Chrom POV

"So, Frederick, where to next?" I turn to the mounted knight Lissa and I have the pleasure of calling our guardian.

"Well, there is a village on this side of the mountains bordering Plegia that we haven't visited in some time. Perhaps you would like to go there?" He asks, to which Lissa pouts. "Is there something wrong with this decision, milady?"

"I don't wanna walk anymore, my feet hurt. Lemme ride with you, Frederick!"

I laugh while Frederick levels his stern gaze on Lissa. "Milady, you were the one who wanted to join the Shepherds, and now you need to work on toughening up. Walking is one of the best ways to do it, so you really shouldn't be complaining."

"Awww, you're gonna make Chrom and I walk the whole way while you ride the entire time? That's not fair!"

"But I'm used to it Lissa, and it's a good workout." I shake my head. "Come on, if you're good, I'll consider carrying you for a while tomorrow."

We press on until it nears sunset, when I hear a shout from the woods.

"Did either of you just hear a shout?" I ask my companions, who shake their heads. "I could've sworn-" I'm cut off by something flying into me, knocking the breath from my lungs and me flat onto my back.

The something turns out to be a girl younger than Lissa, who is apparently injured, but more furious than a raging dragon. "Damn you, bastards!" She rolls off me and pulls out a tome, designed with the etchings of dark magic. "Where did you take her?!" She goes charging into the woods again without so much as looking at us.

I regain my breath. "Frederick, Lissa, after her!" I scramble to my feet and run, pulling out Falchion just in case we manage to catch up and get caught in the fray. I lose track of time, but note that the sun barely changes its position when there is a flash of dark purple and light blue clashing up ahead. "This way!" Frederick picks up Lissa and deposits her in front of him in the saddle before we make it through the clearing.

I enter the clearing just in time to see the girl go flying into the trunk of a tree, and Frederick killing the mage that attacked her. I run to the fallen girl only to find her barely conscious. Her lips are moving, but I can't understand what she is saying, so I bend closer to her to hear. "… help… Robin… please…"

"Who is Robin?" I get no response as her eyes squeeze shut and her body is wracked with deep, painful sounding coughs. "Lissa, use your skills and heal her!"

Lissa runs over and uses her staff to heal the worst of the injuries, which ends the coughing fit and fixes a bloody gash on her arm. "Give her some water." As Frederick dismounts and pulls out of our supplies the requested items, I haul the girl into a sitting position, which she doesn't fight. "Miss, what's your name?"

"Sophia." She looks at me for a moment, then back at Lissa, then frowns. "If I'm not a total idiot, I would think you two are the prince and princess."

"And how would you know their identities at a glance, Sophia?" Frederick asks as he hands me a water canteen. "Few people would be able to know that for sure who haven't been in contact with the Shepherds, and your name is foreign."

"I've been to Ylisstol a few times, and I saw the royal family passing the store I was in once. Robin told me who you all were, but not by names, since he didn't know any names." She growls at him. "And stop acting like I'm gonna kill you without warning, I save that for the mage who took Robin."

I decide to intervene before relations get nasty. "Let's settle down now." I hand her the canteen, which she takes a large gulp from. "Sophia, who is Robin, and why are you so… protective of this person?"

The hostility in her gaze calms to one of concern and fear. "Robin's my cousin, she saved me from bandits a couple years ago, and we've been traveling together since her mom died. She was teaching me control of magic, and we were working on a collection of tomes, since they're easier to travel with than other weapons." She bites her lip. "She's been on edge the past week, always looking over her shoulder, like she was expecting to be attacked, so I took to carrying the dark tomes and made her carry a less dangerous one as well as a sword we found."

I sigh as Lissa takes some food from Frederick. "Huh. So is that why you were getting angry? Robin got kidnapped?"

She nods. "Yes sir. I'm afraid I have one of the more dangerous tempers, and I think the Grimleal had some part in her kidnapping."

"And why do you assume that?" Frederick asks, his face unreadable, but voice portraying his curiosity.

She pulls a piece of cloth from a pocket of what I now realize is a small skirt, which is a matching black to her too-small shirt, stopping just above the top of her skirt and ripped at the shoulders under her cloak. "This cloth is known for being used by the Grimleal, and I happen to know a few of their merchants." As I open my mouth to question this relationship, she leans out of my hold and onto her hands. "Look, I know you want answers, but she is in danger."

"Well, you're certainly not going to be of much help to her if you aren't in any shape to fight." Lissa comments, right before she whacks Sophia on the back of the head, knocking her unconscious. "Sorry guys, but she is in no shape to go charging off again. Besides, you can try to follow the direction she went in before and see if you can pick up the trail."

I snort. "Lissa, you might be onto something with that plan." I look at the sleeping girl on the ground, noting her boots are well made, very worn, and hold two daggers in each. "We won't go very far, not with this lighting." She nods and goes back to work on healing Sophia's more severe wounds in peace.

