as they finished preparing the horse.

Lissa and Robin were checking their inventory for a final time when Chrom returned, the infant Lucina swaddled in his arms. "Lissa," he said softly, sure not to wake his sleeping daughter. "Please, take care of Lucina while I'm away." Gently, he set her in his sister's arms. She looked down at her niece, smiling yet envious of her peaceful state. Chrom turned to Robin. "Are all of the preparation complete?"

"Yes, we're ready to move out."

The army huddled at the castle's gaping entrance, and Lissa bade goodbye one final time. "Promise me, Chrom. Promise me that you'll come back, for both my sake and Lucina's."

"I promise, Lissa." Chrom grinned and moved close and patted her on the head, ruffling her bright blonde hair. Then, he leaned down over Lucina, still deep in slumber cradled in her aunt's arms, and gently kissed her forehead. "Dad will be home soon, Lucina. He's gonna make sure you'll grow up in a peaceful, beautiful world. I promise." Then he turned, his smile steeling into a face of determination and his voice hardening from a coddling father's to a stern commander's. "Let's move out!"

And Lissa watched as they rode off into the orange of the sunset, standing at the entrance with Lucina in her arms until they were taken by the horizon and the sounds of trotting horses faded into nothingness. As she turned to go back into the castle, Lucina awakened, and, upon realizing she was not snuggled in the familiar essence of her room, she began to cry. Lissa did her best to calm her. "Shh, it's gonna be alright!" She rocked her back and forth as she walked into the castle's main hall. "Your dad's out saving the world, you know!" She took a seat in her room, which was warmed by the dim embers of a fireplace. Over loud wails, Lissa told Lucina the stories of old, of how the Hero-King Marth saved the world from darkness, of his beautiful pegasus-riding queen, of the men and women who followed him and made his kingdom strong. "You'll grow up to be just like him, Lucina. You'll lead your people to greatness." Her whining diminished into whimpers and soon she fell back asleep. Lissa set her down in her crib, watching Lucina's consciousness drift away. "You'd better not let her down, Chrom."

—

With each passing day, Lissa prayed for her brother's safe return. Lucina was a bit of a handful at times (much like her father, Lissa thought), but she could always be calmed down with a story by the hearth. The young princess was full of energy and loved crawling around the castle grounds, but as soon as Lissa carried her into her room, she never fussed. That is, until tonight.

Day after day, Lissa remained hopeful that the Shepherds would return home safely, but soon enough, days turned into weeks, and weeks became a month. Lissa was filled with doubt. She knew the journey to the Dragon's Table was treacherous and the battle with Validar would be no easy task, but not even a message sent back to her? She couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. And Lucina seemed to sense it, too; despite Lissa's fanatical retellings of the legends of the warring countries Hoshido and Nohr, the baby just couldn't seem to settle down. She kicked and screamed and cried, unwilling to listen to her aunt's stories. Lissa didn't know what to do. She cradled the baby tightly, rocking her back and forth amidst a shower of "shhs" and "it's okays". Lucina surely missed the sound of her father's voice, Lissa knew…she missed him, too. Lucina screamed even louder, her eyes screwed shut and leaking with wet tears. It didn't help when a servant slammed the door open, the loud sound of wood banging wood scaring the baby into an even harsher cry.

"Your highness!" the servant gasped. Her hair was flying in all directions, she panted hard, and beads of sweat ran down her pale face. "There's…there's someone in the main hall," she managed to get out between heaving breaths, "he looks awful. He was…he was begging t-to see you. Gods he looked so awful…there was…there was blood…" Exasperated, the servant was unable to finish her sentence.

Lissa's mind was racing. She had wished for a message…but was this the message she wanted? She took in a deep breath and stood from her seat, holding out the crying Lucina and gesturing the servant to take her. "Watch over her for me," she said. The servant nodded and dashed out of the room.

The castle seemed so much bigger as she raced down the hallway and descended the winding stairs. Was it bigger, Lissa thought to herself, or just emptier? The absence of people was haunting, and she suddenly felt overwhelmed by her newly perceived smallness. It felt dark. Even in her own home, she felt as if something ominous loomed in the halls, churning her insides, stalking her. Focus. She had to get to the main hall…she could not be distracted by superficial fear.

Besides, once she reached her destination, she felt a fear much less superficial.

A man (could he even be called that? He looked more boyish to Lissa) lay on the ground, surrounded by terrified servants. Crimson stained the floor around him, the pool around his body expanding with every passing second. His brown hair was a mess and his skin was covered in grime. His once blue robe had been stained red. He was unrecognizable to Lissa, but as his eyes locked with hers, he smiled slightly and, struggling to push himself up into a sitting position, a weak "Lissa…" was said with an unmistakable voice.

Her eyes widened as she ran to the young man and kneeled next to him. "RICKEN!" she shouted, panic now controlling her every movement. She grabbed her staff and tried to heal him, but he put a hand up to stop her.

"Lissa…don't. It's…it's not worth the effort. I'm hurt far…far beyond any staff's repair…"

"Ricken, what happened?!" her breaths were uneven, still in disbelief. "Please…please, you have to tell me! Where is everyone?"

Ricken struggled to breath as he clutched at the gash on his chest that Lissa could only assume was the source of his bleeding. "Chrom…he sent me back here…to warn you. I was attacked by Risen on the way back and…and they got me. Gods, it hurts."

Lissa's confusion was obvious. "Ricken, I don't understand…warn me about what?" But before he could even respond, she noticed what was strapped onto his back. A glaive laid dormant in its sheath, its hilt adorned with glistening gold. Falchion. "Ricken…what happened to my brother?"

Gritting his teeth, he reluctantly answered. "I'm…sorry Lissa. Robin…Robin…"

"What about Robin?!"

Ricken couldn't even bear to look her in the eye. "She killed him, Lissa. Robin killed Chrom."