"Milord, they were headed towards the sunset, so I suggest we start in that direction." Frederick states in a bland voice once we start walking away.

"Right." I can't shake the feeling that there is more to the story of these cousins than what we have been told, and that trouble is descending.

Sophia POV

I groan and roll onto my side, swatting at the hand shaking my shoulder. "Go away Robin… it's too early…" The hand shakes my shoulder again, and I snarl and swat the hand away again.

"Sophia, you need to get up, at least to eat something." An unfamiliar, yet feminine voice sends a jolt of fear through me, and I bolt upright, reaching to my boot for a dagger that is no longer there. I then realize the shocked woman is just the princess.

Her brother chuckles. "If you're looking for your weapons, we took them last night just to make sure you wouldn't try to kill us in our sleep."

I glare at him. "Give them back."

The knight returns my glare, but I don't back down. "I think you need to give us the full story and then we'll be the judge of whether or not you deserve your weapons back."

"I've told you everything I know, and I haven't attacked you yet, so why do you have it in your head that I have those intentions in mind?" I shake my head. "You know what, never mind. Don't listen to me when I am being honest to a stranger for once." I stand up and turn my back to them, beginning to walk into the woods. "If you don't mind, I think I'm going to look for my cousin now."

"Wait!" The prince runs up behind me and grabs my shoulder. "We searched for her last night, but the tracks were covered too well, and we lost them in the dark."

I sigh and allow my shoulders to slump. "Then at least tell me what your plans are for me."

He guides me to sit back down in front of a small fire, then hands me a bit of jerky and dried fruit. "Well, I was thinking if you wanted our help you could join the Shepherds for a while, if anything because you could use our contacts to track down your cousin. Not to mention you could probably use some adult supervision."

I giggle at the idea. "You might be right about the supervision." He tilts his head and makes a questioning sound. "It's a joke between me and Robin you wouldn't understand." I shake my head and smile kindly at him for the first time. "I would be happy to join your Shepherd force, Your Highness."

He makes a face. "Well, for starters, start calling me Chrom, my sister Lissa, and our babysitter Frederick."

"You realize I am right here? I'm most certainly no Kellam." The knight Frederick grumbles.

"Of course, how else would you know that you are appreciated?" Chrom chuckles before he turns his attention back to my situation. "Anyway, regarding your situation, you have a couple of options for what you would like to do for the moment. Currently, we are headed to a village near the border of Plegia, and you are welcome to join us. If you don't want to go there with us, then we can take a slight detour and leave you at Ylisstol so you can train with the rest of the Shepherds in the castle."

Frederick clears his throat. "Personally, Sophia, I believe you might benefit from some study time with our mages. Lissa may be a cleric, but she is no war mage." Lissa makes an odd sound that we all ignore. "However, you won't be allowed to use dark magic unless you have strict permission from Lady Emmeryn."

"Hey!" Lissa jumps up and grabs my hand, pulling me up next to her. "You should give us a demonstration of your fighting ability!"

"Lissa, I don't know about that…" Chrom gives me a concerned glance. "Maybe we could watch later when Miriel tests her? I just don't like the idea of magic being unchecked."

"A wise thought, milord." Frederick comments before standing. "Well Sophia? What would you like to do?"

I bite my lip and stare into the heart of the fire, considering my options. I could go to this village near Plegia, which for all I know could be where Robin was taken. Another option is going to the castle and learn to control my magic from people who study only that, and maybe learn something new. Either way, I risk not finding Robin. I look at Lissa, who gives me a kind smile, and I make up my mind. "Take me with you to this village."

Chrom smiles at me and rises to stand beside me. "Great. Just know that if we run into bandits on the way that you need to be careful, and try not to aim at us with your spells."

I smirk. "Trust me, my aim is better than you think."

Robin POV

I run into an open field with high grass coming up to my thighs, and fall to my knees, clutching my side and gasping for breath as I pray I have lost the Grimleal. I stay there for a time before I dare to move, and move my hand away from my side, releasing a sigh of relief that it was only a pain in my side from the harsh run and minimal breathing.

I look about me and realize I have no clue where I am, and the only evidence that tells me I am still in Ylisse is the fact that the soil is damp and the grass is still tinged a faint green. I look to the sky and breathe a prayer for Sophia as an evil magic strikes me from behind, and I scream as everything goes dark.

The last thing I see is a pair of feet that look disturbingly like mine.

Okay, new story, but I've been playing this recently and wanted to put in my take on a way this could have started. I mean, really, how would Chrom have known to look at that particular field at the start of the game unless someone told him? And unless I'm completely blind, I don't think you character is right next to a road in that field.

Will be a one-shot until I get a review asking for this to become a story, otherwise enjoy, and leave the rest to your imaginations!

I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening