Northern Fortress, shortly after Damon was returned to the Hoshidan capital...

Shad groggily woke up, his head pounding from the force of the hit he took. "Damn... big bro knows how to throw a mean upper cut..." He chuckled as he looked around and assessed the situation. "Took my weapons, recovery items, armor..." He checked in the roots of his hair. "Not my lockpicks. Good. So I have an escape. Now, think... Got tossed into some archers, kept Damon from getting sniped by Takumi... and after that it's dark. I'm probably in a Nohrian fortress or prison. They're likely going to want to interrogate me." There was the sound of a door opening and footsteps moving down the hall. "Alright, Shad... keep your head... or what's left of it, anyway."

This wouldn't have happened if we had shown our true power.

"Shut up!" Shad hissed. "The last time that happened, Hinoka almost got killed!" There was the sound of tumblers moving and his cell door opened, revealing the Crown Prince himself. He calmly and quietly took a seat in front of the injured man.

"Hello, Shad..." He greeted with a warm smile. "It's been a long time."

The ninja was, quite understandably, confused. "Do I... know you?" He asked. "Well, personally anyway. I know all about you. Xander, Crown Prince of Nohr and next in line for the throne. You wield the legendary weapon Siegfried, a sword that teleports back to its chosen's hand when thrown. You prefer the 'Paladin' class of fighting, utilizing your sword, shield and mount to move fast and hit hard despite your heavy armor. You're the oldest of the Nohrian line outside of your father who, might I add," Shad's gaze turned to stone in a split second, "kidnapped my older brother and murdered my father at a peace meeting."

"…..You were kidnapped from us Shad... a long time ago." Xander said with a scowl seeing his other brother Damon was now... gone.

Shad almost scoffed. "Right... tell me then, who was my mother? None of Garon's consorts had black hair and green eyes."

"You were sent to us at infancy, as a peace agreement from an unknown woman... by the time we knew the peace talks broke down in an ambush, a skirmish immediately broke out, leaving someone to break in to the capital and steal you away... Father was devastated after he found out he lost you." Xander explained.

"Then why wasn't he the first to come in here if it impacted him so much?" Shad asked, going for the jugular.

"He's on his way now actually..." Xander said with disdain as he grabbed his helmet.

The ninja took a deep breath and sighed. "He isn't dead, you know. Big brother, I mean. Or at least, it isn't likely."

"I have a country to Raze..." Xander placed his helmet on his head making his way outside of the room.

Shad's eyes widened. "No! Please!" the ninja begged as the door slammed shut. Crying could be heard in the other room as Flora's voice echoed through walls of a bathroom. "Who... who is that?" Shad asked, unfamiliar with the voice and immediately concerned. The woman kept crying as the walls began to freeze with ice growing on it, causing the temperature to rapidly drop. Shad sighed and pulled a lockpick from his hair, the door clicking open in a matter of seconds before he stowed the pick away. "Damn my fucking heart..." He followed the voice to find a bedroom not too far away. It seemed to be a maid's judging by the uniform folded at the foot of the bed. "Is something bothering you, ma'am?" Shad asked, putting on the act of a servant.

Shad could see a pen with a blue haired boy, no older than three, with a pink haired girl seemingly the same age, the boy with blue hair had red eyes while the girl had one red eye and one icy blue. The bathroom door was completely frozen and ice like daggers were around it. Seeing the kids with his brother's red eyes made it click immediately for the ninja. "Oooooooh hell." He sighed and knocked on the bathroom door, taking care to avoid the spikes. "Um, ma'am?"

Flora perked up her head hearing an unfamiliar voice. "Go awa..away!" Flora cried out, in her apron.

"I would miss, but the ice knives are getting close to the babies," Shad informed her, playing on her motherly instincts.

Flora broke the ice around the door as she came out of the door in tears quickly going to her child and picking him up, nuzzling her head into her son, seeing he was the last remaining thing that she had of Demon, and it was something they both created. "Begging your pardon miss, but I'm new here... may I ask your name? And why are you in tears? Perhaps I could be of help in some way?" Shad asked soothingly.

"It's Flora...My love...my prince... he's gone!" She cried in to her son's shirt, hugging him tightly.

"Miss, I suggest caution! He's still only a babe, and while I understand you're upset, you don't want to hurt him, do you?" The ninja's logic was infallible.

"….My...My ice can't hurt him!" She cried out.

"Yes, but you squeezing him that tightly will!"

Her grip lessened as she put down her son. "Mommy's sorry, Max..." She said kissing him on the forehead.

"If you'd like... I could listen for a bit before I need to get back to work?" Shad sat on the bed diligently.

"Who are you even? And what are you doing in the Northern Fortress?" Flora asked the Ninja.

"Well miss, my name is Wolfe, and like I said, I'm new here. A servant," Shad lied.

"Camilla said they brought in an agent..." She glared at him, as she dismissed the ice around the room.

"Miss, I understand your anger and paranoia, but think about it. The nobility are thorough, as well as their retainers. How could he have anything to get out with? Swallow a pick and threw it up?" Shad pointed out the flaw in her logic.

Hearing that she started to cry seeing that Demon fell down a chasm to an untimely demise. "Now, now miss, no more tears," Shad begged and wiped them away. "Now come on. Tell ol' Wolfe what's eatin' ya? Oh wait... you already did. Hm... I came here to serve under Lord Damon, but he ain't here. I'm guessing he's the love of your life then?"

"He was... my prince, my hero...my love...and now cold grips of death too him from me... my heart..." She clenched her chest, crying.

"Now hold on just a second miss!" Shad barked, starling her. "You just said you love him, didn't ya?! So what's with all this doubtin' nonsense?! Now let me ask you something. Our lord was a big, tough guy, yeah?"

"He fell in to that chasm after being wounded and showered with arrows..."

"And you think something like that is enough to stop him? After everything you two've been through, yer just accepting some pit and a couple o' sticks killed him? No no no, not our lord!"

"Please... don't give me false hope... I just want to cherish what I have left of him..." She turned to look at Max who was staring at her through the pen.

"Aye, it may be false hope, true... But ain't it better to at least wait until you know for sure than act like this in front of yer kid?" Shad questioned her. "He's an impressionable youth, you know? If he sees his mum actin' all sad and gloomy all the time, before you know it, he'll be that way too!"

"Are you telling me not to grieve...for someone I just lost?" Flora asked seeing a cold chill went up his spine.

"No no, of course I ain't! I'm just sayin... have a little faith in the bloke is all. If he's dead for sure, you can grieve then. Perferably not in front of impressionable senses. But if he ain't dead... don't you think he'd be happy to see you believed in him? To come home to a happy lover instead of a sad one?"

"I want to believe in the impossible but I have to be realistic, when they saw him fall... I didn't want to believe it..." She sniffled.

"Hey, ma'am," Shad smiled, turning her head to meet his eyes. "I've seen plenty o' things in the years I've been around. More than once thinkin' it was impossible until it happened."

The door opened up revealing Camilla, as she made a dead stop looking at 'Wolfe' "You..." She growled gripping her axe.

Shad groaned in his head before turning to the princess. "'Ello Princess Camilla. I hate to impose, but could you give me five minutes more to wrap up? I'm just trying to do right by these fine people is all, I swear I'll get back to work after."

"Lady Camilla—"

"You get away from his children you... Hurt my Prince...my little brother... " She had this crazed killing look in her eyes. Flora hearing that backed away from Shad, quickly.

The ninja sighed, dropping the accent. "Just wanted to help my brother's love and kids, get threatened by the psycho one instead... gods damn it..." He threw his hands up before letting them drop down. "Fine. I'll go back to my cell. But Flora... I may have been lying about the whole 'Wolfe' thing, but... I meant what I said. I have faith my brother's still alive. And if you love him as much as you do, you should too. Nothing's impossible." He stalked out of the room, rubbing his sore throat from prolonged use of the accent he chose. Camilla gave him a death glare, as she was ordered not to harm him. Flora was now extremely torn. On one hand, he lied to her and apparently hurt the love of her life. On the other, he tried to comfort her and seemed to legitimately regret doing so.

Shad closed the door to his cell, placing the one of the lock picks in his hair in a dark corner of the room for later, lined up with the edge. "heh... so I might actually be her brother then? Hehehe... sure doesn't act like my sister..." Heavier footsteps than Camilla's echoed down the hall and stopped at his cell. He could already see Garon's face in the bars of his cell door.

"….Son... " Garon stated seeing Shad through the bars.

"'Dad'…" he replied relaxing in the chair.

"You've been in captivity for a very long time over in Hoshdio..." He said, opening the door to his cell.

"Same can be said for Damon over here," Shad replied evenly. "I mean, the circumstances aren't that different, are they? I was apparently kidnapped from you after you killed Hoshido's king and son."

"Is that what they told you? Or simply what you believe?" He asked Shad.

"Wasn't there. The only ones who were, were you, Damon, and the apparent archers," the ninja countered.

"Sumeragi had overstepped his bounds and began to... request that I return you to your mother... our argument got heated and threatened me with force, I return backed up my words...heh... the fool does not know that I always have an ace up my sleeve." Garon chuckled.

"Assuming you ran into Camilla on the way here, hell, even Flora... and assuming you are indeed my father, apple doesn't fall too far from the tree then," Shad stated without an ounce of fear in his eyes.

"Hmph... well it's time that your returned to your true home... Nohr." Garon said stepping out of the way for him to leave his cell.

Shad thought about refusing for a moment but stopped himself. It would be far easier to gather facts and information outside of this cell than be forced to sneak around. "Very well," he grunted as he stood up and walked past his 'father'. "I assume you'll want to start training me in Nohrian combat then?"

"You are correct." Garon huffed out, slamming the cell shut.

"So, who was it you had in mind? Xander seems busy organizing a retaliation force for big bro, and Camilla would likely kill me 'by accident' if she was assigned the role. That leaves Leo or someone I don't know yet," Shad counted off.

"And Elise..." Garon interjected.

"Healer. Troubadour to be exact. Uses staves, so not really good to teach me to fight."

"Come with me son, I'll show you what you need to know, and get your reacquainted with the Nohrian culture..." Garon smiled putting his arm around Shad's shoulder.

Despite being raised to hate the man... Shad couldn't help but smile at the gesture. "You know... that honestly sounds like a good time. Where do we start? Myths? History?"

Garon laughed hearing the enthusiasm in Shad. "History as good as any... But tonight, I introduce you to the capital of your home."

The ninja nodded as he followed his 'father,' stepping into a carriage moments later with the behemoth of a man. "Beruka, come on!" A woman's voice hissed from a good way away. It would have gone unheard if Shad's hearing had been any lesser. "We need to go now before Lady Camilla finds out we're doing this!"

Beruka? That's one of Camilla's retainers. And judging by the way she said 'Lady' Camilla, that must be Selena. Duly noted.

He stared out the window of the construct as the horse pulled them along the paths, taking in the sights as they went. While the land was dismal and gloomy, there was a certain air to it. It was peaceful, almost how like sleep was. Dark and somber but held a beauty that was hard to describe. "So, this is Nohr then..." Shad let out a chuckle and a grin formed on his face. "I like it... it's not as sunny as Hoshido, but then again, I've never been a sun person anyway."

His eyes widened as they came up on the capital and were almost saucers as they crossed onto the suspended roads of the kingdom, looking down at the markets and the residential districts. "Gods... this must have taken forever to build... father, this is the capital of our kingdom? It looks beautiful from here..."

"Yes, indeed it is... the grand design of the capital took years to perfect, not to mention thousands of lives that were lost during its construction." He informed Shad, while Shad noticed divisions of soldiers both equipped and under equipped forces marching out of the capital.

"… I'm assuming those are some of Xander's troops?" The prince asked, taking note of their weapons.

"Indeed, he'll be marching for Damon's sakes, and unleashing his fury on the Hoshidans for their transgressions." Garon laughed, thinking of all the destruction he'd cause.

"…" Shad stared down the troops and his fingers twitched. He waved down the carriage driver to stop and stepped out, taking one of the bronze weapons and inspecting it. "… the work on this is garbage. I know it's supposed to be for the lowest of the low, but still... this is a disgrace!" He lanced at one of the shields, the tip of the spear shattering. "Whoever made these deserves to be drowned..."

"These are conscripts son, fodder for the grind..." He informed him seeing Xander was conscripting a massive army.

"That is no excuse for shoddy work!" Shad rebelled, surprising many. "Conscripts die, I can take that. But purposefully sending them with weapons that break after a few swings? No, that's when you're setting yourself up for a devastating defeat because your men can't even fight after few minutes in!" He shoved the broken weapon back into the arms of the conscript and pulled the commander to his level by the collar of his armor. "You take these men back to the armory and give them something that wasn't forged half a century ago, or so help me gods, I'll run you all through with them myself!" The man nodded and mobilized his troops, leaving Shad panting for a moment before he composed himself.

"You see son, Xander is moving them towards a tactical position across the Nohrian front, these men that are ill equipped are going to get their weapons and armor, but that is if they make the march to the check point at the border's forts we have established." He eyed his son, as he explained to the system of drills.

Shad took a few deep breaths before shaking his head to expel his leftover aggression. "My... my apologies. It's a pet peeve of mine when I see faulty equipment as bad as that. Please forgive me." Shad stepped back into the carriage and took a seat.

"Your ignorance is not a problem, you spent too much time with Hoshidan tactics that you forget that we're nothing like them." He argued.

"Thank you for understanding, father. Although... half of them won't even make it to the checkpoint, you know?" Shad noticed the raised brow of his father and explained. "There were over ten spots that were prime for bandit ambush on our path here alone. They probably refrained from attacking because this is your carriage."

"Maybe less... or maybe even more, it shows how willing they are to survive, it's what makes us Nohrians above all others... " He smiled seeing the troops marching, in messy formations.

Something we are all too familiar with.

Shad silenced the voice in his head and replied to the king before him. "I actually know that better than you think..." The ninja pulled part of his collar down, revealing the start of an ugly scar. "This is from when I was young. My former sister insisted on going out to find Damon and I was attempting to stop her. She said she would only relent if I could defeat her in a fight. I won..." The ninja intentionally left out how he won and how he picked that fight, the memories haunting him even now. The two came out of the carriage as they arrived at the palace gates, Garon leading his new-found son. "But, in her rage, she almost killed me in the process. I won't go into how, but..." A flashback of a burst of darkness and a set of claws slashing at a younger Hinoka overtook his vision. "I returned the favor."

"Very good, you struck true and struck with anger... such is the Norhian way... you cannot deny yourself of that power." He stated, as he continued to show Shad around the palace.

Nor your birthright...

"Shut up!" Shad hissed at the voice under his breath. Realizing what was very likely a grave error on his part, he decided to apologize on the spot along with making himself an alibi. "I apologize, that wasn't meant for you. I heard a servant besmirching your name and I-"

"You are stressed son, put through a system that speaks of peace and does the exact opposite..." Garon patted Shad on the back.

The ninja let out a sigh of relief and decided to be honest. "Father? Can I confess something?"

"You may..." He said waiting for a question from his long lost son.

"I don't much care for this war in general," Shad stated as they passed the kitchen. "The only reason I've been fighting thus far has been for my family and missing brother."

"This is your home... and this is your family Shad."

That remains to be seen...

The ninja nodded as Garon threw open the banquet hall doors, revealing a long table with three people sitting down. Shad recognized them as Leo, Elise and Camilla. They all looked forlorn, pained at the loss of Damon. Shad steeled his nerves and spoke. "Hello. You're all my siblings, correct?" A look of either despair, judgement, and hate, was on their faces as they looked at Shad. The ninja frowned and took a seat at the table, Garon following suit. "Father's been showing me around the palace, but he's yet to say anything about you so far. However, I hope to get to know all of you as my family."

"…..Father! This is unacceptable! This creatine murdered my...my prince...my brother!" She snapped at her father seeing she lost Damon.

That tore it for Shad. "You know... I remember you from earlier. Weren't you threatening to have me killed for the same reason? You seem quite obsessed with our brother... one could even say you love him." He got up from the table and stared her down. "And don't give me that horse shit about me 'killing' him when I save him from getting killed when I found out who he was!"

*Wham!*

Camilla punched him off of his feet. "Go to Hell... " She said with blood shot irritated eyes, storming off away from the table.

"Oh... I see what this is about now..." Shad chuckled as he got to his feet. "You actually do, don't you? And your anger started when you didn't get to pop his cherry, didn't it? And now that I'm here and fought him, I'm just something to take your anger out on rather than what you all seem to think is the last remaining things he left to this world..." He stared down his sister with a calculating look. "That about it? Or is there more to it? Like how some other woman might try taking him again in Hoshido? Your rival Hinoka, perhaps? Or maybe even one of the Hoshidan nobility's retainers?"

Elise got out from the table and approached Camilla, grabbing her hands. "Let's go Camilla... don't stoop to his level." She said to her big sister.

"Hey, I'm the one stooping to her," Shad chuckled. "After all, she's the one who flat out accused me of killing Damon when he's most likely still alive. But, I'm willing to compromise." He sat back down and crossed his legs. "I'll apologize if you do, and we can all pretend that this didn't happen and enjoy our dinner."

"He fell down in to the bottomless chasm! Showered with arrows and drove in to the heart with that...bitch who murdered him..." She snapped at Shad informing he fell in to the chasm.

"Um... did anyone bother to keep eyes on him while you were all retreating? How do you know he's still down there?" Shad asked. "Couldn't said 'bitch' have flown in after him before he fell too deep? Given the panicked and guilty look on her face, I'd say she wanted big bro alive. And then there's the injury part. You all can complain about how I 'killed' him, but assuming he didn't die in the chasm, the venom from my blades would have saved his life, stemming the bleeding due to how they slow down body functions, limiting blood loss. And assuming they had healers, which we did by the way, they could and would have kept him alive on the way back to the Hoshidan capital with or without my venom in him." He rested his hands on the table, finished with his analysis. "But don't take my word on it. You'll either find him alive in Hoshido in about a week or when one of your retainers reports it back in the next... two, three days?"

"My Retainers?" Camilla asked, her eyes widening seeing as Beruka would've taken his death as a personal failure, while Selena would've went with her. She immediately left the capital to go find her retainers who were supposed to be stationed at the Northern Fortress.

Shad looked around confused. "She... she didn't know they left?" He asked his father and siblings. Garon shook his head, seeing he had no knowledge of their departure in to the chasm. "Huh... guess not telling her they were makes sense for multiple reasons. I just assumed she figured it out by now."

Leo sighed getting up from his seat and closing his tome. "I better make sure she doesn't get in to any trouble... come along Elise..." Leo ordered his little sister.

Shad's eyes lit up at the tome his brother carried, but it faded after realizing what was happening. "O-oh... I suppose I'll stay here then... she probably wouldn't want to see me right now anyway... I uh... wish you luck, Leo, Elise. And for what it's worth... I'm sorry for attacking Damon like I did." He started to fiddle with a napkin.

Elise had a look on her tear stricken as she was still in mourning for not only a brother...but a man who she had a secret crush on...there wasn't anything needed to be said the look on her face said it all.

(Line break)

A few days later...

Shad hummed the song his sister often sang as he leafed through a book. "… Destined to seek life beyond the shore just out of reach..." He muttered as he turned the page. The book he was currently reading was one of the old tomes in the library that mages often used. The ninja had never quite gotten the hang of scrolls in Hoshido, but the tomes here felt so right to him. Familiar even. He had recently conquered every major book on history and even some on Nohrian tactics in the Northern Fortress, his new home for the time being. His father's explanation was something along the lines of it being far away enough where the bandits wouldn't try attacking him and fortified enough to hold out against a Hoshidan invasion. He hadn't heard much from his siblings either, something that caused him no end of grief.

"Um... excuse me?" A soft woman's voice asked him, making him look up from his book. Vibrant green eyes met his gaze first, along with green hair and long pointed ears that almost looked like feathers due to the ridges on them.

Damn... and I thought my ears were bad...

"Can I help you?" Shad asked, marking down the page he was on and placing the book down.

"Could you please keep your voice down in here?" The woman requested. "Others are still trying to read as well."

"Ah. My apologies," Shad said as he got up, grabbing his book and tucking it under one of his arms. "Hm... I don't think we've met yet, have we? Well, allow me to introduce myself." Shad stuck out his right hand. "My name is Shad. It's a pleasure to meet you, miss..."

"Tiki," the woman smiled softly, taking his hand and shaking it. "If I'm not wrong, you're Garon's long lost child, correct? What brings you to the library?"

Shad nervously chuckled and gestured to the book under his arm. "It sounds kind of stupid, but I came for the books actually. It took a little bit to get used to the Nohrian writing style, but I can't deny that it was worth it. This country's history is so interesting, almost nothing like Hoshido's. Was your home any similar?"

That threw Tiki off guard for a moment. "Um... beg pardon?" She asked him confusedly.

"Your features, obviously excluding your already odd-looking feather like ears, aren't Nohrian or Hoshidan. The only logical reason for that is that you immigrated from the Outrealms or another continent," the ninja explained. Tiki self-consciously brushed her ears before Shad stopped her. "Bah, don't worry. We're kinda in the same boat." He let out a light chuckle as he moved the sides of his hair back, revealing slightly pointed ears. "Everyone in the family says it's a birth defect but seeing you... while they're more exaggerated, there's no denying my ears look similar to yours. So... what exactly are you?"

The manakete was stunned at the man's observation and reasoning skills. "You're quite sharp... I'm not sure if we're quite the same, but I'm a manakete. My race tends to live for millennia at a time and we can turn into a dragon with these." She took out her dragon stone, a small green orb.

Shad's eyes lit up at the jewel and her explanation. "Fascinating... may I see it for a moment?" Tiki nodded and handed him the small orb, the ninja turning it in his fingers and looking through it. "Gorgeous... almost as much as-" he realized he was about to say something about her looks compared to the gem and inwardly cringed. "No, more gorgeous than the jade my family in Hoshido sells."

"Thank you," Tiki smiled and took back the stone. "This has been with me since the first time I fought alongside one of my oldest friends... I treasure it dearly and take care of it the best I can."

Shad smiled fondly. "That's very sweet of you, Tiki. I'm sure they're all glad that their friend still cares for them so much after such a long time." The prince heard a ring in the distance. "Ah. It seems father has come to visit the Fortress. I should go meet him. It's been a pleasure Tiki," the ninja bowed before leaving the library, book in hand.

C rank support Achieved!

Shad was at the fortress door in moments and took a knee before his father. "It's good to see you here, father," the prince smiled, still cradling a book in his arm. "What brings you to the Fortress today?"

"Seeing how you were adjusting back in to the Norhian way of life my son... how are you feeling?" Garon asked his son.

"Very well. I've read through every history and tactic book I could find in the library," Shad reported. "I've actually started picking up magic tomes as well. I find them interesting... endearing even."

"Impressive, you learn fast my son..." Garon had a slight smile on his face.

"When one is unsure of his own past, it is important to remedy it by looking to events around that time," the prince replied. "Even in Hoshido, I felt like I wasn't getting the whole story around me. Whether you murdered the king for selfish reasons or those you told me are still unclear, but I know one thing for certain now." Shad looked to his father with intense and sure eyes. "I am a Nohrian. Your son. And this is my home."

Just as much as Hoshido is.

The prince had a moment to realize Garon may be suspicious of his change of heart and decided to back his findings. "In the more recent texts, the meeting went as you said. But what I wasn't told, something Xander lied about by the way, was that I was taken while you were leaving Hoshido by a ninja. 'And so, in an act of unwarranted retaliation, the Hoshidans sent a thief to attack the king and kill him. However, realizing his chances were slim, he went for the weakest of the group; Garon's youngest son, Prince Shad. The assailant spooked the horses and robbed them of the babe in the confusion, disappearing without a trace.' It seems one to one with what very few memories I have of that time.

"Everyone would always dodge the question or give me the same answers as my siblings when my heritage was brought up. The only reason for such a thing, even from my own mother, would be if I was taken in by less than honest means. Not to mention that... I feel at home here." Shad was not lying anymore, giving his father the truth. "The culture, the land... even the air here feels righter than it did in Hoshido. Although, I must ask... about my brother, Damon. When he fought, it wasn't in the way a servant or a knight would. It was the way a man fighting for his home would. So, I guess what I'm trying to say is... was my brother truly happy here? Cared for like I would have been? Because if so, then what is the point of this war?

"And I apologize for rambling, father, but it's always confused me. There were no records to what started it in Hoshido, and I thought in the library here I would find something but... I didn't. And this is what perplexes me, because if it's food and agriculture you want, then you could simply use me to talk to the Hoshidan nobility diplomatically now. And even then, why would you go to war over it in the first place when you have an abundance of silver and other ores? Couldn't you have offered trade between the two in a mutually beneficial agreement and avoid hostilities altogether?" There was a decent crowd around the two, Shad's logic and reasoning enrapturing all who were passing and making them question the same things themselves.

"You see son, only one nation is destined to rule this continent... and it is inevitable as our two nations will clash, the Hoshidans have been grabbing all the rich resourceful parts of the continent letting our nation suffer for their greed... it created much resentment in Nohr." He explained to Shad.

Shad thought for a moment and nodded. "That makes sense. Men are usually naturally envious of what they do not have. Wealth, food, status... as sad as it is, it also makes even honest men do less than honest things, whether they have good intentions or not. Even if we do not agree with the sins of our forefathers, we more often than not must deal with the fallout or even continue it ourselves, like it or not."

"Trust me son... it is the way of Nohr... the more you understand the better you'll come to understand the cycle of Chaos." He chuckled showing him another book of the Nohrian wars.

Shad smiled and stowed his current book in his coat before taking the new one. "Thank you, father. Out of all the history books, I think I love ones on wars the most. A blend of tactics and history in one, along with management of soldiers and other things. I'm sure you're aware of this by now, but such things resonate greatly in me. My track record in Hoshido is enough to show that..." Shad frowned, both at fond memories and the slight betrayal against his trust for all these years. He would have understood. Hell, he was a ninja. He would have understood better than anyone that dishonest tactics were needed over honor at times. "And I would like to apologize for directing such tactics at you and your men for such a long time. It brings me no end of guilt to recall such things... especially my most recent plan."

Garon hummed for a moment, debating whether the child before him was deceiving him or sincere in his words before ultimately deciding to leave the matter for a later time. "It matters not. Come. There is someone you must meet." The prince nodded and stood, following his father to the training yard as the king opened the door. Shad stopped as he took notice to a woman with blue hair and light armor, fashioned with a cape. "This is Lucina. She will be in charge of your sword training from this day forth."

Lucina paused as she narrowed her eyes down on the man, reading him. Shad noticed the tone of the woman and reciprocated. "Charmed," Lucina said to him, his book still in hand.

Shad got a cold vibe from her, as if the word 'Charmed' was vaguely sarcastic... she seemed to be in pain underneath her demeanor. "… Light armor, toned physic... you prefer using your speed to close in and use your blade and inherent strength to punish enemies. Highly capable of using magic, yet unable to use tomes and scrolls due to your already affirmed style of fighting... I can see why you chose her, father. For my former role as a ninja in Hoshido, correct? My speed would complement her style of fighting to a degree as I came into my own, still being able to pick up on her own tricks as well." He purposefully left out her mental state for the time. That was a problem personal to her and had no impact on his training unless she would attempt to kill him in the process like 'big sister' Camilla.

"Shad, I ordered my children not to harm you in any way possible, including all retainers and officers under the command of the Nohrian Kingdom... so you have no reason to worry here..." He assured his son.

"I know... but it never hurts to be a little cautious," Shad replied as he grabbed a training sword from a rack. "Well, Lucina, my name is Shad. I look forward to learning under you." He finished his introduction with a slight bow to the woman, looking into her eyes for a moment and seeing something odd, yet familiar for some reason. Her left eye had a strange symbol reminiscent of the hole in her sword, encompassing both her iris and her pupil.

Why do I feel like I know her...?

"So, where are we starting then?" Shad asked as he drew closer to her, bronze sword in his dominate right hand. "Footwork? Stances? Or something else that you're going to throw at me out of nowhere?"

"I want to see your stances first of all... a simple one first. Go in to your aggressive stance." She ordered him.

Shad nodded and adjusted his feet, reinforcing his balance and held his sword to his side in a firm grip, in a position he could go into either an attack or guard at a moment notice while still staying loose and ready to dodge. "Like this?" He asked, not noticing his offhand had moved into a position that made it look like he was holding something, a book by the way his hand was shaped.

"Hmph... defensive position." She ordered the ninja. He flipped his sword in his hand and brought it close to his chest, making a decent guard of his abdomen. Again, it looked like something should have been in his other hand to cover a slight gap in that guard. "Evasion!" She ordered seeing as she tossed a book at him. He jumped back and turned his body in the air, the book soaring past him and hitting a weapons wrack.

"Anything else?" Shad asked, a calm look on his face, marred only by a slight smile.

"So you got the basics, do you have any special stealth stances?" She asked seeing as if he can maneuver in the dark. He nodded and took a capsule from his coat and tossed it on the ground, creating a loud band and a flash of light. Though it was only for a less than a few seconds, Shad was missing when her eyes readjusted. She felt the blunt of a blade on her neck.

"Not much room or cover in here. Put me in a forest, and you can kiss me goodbye," Shad chuckled. He took the sword away from her vital point and continued to speak. "But if you mean like crouching and things like that, I can show you those too." There was an air of enjoyment to his voice as he spoke this time.

"…..Crouching?" She asked seeing as anyone could crouch.

"Trying to stand up and being stealthy is impossible without a crowd," Shad explained. "Getting lower to the ground immediately lessens how tall you are, taking longer to be noticed in most cases. Not to mention it gives you more control of how much sound you make due to how much closer you are to the ground now. Put it this way, what would make more sound? Footsteps while standing up where you have to lift your feet higher, or in a smaller stature where you don't need to go as high?"

"Depends how you actually move your feet... there are several different ways to walk, run, and march." Lucina retorted.

"Hehe... you're smart," Shad smiled at her warmly. "I like that. And while you're right, in extended periods of stealth, it's better to keep yourself as small and close to the ground as possible, such as when you need to hide. If you know how to run properly, you could technically run down a hall and no guards would hear you, but that's usually when you're on a time limit. However, you're more noticeable due to your now large size."

Lucina's eyes narrowed down on him. "Excuse me? My large size?" She asked Shad.

He was confused for a moment before he realized what he implied. "My apologies! By size I mean the bodies of people in general, taking everything into account. For you in particular, I'm referring you your height and-"

"And what?!" She snapped at Shad, as now she looked like she was going to kill him.

"Yeesh... If you want me to be honest it's your hair and cape..." He muttered.

"Oh so now my hair is too big?! " She continued to get angrier.

"Actually, it looks pretty as it is, silky too. But having loose articles, hair included-"

*SLASH!*

Lucina's sword hit the floor board. "Defend yourself!" She snapped swinging the blade towards his direction.

Shad's combat instincts reared up and he parried the blade with an upward strike and kicked her away, followed up by reaching into his coat and throwing the tome he was carrying at her. With her disoriented, he closed the gap and dropped his weapon, instead opting to grab her wrist with one hand and placing the other on her back. In a quick movement, he pinned her to the ground, twisted her wrist to make her let go of her sword, and kicked the blade away. He panted slightly as adrenaline pumped through him and winced. Her initial strike had cut his right hand. "Gah... damn it..." He clicked his tongue.

Lucina navigated her legs on top of his as she used the strength in legs to wobble her body to the left before rolling on top of him, slamming his arms against his chest with the force and striking power of her back. "Whoa!" Shad shouted, feeling the sting in his hand. "Hold up a sec!" Once more the blade was in her hands, and Shad was forced to retrieve his to defend the next strike, this woman snapped. Before she could attack again, he blurted out, "Why the hell are you trying to kill me when I was complimenting your beauty?!"

She immediately stopped stunned by that question, while Shad's reactive instincts went in to high gear moving his blade to meet hers, but the blade passed her blade as it dropped slicing her padded armor links, causing the tannery around her breasts to slowly fall off. Shad could immediately see where this was going and whipped his coat off, placing it over her. "S-sorry... instincts... I usually capitalize on hesitation and couldn't resist." Lucina said nothing as she just simply grabbed her blade and moved towards the exit in a near deathly hurry. "Uh... hold on, wait!" Shad shouted and gave chase, grabbing her armor off the ground along with his tome.

Lucina got behind her door, locking the reinforced door. "Go away..." She said from behind her door.

"Look... I know what I said didn't really come off as what I wanted to, but did I insult you that much?" Shad asked worriedly, fiddling with the tannery in his hands. He could see a bit of white fabric. It belonged to her bra was in that tannery as well, seeing he cut deeper than he anticipated. "… Oh, gods damn it," he sighed, slipping the fabric under her door before leaving with the armor. "I'll be right back..." He returned a few moments later with some leather cords and thread. "I uh... I have your armor all sewn up... got you some new cords too." At her silence, he knocked on the door again. "Lucina? Are you... are you alright? I didn't cut you, did I?"

"No... you just cut through my clothing..." She said to him behind the door.

The former ninja blushed slightly. "Yeah... sorry about that." He hissed in pain again, looking at his right hand. She landed her blow on the back of his right wrist, slicing through some of his black glove "Damn it... gloved got cut... Well, this is why I brought the thread..."

"You didn't see anything did you?" She asked Shad, still uncomfortable of showing another man her body.

"Of course not. I'm a ninja, not a pervert. I threw my coat on you before I could, I promise," he assured her with a smile. "I mean, someone has to be a gentleman, right?" He sighed and slid down the back of her door until he was sitting. "You know... when I was talking about your hair, I meant that wearing it loose like that leaves a wider area to see when you're running. But honestly? I think it's gorgeous. So blue and silky... I can tell that you take care of it as well as you do the rest of yourself. And I did not mean to call you fat back there. Hell, with the way you fought, I wouldn't be surprised if you're more in shape than my big sister, Hinoka! The way you moved, you struck... it's like I finally got to see a true sword expert today. And honestly? I probably did." He couldn't stop talking now, even if he wanted to. "And your eyes... gods... easily one of the most beautiful pairs I've ever seen."

"You're trying to work up to my good side to actually see what you cut open..." Lucina deadpanned.

"No," Shad shook his head. "I'm being genuine. You're just as good as your father was, Lucina. I'm sure he'd be proud of you."

"…...How did you know about my father?" Lucina asked him standing up from the ground.

Shad was about to reply when he realized... he didn't. "I... I haven't the slightest clue..."

She opened up the door and grabbed him leaning him against her wall. "Then why bring it up?!" She snapped with tears in her eyes.

"I-I don't know!" Shad stammered. "It just felt like something I should say! I don't even know if your father was a swordsman or not!" Shad growled in pain in his right hand and tore his glove off, nursing the wound. "Gods damn! What kind of poison did you put on that sword?!"

"You're a little bastard who preys on people's pain... " She seethed moving her hands to his neck.

"L-Lucina... I swear, I was only concerned for you..." He assured her, grasping her hands and trying to pull them off him, revealing the back of his formerly gloved hand to her. A purple mark was on his hand, three eyes on separate two lines that cured into his wrist and twisted around each other. Lucina recognized it immediately; the Fell Brand.

Memories and cursed hope seared her mind and forced her to release him. "He died... Robin died... and all I have left... All that is left of my friends and family have been scattered in to the wind like leaves..." Her hands trembled as she fell to her knees.

Shad rubbed his neck and sighed before stooping down to her level and tilting her chin up so her gaze met his. "They wouldn't want you to spend the rest of your life in agony... if you must get stronger, do it to protect the people you meet in the future. Your friends and family in the future. Because take it from me, dwelling on the past does nothing but hurt you... I'll be honest..." Shad took his hand off her and sat against the wall, not looking at her. "I almost hurt... no, killed someone dear to me long ago... I know where you are now and trust me... it isn't a road you want to keep going down.

Lucina was left to sob and mourn for everything she had been through and lost... yet it wasn't enough, seeing in her eyes, fate was out to get her. Shad grabbed her tannery and the chords, keeping his eyes on her shoulders as he tied the new chords in, no longer leaving her topless. "There..." The former ninja took his coat back and smiled. "Hang on..." He took out his needle and thread and got to work stitching her padded cloth armor back together. "... I may not know your father... but I do know that he would want to remember him with a smile... not tears. Same as this Robin fellow." He bit off the thread and brushed her tears away. "Come on... let's see a smile for them."

While she didn't indulge him, she went to her bedtable and pulled out a drawing. "This... this is Robin," she told him, handing it to him. Shad looked over the picture and nodded. White, feathery hair about his length, a similar facial structure, frame... he even looked like Shad did in his coat, even if the patterning was different and said coat was more form fitting.

"You know... not to be vain or anything, but... this guy kinda looks like me, doesn't he?" He asked Lucina with a chuckle.

Lucina froze hearing that sort of vanity from the Ninja."…..yes..." She sighed grabbing the photo and putting it back where it belongs, while being very careful not to break it. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized... he wasn't wrong. His hair was a bit more curled and black, and he wasn't a perfect match face and stature wise, but she could definitely see it now that he said it. But... it couldn't be. He would have remembered her if he did. But then again... he somehow knew about her father. But then there was that most damning piece... the Fell Brand on his hand.

Shad sighed and stood up, beginning to bandage the injury. "You okay?" He asked, seeing the look in her eyes.

"You look so much like him... and my mind couldn't accept that you weren't my Robin... it's why I was hostile towards you." She explained.

"Eh... no hard feelings," Shad shrugged, moving on to stitch up his glove. "Gods know that the human mind is the most complex thing in existence. Well... Dragons too, but it's the same basic deal." He gave her a small smile. "You're a great woman, Lucina. I'm sure you'll find a guy worth your time if you look for one. Any guy would be lucky too. You're powerful, smart, beautiful... if you liked that Robin guy, he was mad not to at least attempt to go for you."

"…. You're... maybe you have a point..." She said wiping away her tears. Shad could see he was getting to her.

"There ya go!" Shad beamed at her. "You've been through a lot... anyone can tell that. But you going to let pain from the past stop you from being happy in the future? That'd just be disrespecting the thing I'm sure your father and Robin gave you in the first place." He took her hand and placed it on her blade. "The rest of your life. You can't just waste it grieving... as long as you can fight, you can change your fate and future."

A sudden bump in her heart caused her to think of something, she had a sudden urge of unknown feelings course through her. "So...now what?" She asked Shad.

Shad gave her a smile, though there was a somber tone to it. "You heal. Find someone worth living for and spending your life with." He stood to leave, placing his needle and thread in his coat.

She moved her hands around his left hand stopping him. "Why do you care so much for me?" She asked him, obviously confused.

"I can't answer that myself... maybe I just sense a kindred spirit?" He guessed, letting out a small laugh. "Though I guess I'd have to pity you if you were. Heheh..." The former ninja rubbed the mark on his hand subconsciously.

"Pity?" She asked him in a somewhat defeated tone. "I need... help...not some pity from someone as strong as you..." She said to him clenching her fists.

"Oh, don't get me wrong. I'm smart, not strong. Not at all strong..." He shivered at a memory. "Just... trust me. You're better off without someone like me ruining your life."

"My life is already destroyed... Shad... Doesn't that make us perfect for each other?" She asked letting go of the padding around her chest, that was cut by his blade.

Shad almost wanted to take her up on her offer. But... "You're still alive. And I like to think I put you on the road to being happy again after our talk." He wanted to kick himself for saying what he was, but it was for her own good in his mind.

"Shad wait... I want to try something if you don't mind?" She asked stepping closer to him.

The man's heart started to pound. "… Depends on what it is..." She moved her gentle hands around his head, moving her thumbs under his eyes, before slowly moving her face to meet his, pressing her lips to his and stealing a kiss from him. His heart pounded and his mark started to glow, and he pushed her off in panic, gasping for air. Lucina was pushed on to the floor seeing she already dropped her cut padding, revealed to him her bust size being pressed against her chest with a clean white bra. "D-don't..." He panted, looking away from her and hiding his brand. "You... you deserve better... far better... someone who can actually protect you instead of almost killing you every day..."

"You don't see yourself worthy?" She asked Shad, demoralized hearing him reject her.

"I..." He shivered, remembering the last time he felt this way, "I'm cursed... everything I care about either turns to ruin or comes close to... this thing, on my hand?" Shad showed her the now glowing Fell Brand. "Literally every person connected to magic has said it's a dark, cursed thing... it's why I'm always wearing my gloves. To keep it under wraps. To keep the people I care about safe. I don't even know what it does, but... every time I get excited, without fail, strange things happen... things break easier, people mess up on critical matters... In one instance, I even almost killed my own fucking sister!" Shad fell to the ground, both in anguish and exertion from holding himself back. "I'm better off guiding armies... better off keeping people away for their own good."

Lucina sighed as she curled up, hugging his form. "You just have a lack of direction, you're not cursed."

"Aren't I though?" He asked with a sort of mad chuckle. "I've almost killed my own brother, put him on deaths door myself, driven off my family in Nohr, hell, even in Hoshido I wasn't very well liked! Everyone saw me as the 'black sheep...' Almost addicted to my tactics and strategy games when everyone wanted peace..."

"You just don't have anyone to share this pain with you..." She said stroking his hair.

"Hell... I almost hurt you. No! I did one better by humiliating you with a hit that didn't even cut you, just your damn top!" Shad raved. "Everything I touch, everyone I try to connect with... I always find some way to fuck it up! Just... once... I don't want that to happen..."

"Gods... you're just like Robin...he was exactly like this Shad... he refused to let anyone close to him and he died protecting us..." She scolded him, slapping him upside the head.

"Heh... don't go projecting what couldn't be on me..." He teased her, trying to lighten the mood. "I might look like the guy, but to be honest? I'm not. He sounded like a hero, someone people could respect."

"He would've been a great father... but like I said, he refused to let anyone near him, in the fear of harming us..." She complained moving herself on his lap. "You have pain... And loss Shad... you need a comfort zone in your heart or you are doomed to repeat Robin's mistake." She ordered. He couldn't take it anymore. Her words, her touch, hell even her scent was too much. And for the first time in a while, he pulled her into an embrace, shuddering with every breath

(line break)

"BLECK!" Errihpas said with a disgusted tone. "This...romance is disgusting, they don't fit!" She complained with Dahs behind her standing over the observation portal.

"Like it or not, this is pretty close to how we first met..." He informed his daughter.

"Daddy, we didn't meet in weakness..." She said seeing that this Shad was being...compromised by his own weakness.

"I was referring to Lucina, dear. I met her in a similar manner," the man clarified.

Anak appeared behind the two, looking down. "Wait... Uncle, something is off... can you feel it?" She asked Dahs.

"Yes..." His fists clenched and his eyes lit up. "And it angers me..."

"Were we... were we just Hoodwinked?!" Anak snapped seeing this world was suddenly changed.

"No... Pam and the old man toyed with the rules in a bid to rid me of these memories..." Dahs growled.

"When did they do that?!" She hissed.

"Years ago... but because we were ordered to keep tabs on your father, we didn't notice until the months before this."

Aynes appeared in an electrical flash, jumping on Errihppas, throwing her over her father. "Uncle! I forgot something! Someone is messing with time!" She showed him blank papers.

"I know, young one..." Dahs growled as memories and tears began to rekindle. "… Sapphire. Senya. I have a task for you."

Anak moved her dagger through the portal, causing it to singe and hiss. "We're blocked out from here... Uncle we need to find that Rainbow fuck and kill him...He's putting up barriers." Anak said to her uncle.

"That is none of my concern for now... I just need to vent..." The spymaster growled. "Find Pam and bring her to me alive..."

"Hey, Hey..." A female Ninja master said to Dahs, putting her arms around him. "You can come vent with me... and a playmate..." She whispered.

He took several deep breaths before being calmed for the moment. "You're right, my love..." He sighed with a small smile, kissing her deeply.

"hmhmhm... now where is that little geek... She's perfect for a little punishment of her back talk to me..." She said pulling him away from the sight of portal viewing Shad.

"So... are you going to keep watching then?" Anak asked her cousin and sister. At a shake of their head, she took over. "Where is...'daddy'….. " She asked the portal, watching him in the Hoshidan room...calm and collected. "….Kana... He looks relatively calm for a jerk who is captured..." Aynes complained to her sister.

"Because it isn't his first time," Errihppas giggled. "His own cocky attitude just gave him away!"

"Impossible, only variants know..." Aynes argued.

"Oh? Can't the old man send people back with memories intact?" Dahs's daughter asked.

"I'm going down there... Like... right now...Uncle will be proud of me, and so will daddy, and then I'll get that S status!" Anyes cheered, before jumping in to the portal.

(Line break)

Shad was latched onto Lucina, on the verge of sobbing as he panted heavily. "Lucina... I don't know if I can-" Lucina shushed him as she hugged him, kissing the top of his head, and rubbing the back of his neck. His mark started to burn. He needed release and soon. "I don't know how much longer I can hold myself back... Please... let me leave before I do something we'll regret..." She smiled as she popped off her bra for him, giving him a clear view of the two melons. "Lu-Lucina..." Shad's mind started to turn hazy as his instincts started to bang on the door of his mind. She moved his head against her chest, letting him listen to her heart beat, a slight thump in her chest as she kissed the man on the head. "I... Are you really okay with this? I only just met you... what? An hour ago? Two? Tops?" He was on the verge of total loss of control.

The last straw was when her right nipple brushed up against his lips, nearly moving the bud in to his mouth. Claws formed on his hands, his teeth sharpened, and his pupils turned to slits, not unlike a lizard or wyverns. He suddenly pinned her to the ground, panting heavily as he looked into her eyes. "Lucina..." His voice was slightly warped, and a pair of tattoos that made it look like he had two extra pairs of eyes at the top and bottom corners formed. "I don't think I can hold back anymore... I need to hear you say it's okay to do this before anything..."

"Shad... I gave you clearings when I popped off my top..." She sighed, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

There was a red hue as he stared down at her. "I know... but I'm not the best with people now, am I?" He kissed her fiercely, sharp teeth nibbling at her lower lip as he started to disrobe. The former ninja's heart quivered as he heard the lightest of moans escape her lips. "Patience, my darling..." He whispered as he whipped off his shirt, revealing the rest of his scar. It was long and wide, going diagonally from his left shoulder to his right hip.

Lucina breathed out a sigh of relief feeling his skin against hers. "Okay...maybe we should list some ground rules?" She asked. There was a dark tone to his laugh as he picked her up and pinned her to her bed, sitting on her lap as he started taking his pants off. "Or I'm taken like a bitch in heat..." She said rubbing her own hair in a repeated motion.

"A bitch?! Perish the thought, my dear!" Shad declared aghast at her accusation. "I'm going to make this something we both enjoy. But if you want me..." He dragged a claw down from her cheek to her chin, leaving a mark while not quite puncturing her skin. "You're getting all of me... and I expect the same from you. Okay?"

She nodded as she got to her feet and laying down on the bed, sticking her ass up. "Do your thing..." She said with a smile.

Shad subconsciously licked his lips as he pulled his trousers off and knelt behind her, his mast knocking at her folds. "Are you ready, my love?" He asked her sensually, his hot breath licking at her inner ear. She gave his shaft a rub with her cheeks, stating she was in fact ready for him, the fact that his shaft was being hot dogged in between her cheeks was a sight for hungry eyes... and his eyes were starving. He took the plunge, slowly pushing into her as she was a virgin too. "Now... I'm no expert on how this works, but... this is going to sting." He pushed past her hymn, a trickle of blood running down her thighs as she let out a pained squeak.

"Well now... that was a cute noise..." He teased her, his hands on her hips and his head near her ear. "Care to see if I can make it again?"

"I'd rather you not..." She said in an embarrassed tone, seeing that the noise that came from her was completely uncalled for in her mind, though Shad pushed again, emitting the same squeak from her mouth.

"Aww..." Shad mock cooed as he thrusted again, forcing it out for a third time. "You really seem to like this little guy, don't you?" He thrusted again, this one a little surer than the others as he tried to find a rhythm. His hands moved to her breasts, squeezing the firm mounds firmly but not roughly.

"You seem to like my breasts a...a lot..." She moaned.

"Are you kidding? I like every bit about you," he complemented as he experimentally squeezed her right boob. "From these..." He brushed down her stomach and to her hips. "To these..." Shad grabbed her butt and pressed the cheeks together teasingly. "To these... and especially this!" He punctuated his sentence with a slightly more powerful thrust, ramming into her pussy. "It isn't even just your figure that I'm thinking about right now... it's your eyes, the way you fight, how intelligent you are..."

*Knock...Knock..*

Shad froze at the noise, and so did Lucina, both immediately looking to the door. "Wh-who is it?" The blue haired woman asked.

Tiki somehow appeared in the room behind Shad, poking him in the back. "Hey Jerk!" Tiki cried out. "WAKE UP!" She screamed throwing a giant scythe at him.

Suddenly Shad had a headache. "Wuh... Wuh?" He asked as his eyes drifted open.

Shad saw that Luciana was still hugging him rubbing the back of his neck. "Like I said you're not cursed, Shad... you just need some time to get to know yourself, rather than seeing the smaller pictures in life." She consoled him with advice.

Despite being confused by what just happened, he rolled with it and embraced her tighter. "Heh... thanks, Lucina..."

Lucina got off from his lap, as she got up to move over to the thread and needle on her side table. "I have to go repair my clothing now, since you sliced it open Shad... " She stated.

Shit... I forgot to do that. Oh well, at least the majority of her armor is fixed.

"Oh, so now I am cursed?" He asked jokingly as he stood up, grabbing his book.

"No, you're just guilty of cutting open a girl's blouse..." She pointed out.

Shad gave her a sheepish grin. "Well... hey, maybe next lesson you can teach me how to not do that then?" His urges were still strong as he grasped his aching head. "That'll have to be tomorrow though... I haven't the slightest clue why, but I have a splitting headache. I'll see you later, Lucina."

The blue haired warrior gave him a slight smile as he left her room. "I'll see you later, Shad."

C support Achieved!

Shad followed his ears through the halls, trying to make sense of what just happened.

A hallucination? No, I'd have been moving if it were. A dream? Probably, but why did I fall asleep?

No, child. It was a vision of what would have happened if you had accepted who we are sooner.

Will you leave me alone!? All you have ever done is cause me heartache and guilt!

Fine... but you know as well as I do that you can't escape yourself...

The former ninja's rage was boiling as he turned a corner, and it almost erupted at what he saw before him. A man had a raven haired woman pinned to a wall, struggling and cursing his name as she tried to break loose. "It's no use, sweet heart," the guard grinned with a lecherous look. "Without 'Lord Damon's' protection, you're as much of fair game as the common folk."

The woman glared, her gloomy eyes full of malice and hate. "I swear, when I get my hands on you, I'll-"

The guard slapped her, the sound echoing in the halls. "You'll do nothing without your fancy spells," he growled. Tharja turned her eyes down and away from the man, chanting lightly as the guard started to undo the buckle of his pants. Shad was frozen in place, both by anger and worry.

Damn it! I can't just let this happen! But if this guy is important to father for some reason... I can't lose him too...

There was a glint as the man's pants dropped, revealing a bulge in his undergarments. "Hehehe... that bastard Damon dying was the best thing that's ever happened to me!"

To hell with it...

Shad's vision turned red as he sprinted forward, tackling the man to the ground and slipping a knife from his coat. "You know... I don't like when my family's name is dirtied..." The prince growled, pressing his knife to the guard's throat. "ESPECIALLY by garbage like you... it's people like you that made me lose faith in the masses. Scum like you don't even deserve to exist..."

"Who the Hell are you?!" The guard snapped.

"Prince Shad... The man running this fortress..." The prince growled, knife pointed at the man's throat.

The guard went stiff as a board. "What did you say your name was?"

"S-H-A-D, Shad. Garon's long lost son... back from the grave."

"…..You're not supposed to be here..." His voice was...hollowed.

"Right... and you're not supposed to be alive anymore..." Shad slit his throat and a gleam took over his eyes.

The guard was oozing out black blood like substance as he pushed the prince off, stood and turned around. "Fallen Prince..." He said gripping Shad's wrist revealing the mark on his own wrist.

"Hehe..." Shad chuckled, his face and knife bloody. "hehehe..." The prince flipped the grip on his knife and slashed before tackling the guard down again and mounting him. "Hehehehehe..."

"Your existence is questionable... and unstable...your death will come.." The guard continued to repeat.

"Shut up... Shut up and die!" Shad started to stab, a crazed look in his eyes as he gouged out eyes, his throat and tongue before piercing every organ in the guard's body, a mad man's laugh bubbling up from his throat as he did. The Guard dissolved leaving bits of armor pieces behind, as the cracks swallowed up the black material on the ground. Shad's laughter faded after a few seconds, along with the black on him and his blade. "Hehe... heeeeeeh... I... I needed that..." He panted as he got up and looked to the woman. "You okay there? That asshole didn't do anything bad, did he?" The prince got a good look at her eyes. A crystalline purple that almost ensnared him.

"…..He got close enough... who are you? I mean I know your name S-H-A-D, or perhaps you go for being called Prince...or Prince Shad... or how about Shad?" Tharja asked the man.

"Shad works... and you?" The prince asked.

"...Call me Tharja, and no nicknames or you'll be ending up like a certain individual who was picking up burned articles of his clothing..." Tharja warned Shad.

Shad gave her a flippant look. "Didn't intend on it."

"Good... Then we have common ground... now speak, who are you and what do you seek?" She asked him stepping closer.

Shad took a moment to compose himself. "Well, as I told that bastard, who I'm fairly certain is going to cause me no end of grief later in my life, I'm the Son of Garon."

"That being the Fell Dragon? Is that the problem?" She asked Shad, seemingly aware of what the mark was and what that...guard was talking about.

"Huh... So that's what this mark is..." Shad muttered to himself, brushing his bandaged hand. "I'm sorry, but what's a Fell Dragon? I've only heard of the Dusk and Dawn ones."

"Not here... come with me." She said gripping his hand rather tightly, dragging him off towards her room.

"Wh-whoa!" Shad gasped at the sudden change of pace before being pushed into the woman's room. Her room had incense burning, and was barely lit. Beads hung around the room of each passage way beyond her door. "Wow... nice place... it reeks of magic... and trust me, I don't mean that in a bad way."

She put her right index finger on his lip. "Shhhhhhhhh...sit." She ordered pointing at the plush dark chair at her table. The prince said nothing, knowing the woman before him could hex him into submission if he refused and sat down.

"Now with your basic knowledge... what do you know of the Fell Dragon?" She asked Shad pulling out a record book.

"He's a dragon... judging by the name, not a very good one either. More like the Dusk Dragon that the Nohrians worship," Shad guessed.

"…...He was a monster... A psychotic, brutal, murderous, and rampaging beast, that destroyed everything in its wake..." She began to say, showing him the book of records with household sigils, myths, and legends.

Shad absorbed the information with a critical mind. "Well... that definitely doesn't sound like anything I'd like to run into... I'm quick and clever, but a dragon like that?"

"It took everything we had... and it wasn't enough, by mere chance he was destroyed with the help of another Dragon... though it came with a price, countless of friends dead, and a homeland destroyed... the evil was vanquished... but I know, for some reason, that evil wasn't permanently destroyed... it only transferred to the next plaguing- powerful victim... This evil isn't something that is easily destroyed." She informed him.

Shad noticed something as she talked. A pain in her eyes, the wincing at certain parts of her sentences and the fact she said 'friends...' "You... you were there... weren't you? When the Fell Dragon was defeated," the prince questioned her.

She took the book of records, closing it, quietly before placing it in a shelf full of books. "….It's in the past... I rather not disturb the dead who have gave their lives to bring up such things..." Tharja answered with a slight pain.

"Um... that mark on that guard's wrist... You said it was the dragon's?" Shad asked, rubbing his bandaged hand.

"A cursed mark, great power...only one had such a mark before..." She vaguely answered him.

"Tch... I knew it..." Shad growled under his breath, his confidence at an all-time low now. He stood up, fuming at what he was just told. "Thanks for the lesson, Tharja. If that ever happens again or you think it will, come find me. I'll put it to rest."

"You're Prince Damon's brother aren't you?" She asked moving back to her shelf.

The coat wearing prince nodded. "That's right."

"I found it odd..." She started to say looking through a book of sketches.

Shad stopped in his tracks and turned back to her. "What?"

She moved over to the man, as she started to pull on his pointed ear on his left side. "Your ears are pointed... Your brother however..." She pulled out a pencil sketch showing his form, he looked normal.

"Yeah... I know... I don't forget faces..." The prince grieved, ashamed of what he did.

"There was a...weight to him, a weight of burden, pain, and loss... I couldn't understand it." She informed him.

"Yeah, well... He has his life and past, I have mine... But I doubt it's anything that can keep him down," Shad muttered, his guilt climbing.

Gods damn it, Shad! What the hell have you done!?

"Did you tell his maids?" She asked with a monotone voice, that pierced his soul.

Shad's eyes glowed a slight red as he looked into her purple orbs. "I told one of them that I think he's still alive. And I stand by what I said. If I had known of the other, I would've told her too if I saw her. But I'm not about to go out of my way for a person who isn't even there... not if they aren't important to me at least."

"You give hope, when you said he might be alive... but think about it, cursed one... you gave her false pretense, you left him on the field of battle, infected with venom, shot, and was ran through a naginata."

The prince felt his guilt and rage spike. "And what the hell was I supposed to do?! Huh?! I didn't know it was him, didn't know I was fighting my brother!"

"Wasn't the Hoshidan way for peace?" She asked seeing as he was captive.

"Well I'm not Hoshidan, am I?! Fuck, I don't even know if I'm a Nohrian anymore!" The prince roared.

"You were... for all your known life, raised in Hoshido, with their methods, and their beliefs... yet, you decided to attack him." Tharja put away the sketch.

"No... almost none of it stuck..." Shad growled. "And that's why I attacked. I saw a potential threat to me and my family, and I attacked."

"A noble? An officer? Alone, even by the engraved surcoat? What was it...black with the red Nohrian symbol?" She asked the rogue.

"And what the hell do you know?!" Shad yelled, frustrated at himself. "You weren't even there! You were here!"

"I think you snapped, when you saw him tackle the Red Chevalian knight..." She went on.

The prince forced himself not to strike and grasped his bandaged hand. His glove did better at suppressing the magic, but he didn't have time to mend it.

You're nearing your limit, boy... can you resist the call for much longer?

"D-Damn it... just shut up!" Shad yelled, at both Tharja and the voice in his head.

"He fought to subdue... he gave her the opportune chance to flee didn't he?" She asked, seeing Damon didn't fight aggressively with her, as if he was holding back.

Shad hated what he was about to do, but it was better than this... thing taking control again. He grabbed Tharja by her neck and pinned her to the wall. "Shut... up..." His bandages fell off, revealing the glowing Fell Brand. "Before I do something... we'll both regret..." He panted.

"You wanted to murder him..." She said to the distressed man. It was those last words that plunged the blade into his heart and twisted. He let out a roar and dropped her, forcing himself out the door and rushing down the hall, magic seeping from his every pore.

She's right... I did... but that was when I didn't know! I tried to save him after and kept Takumi from landing that fatal hit! If I hadn't, he'd be dead for sure!

You didn't save him... you wanted to be the one to drive the dagger through his armor after you marked him with the Shuriken... a fell beast needs to finish what he started...

That's a lie! I would have never done that if I knew who he was beforehand!

Was it a lie when you nearly killed Hinoka?

Tears rimmed the prince's eyes, and he ended up in the yard just outside the fortress, scaling a tree to hide in for the time being.

I need to sleep... need to calm down.

The first vision he received was during the fight, when Damon brought his foot down causing the ground to quake and tremor sending off major alarm bells... yet he refused to act on any information he was ringing out.

Why did you not cease? No man could do that...I think you liked the challenge...

Shut up, shut up, shut up!

You intended to remove any sort of competition, even if he had lovers and children, it didn't matter to you...you wanted him gone...

This is a war! I've slaughtered far more than him, made far more widows and orphans!

Nobles and Officers are always spared in the field of battle, foot soldiers are hacked to a man...yet you didn't care did you?

And why would I have?! Nohr was the enemy, he was a threat to my family! I refuse to let them die! Just leave me alone, you cursed thing!

His family...You saw a threat to ...his family...

They RAISED ME! They're more family than the siblings who abandoned me days ago!

More flashes of Damon letting Scarlet go, he wasn't striking at her, just making sure she got out of the mosh pit of death. A slight slowing down of the vision he could see an arrow flying at her, followed by him tackling her to the ground.

I heard arrows to the head are... Irreversible..

Please... no more... why are you so hell bent on making my life hell?!

I want you to know the lives you destroyed... how will his kids react knowing that their father could possibly never return to them? Does it fill your heart with a sudden warmness, knowing you had a hand in murdering him?

"GRAAAAAAAAAHR!" Shad woke himself up with the roar in his mind, his magic calmed... for the moment. Judging by the moon when he left the tree, it was just the start of the night. "It isn't true... I'm not like that... I'm not some callous demon who butchers whoever he wants..." He shivered as he flashed back to his fight with Hinoka.

(Line break)

Ten years ago, in Hoshido...

"Big sister, you can't go!" The younger Shad cried out to his red haired sister. "It's suicide going to Nohr by yourself! Wait for us all to get stronger, we'll find Damon together, finish this war and bring him back home!"

"Don't try to stop me, Shad!" She rebelled. "You have no idea how strong I am now! I will bring Damon back."

The child Shad fidgeted, trying to think of a way to stall for time so Ryoma could talk her out of it again. "Then... then prove it!" The young prince blurted out, his mouth moving faster than his head. "If you can't beat me... there's no way you can take on the Nohrians yourself!" The young prince regretted what he said the moment it left his lips, but he stood his ground and took out his training set of knives and shuriken.

She grabbed her naginata twirling it. "Shad... He could be in peril... and I won't stop until he's back home..." She said readying herself.

"And I won't let you get yourself killed!" The child roared, tears in his eyes.

"Move!" She ordered to make his move as she got in her combat stance.

The ten-year-old shook his head, getting into his own clumsy stance. He had only just started his training, he had no chance in a straight-out fight.

I just need to stall her... keep her busy until Big Brother gets here and can stop her himself...

Hinoka charged, smacking his blade from the blunt end of her polearm, flinging it to the floor with a dull clatter, moving the blade up to his neck. "I'm going to save him... don't get in my way ever again.."

The child Shad teared up and lobbed a smoke pellet at her feet, buying him time to get some distance and throw a shuriken at her. She deflected it with ease. "No! I'll keep standing here! I... I don't want to watch you leave to your death, Hinoka!" Tears were freely running down his face now. "Please... I don't want to fight you anymore..."

"Get out of my way!" She ordered swinging her pole arm smacking the next shuriken as she smacked him with the pole arm, nicking his face and only just missing his eye.

Shad gasped feeling the sting of the weapon bit his flesh. "You... you cut me..." He panted, feeling blood run down his face.

She moved the blade part to the ground, as she saw the cut just under his tear duct. "I...I didn't mean to—"

"You... cut... me..." Shad's birthmark started to glow. His fingers turned to claws and his teeth sharpened, a pair of tattoos resembling eyes appearing at the corners of his eyes going into the center of his face. "What... so now you're willing to kill me to go on your suicidal rescue mission?! I only wanted to protect you! And you go for blood when I'm not even using real blades?!"

Hinoka was getting a very bad feeling about his presence now, as it was menacing. "I... I'm sorry okay! But I need to go find him!" She said fearing for Damon's life.

"No... I only intended to stall until Ryoma got here to stop you, big sister, but now?" Shad dropped his weapons and poised his claws to strike. "I'll stop you myself." He gave her no room to register what was happening as he lunged, his magic seeped claws tearing through her armor like tissue paper.

Hinoka's eyes widened as she heard a sudden splash of blood, falling to one knee, unable to keep steady. Her naginata fell to the ground... in a sudden realization she saw Damon...last time she saw him before being taken with her father. She coughed up blood and quickly saw Shad come for another round, but this time... she heard Damon call to her.

"...Noka..."

With tear-stricken eyes she drove her fist right in to Shad's face, for all the pain applied to her wounds... nothing could compare to her heart... that hurt the most. Shad was stopped by the blow, but not phased. "That won't stop me this time, Big Sister... yield..."

Hinoka gritted her teeth as that one was to kill her, she would retaliate in kind. "This is for Damon... " She hissed as she grabbed her naginata, twirling it around with her might and will, slicing his left shoulder down to his right hip, cutting through his clothing.

"Gah!" Shad's eyes widened at the blow, his small and frail body unable to take the hit half as well as a grown man's, but these powers keeping it from marking his grave. His new features faded and he fell to one knee, his birthmark returning to normal. Hinoka hunched over before the light finally claimed her conscious, unable to stand any more.

*THUD*

"Big... big sister?" Shad asked, the pain suddenly numbing seeing his older sister, the one who was always there for him, drop to the ground. "No... No, no, no, big sister, you have to get up! Big sister!" Tears started to roll down his face as the gravity of what happened fully hit him.

I... I did this... Orochi was right... I really am cursed...

The ten year old prince started to cry and wail as his brothers and little sister rushed to the scene, along with a plethora of guards. He could hardly make anything out, only hearing things pertaining to him being a 'monster' or a 'traitor' by almost everyone there. "I'm sorry..." He whimpered, finally succumbing to his own wounds. "I'm sorry big sister... everyone..." He fell to the ground and blacked out.

(Line break)

While he and Hinoka eventually made up, things were never quite the same in the castle. The servants feared him, the guards gave him weary looks, and even his mother was giving him a disappointed, almost fearful look.

I would have NEVER hurt Hinoka like that if you weren't there. You're the reason for everything in my life going wrong or being ruined! Why can't you just plague someone else's life instead?! Why must you haunt and torture me so?!

Your brother lashed out in a moment of heat... but he didn't hurt anyone but himself... where do you think he got that scar on his face?

I don't know! And why would you?! You haven't left me since I was born apparently!

I overheard it...while you were sulking.

Shut up then! I'm not interested in anything you have to say, I'll figure it out myself!

You realized if he is alive, he's going to come find you, and attempt to return the favor...

That was Shad's breaking point.

Then let him! At least then I won't be burdened with having to constantly worry about killing everyone I ever cared about!

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

The voice faded to nothingness as Shad shivered and panted. "I... I need to fix my glove... I can't let this keep happening..." The prince rushed to his room and pulled out his kit, trying to calm his nerves enough to sew the tear from Lucina. Lucina...

"You just have a lack of direction, you're not cursed," the memory of her echoed in his head.

She was wrong... I am...

He tugged his glove back onto his hand, his headache and emotions settling enough where he wasn't on the verge of a mental collapse. "I... I need to at least try to make things right," he convinced himself, heading for the fortress smithy.

(Line break)

Seven hours later, around midnight...

Shad panted as he brought down the hammer in his hand again, continuing to shape the metal with increasing difficulty. He felt a firm hand on his shoulder and paused. "Yer wearin yerself out, kid," the blacksmith grunted. "I suggest ya take a break. Hot metal does bad things to yer flesh."

"Yeah... I'll do that... as long as these get down by tomorrow, I can afford to rest," the prince panted, picking up his coat before heading out of the basement levels of the fortress where the smithy was, drenched in sweat. He lethargically made his way into his room and fell on his bed, his eyes shooting open as his head impacted something hard instead of the soft pillow. "MOTHER FUCK!" He swore, rubbing the back of his head. "Who the fuck left a brick in my... oh..." He pulled the rectangular object from the pillow and paused, seeing it was in fact a journal. And judging by the name on the front, it was his brother Damon's. His curiosity peeked, he cracked it open and started to speed read through the pages, his face growing ever paler.

Stabbed through the back...

Both burned alive...

Beheaded...

Literally screwed to death...

Throat slit...

I have to prevent this from happening again.

That line rang out the most for the prince.

Prevent? Did this actually happen?

No matter the age I am... the memories keep lapping up, I'm afraid to bring up the real nightmares to Camilla... It'd be too soon...to dangerous...

This journal was archived three years ago... Shad's rage grew and his mark burned under his glove, suppressed by the magic.

Who dared to hurt my brother..."

Watch for the girl of Shadows and the girl of Madness...

"Shadows and madness... noted..." Shad yawned and continued to read.

A Phantom of darkness broke through and caused the brunt of the deaths... most being quick, while others barely holding by a thread. There was no warning, no signs, he came in quick and punched a hole through our defenses...

"This Phantom... nice name, but he seems strong... I'll need to be careful of him more than the others..." Shad muttered to himself.

Archived Four years ago... We're going further back.

Flora and Felicia told me they were both pregnant... I don't know what the fuck I was thinking having Max this early? Even if I wanted to have him raised by us, there is the problem that presents itself with Vixen and Arina...

This early? Prevent? Either my brother has gone mad here or he's not from this time. Let's see, more recent entries... a few months ago should work.

A few changes have been happening...First Lucina shows up from the ass end of nowhere, presumably where Severa has come from, then these 'friends' start arriving by the dozen... I have never heard of these people, and the disaster of Severa's homeland must've been worse or better, as if back then she could've been so traumatized she could've shut out her true past life... she rarely talks about it, only a few strongholds left standing, once told me to flee... but now? It's in a state of ruins, nothing left but ashes.

I keep hearing more of this...lost Prince from father, he talks about him rarely, knowing him he keeps his information locked up tighter than a priestesses...ahem.. Anyways, Xander told me he was brought to Nohr a year after I was born... then was kidnapped. Which I find it odd that there is even a lost prince here, he never existed from the part of time I'm from...

That checks out... but if I didn't exist then, what changed? Was it me existing in general that brought these changes about, or something else?

The nightmares returned, haunting faces of a destroyed life... I have them all back...yet at the same time I don't have them back, it's painful to keep this to myself, yet I told Tiki about it and she believed me. Though, unfortunately I have to let the pieces fall in to place before this game is started... before I'm forced to relive this horror... I won't let that happen, I'll change fate if I must! But I will not fail!

"… Big bro..." Shad yawned, putting the book in his coat for later. It was better he kept it than one of the maids or Camilla finding it anyway. All of Demon's possessions were pulled out of the room, as Camilla didn't want a thing left in that room to be claimed by the what she named Shad as the 'Squatter'. "… Even if this doesn't work, I'm working with you, bro. Count on it. I'll tip the scales however I can..." Shad fell asleep after saying that, fatigue taking him.

(Line break)

A couple days later...

"I'm begging you, Flora, Felicia... please help me with this," Shad begged on his knees to the two maids.

"What do you want?" Flora asked as she stacked the silver trays on top of each other, while Felicia was sweeping the floor.

"I need your help making a weapon... for my brother, Leo," the prince informed them.

"Why would either of us help you? You tried to kill our Prince!" Flora snapped at Shad, while Felicia ignored him.

Hm... This should work.

"Because... when it gets out that this blade makes Leo even stronger and aids with keeping him safer, won't Damon be proud of you both?" Shad asked them. That got Felicia's attention, though Flora was still angered, knowing full well he intended to kill her Prince rather than capture him. "Who knows... maybe he may reward you both for your efforts as well? For having such a major role in his rescue from the Hoshidans."

"Flora, we have to help!" Felicia cried out to her sister. "...why you..." Flora gritted her teeth.

"I just need the blade enchanted. That's all," he told them both. "And you two have the best ice magic I've ever seen."

"Fine..." Flora said to Shad as she approached the Prince. "But if I find out you're using this blade against my Prince... I'll encase you in ice, and throw you down a cavern..." She threatened Shad, as her tone was cold and thick as ice.

Shad raised his hand in a salute, not at all perturbed by her tone. "You have my word as a Prince and a scholar. The sword will go to my brother Leo. No one else."

"Then we have a deal..." She murmured.

"Do you need help finding the smithy?" Shad asked them both as he stood up.

"No, we know where it is... Damon made sure to have us help with bringing him materials to the forge... there is actually an enhanced forge in there." Felicia pointed to a secret door. "Felicia!" Flora snapped. "But...it's so much closer..." The pink haired cried out pointing her index fingers together.

Shad was legitimately confused. "Pardon my confusion, but what makes this forge any different than the one in the basement? Does it make enchanted weapons or is the forge itself magic?" Flora pinched her bridge between her nose and walked over to a candle holder, yanking the mechanism down causing the wall in Demon's room to crack open with air exiting the secret room. "Huh... neat..." Shad mused as he entered, noting a chain to exit the room should the door close behind him. "So what's so special about this place then?" He bit back a dungeon foreplay joke, smugly chuckling to himself in his head.

"…. Damon kept materials in here including memorabilia, his tomes, and ripped pages of his journal." Felicia said, to Flora's ire which she clonked her sister on the head.

"Tomes?" Shad's eyes lit up. "He used tomes?"

"He can use a lot of spells, but prefers hand to hand combat... I can see why because his body is physically adept to pain, and endurance." Flora explained.

Shad pulled a book from the shelf and muttered the words under his breath. "Fimbulvetr..." He intoned. There was a blast of ice and snow from the book, launching him away from the sheer magnitude of the spell. "Note to self," he groaned as he picked himself off the ground and returned the book. "Direct the spell... Or get better at casting it." A glass shelf fell on his head spilling out a few tied pieces of paper. "Ow, son of a..." He discreetly pocketed the pages, unbeknownst to the twins.

"Great...now we have to clean this up..." Flora said while grabbing her sister by the ear. "Just get your blade started, we'll return shortly." Flora said, to Shad letting him get the pages out of his pocket.

"Well... at least it's chilly in here..." He chuckled as he looked them over.

The page wasn't just a page... It was a picture... There stood a man in fur and metal armor with a long sword, short hair, and under the picture scribed... Maximus... my greatest failure as a father...

"Flora's kid...? Really glad she didn't see this," Shad muttered as he pocketed the pictures, deciding to look them over later. "Now then..." He took off his coat and hung it up, as well as his shirt. One page peeked out, making him curious enough to look it over.

Can't burn... Can't burn...Can't burn...

He frowned at the writing. "What the..."

"I CAN'T KILL HER WITH FIRE! THAT MAD BITCH!" The scribbled madness got more induced, showing a psychotic woman with daggers in her hands.

"Why does she look so... familiar?" Shad asked himself as he put the page away. "Okay Shad, time to get to work." He pulled a book from the shelf and pointed his palm to the forge. "Fire!" The instruments ignited, the room going from cold to average temperature in an instant. He smiled to himself and grabbed some steel. "Okay then... let's get to work."

(Line break)

A few hours later...

Shad wiped his brow as he laid the blade to rest. It was just about finished, all it needed was the main enchantment. "Flora! Felicia!" He shouted to the two maids.

Felicia tripped over her broom, while Flora made her way in to the forge. "Are you ready?" She asked the Prince.

"Yep. Just needs the enchantment and then I can quench it," Shad nodded, holding the white-hot blade away from them and himself. "Just hit it with some magic and it should take." Flora and Felicia concentrated their abilities as the room got colder for a few moments, they shot out their hands hitting the blade with their elemental blast. The blade that Shad forged began to become infused with the ice element the two maids cast upon it. "That should do it... and now..." He soaked the blade in a vat of oil, the substance lighting for a split second before settling down. Shad pulled out the blade, steaming with ice. "There... it's ready." He turned to the two and smiled. "Thanks again, you two. Really. I appreciate this."

"You are...most welcome, just make sure that we don't regret this... Prince Shad." Flora said with embarrassment seeing how she didn't want what she did to bite her Prince in the ass.

"Trust me... this will help my brother a lot..." Shad had a far off look in his eyes. "Hey... you two know Damon best, right? Was there anything he liked outside of you two and family?"

"Hmmm...well he enjoys my sister's cooking... and Camilla's...he collects weapons if you saw that... But then again, Lady Camilla did take his weapon rack out of here, while you are...staying here." Felicia was thinking.

"Was there anything it was missing?" Shad asked.

"Just his sword..." Flora pointed out, as he had his sword on him.

"Hm... pity... I liked using this forge. Would've loved to make something for when I see him again," Shad sighed, using a wind tome to kill the forge. "Again, thanks for the help ladies. If you need anything from me, ask. I owe you both one."

"We'll keep that in mind..." Flora said dragging her sister away, before she broke something by accident.

Shad smiled and got his shirt and coat back on before sheathing the new sword. "Okay... now I just need to finish Elise's gift and I'm all set." He rubbed some sleep out of his eyes. "Damn... I'll have to do that tomorrow... what haven't I done already that I can do to unwind?" The prince thought to himself a moment. "Been in the kitchens... training for the day is already done... I wonder if there's a wyvern pen I could visit?" He wandered the castle, eventually making his way outside and into the vicinity of the pens. "So there is one here..." The former ninja brushed some hair from his face and entered, the scent of wyverns slamming into him.

He wandered the pens, looking over each of the lesser dragons. In his research on anatomy of them, Shad had also learned to tell whether a wyvern was healthy or not. "Someone's been taking good care of these..." He, against his better judgement, reached out to pet one of the dragons. It leaned into his touch, almost purring in content. "Heh... you're a friendly one." He noted that while this one was particularly vicious looking, it seemed to be the most cared for of the bunch. He heard footsteps, preparing himself for the voice that followed.

"That's Minerva," A woman told him, petting the wyvern as well. "She's my wyvern."

"She's very healthy... all of these are. You've done well in training them," Shad praised her. "Honestly, I wanted one of these as a pet growing up... sounds silly, but I always admired dragons. People in Hoshido don't half as much, preferring Pegasi."

Cherche's eyes seemed to light up slightly. "You know... I think you'd have a knack for it. It's not every day Minerva approves of someone other than myself so suddenly."

"Heh... thanks." Shad put his hand out towards the woman. "My name is Shad. How about you?"

The woman curtsied slightly and took his hand. "Cherche. It's an honor to meet you, Prince Shad." The red haired woman released him and hoisted up a bag of meats. "It's about time for the wyverns to feed, but perhaps we can meet another time?"

Shad gave her a small smile. "Actually, I wouldn't mind giving you a hand if you want. I'm always up to learning something new when I can." The prince grabbed a pair of heavier leather-based gloves from a peg that went half way up his forearms, slipping them over his already gloved hands. "That is, assuming you want the help?"

"That depends, what's with the gloves? Are you hiding a nasty burn, or are those gloves to strangle your victims?"

.What?... This woman is crazy...

Meh. She's not as bad as Reina. Or Peri if the stories are to be believed.

"Nasty burn. I have the gloves full of medicine," Shad informed her.

"Can I see?!" She asked zooming over to him grabbing his hands.

The prince raised an eyebrow. "Pardon my doubt, but you don't seem the kind of person to obsess over injuries. Maybe a different aesthetic, but physical wounds? No... I don't think so. Mind explaining why you're so dead set on seeing my wound then?"

"Sometimes Wyverns bites as lesser dragons can cause vicious burns... " She pointed out, seeing as the bites of Wyverns could be left ot the imagination.

It suddenly made sense to the young prince. "Ah. So, this is less about being interested in the wound itself and seeing if a wyvern caused it then? Well... let me ease that for you quickly. This is my first time meeting a wyvern. If I was bitten, I wouldn't have my hand, much less the glove. I got this from a grease burn." Shad gave her a meek and sorry smile. "Kinda stupid, huh?"

"Oh... darn." Cherche said to Shad. "The Wyverns are very beautiful creatures..." She said sighing, as they were her favorite thing to talk about.

Shad's gloved hand caressed Cherche's wyvern's face, scratching under her jaw. "Oh, I'm not going to argue you there... Well, not in the way one might expect. Everything has its own charm, and wyverns are no different. It all comes down to tastes. And honestly?" He took his hand back, opting to grab some meat from the bag. "I'm with you all the way there." He tossed the meat into the air, Minerva snapping it up with a slight purr. "Dragons are such amazing creatures... I read once that wyverns aren't the only ones, but there aren't many other breeds left thanks to humans. It's honestly kind of sad..." The prince took another piece of meat from the bag, giving another wyvern a few scratches before repeating the same throw. "Yeah, they're big. Hard to control. But they're more loyal than anything if you take the time to train them. I mean, look at these guys."

The wyvern he just finished with huffed as it leaned down, smelling Shad. It backed away from Shad, seeing it smelled something else on him. "Wow... that's a first..." Cherche said to Shad seeing the beast back off.

The prince tilted his head in confusion. "Is it? I've never seen a wyvern, much less been the same room as one, so my conception on what the norm is probably isn't as good as it should be. Anyway..." Shad fed another wyvern as he spoke. "Do you think we just climbed on wyverns and they let us fight on them? No. It took time, patience to train them. What makes other dragons so different?" The prince let out a laugh. "Sorry... rambling again... There anything you want to say now that I've stopped running my mouth, Cherche?"

"Oh, right! How long have you been near any Wyverns in the pat?" She asked Shad, wondering if the fear of the Wyvern has something to do with him.

"Not long. I came in just a few minutes before you did while exploring." The prince tossed another slab of meat to the lesser dragons.

"So... no Wyvern's in Hoshido? No unsightly marks that you have on you? " She asked Shad, seeing Wyvern's don't usually back off.

"Nope. Just winged horses and giant birds. But there isn't anything else outside my burn... well, and a scar on my torso, but that's it."

"G-Giant Birds?" She asked, blinking in confusion. "You rode giant birds to battle?" She continued.

Shad gave her an odd look. "Did they not have kinshi in your home realm? They're basically griffins without the lion torso."

Cheche's eyes widened hearing that. "….. MY LIFE HAS BEEN A LIE!" Cherche cried out running away from the pen.

Shad blinked twice. "Uh... what?"

C support achieved!

Shad left the pens after he finished feeding the dragons, suddenly realizing he had nothing to do again. "Damn it... now what? I could go for a nap, but there's no where I can really go outside of my room..." His eyes fell to the forest and he grinned. "Yeah... that could work." He strolled in, taking in the scents and sounds as he walked through the labyrinth of trees and green.

"Umm Excuse me?" A semi- gentle voice spoke to Shad, stopping him in his tracks.

The moment his eyes glanced over her, five words poured from his mouth. "Are you related to Azura?" Shad wasn't wrong to ask that, what with Lilith's similar blue hair and overall structure, even if Azura was a fair bit taller.

"Hmm? Oh no, there is no connection between us... " She said trying to hide her eyes from the former Ninja.

"Bull." Shad's words strike like a barb.

Lilith said to Shad, as she played with her apron. "That was very rude..."

The prince rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry... it's been an exhausting few days. Head to mouth filter isn't that good right now. But what I said still holds. That hair, that facial structure, and those eyes? I'm sorry, but there is no way you aren't lying through your teeth."

"…... The same thing can said about your origin..." She said under her breath.

Shad looked at her confused. "What are you talking about? Damon knocked me and I got brought back here."

"You're marked..." Lilith explained to the Young Prince.

Shad's eyes turned grim in a half second. "What do you know about this?" He held up his right hand, not daring to remove the glove. "I keep hearing about how bad it is, how it brands me some kind of monster. And you know what? It does. But never, not once has anyone been able to explain it until yesterday. It's some mark from a dead dragon, right? Then why do I have it?!"

"That's the mark of Grima... You're a... very unique 'Man'..." She explained quickly grabbing his hand, removing his glove and viewing his mark. "Magic travels through these veins like a powerful conductor... Harnessing it... able to shift in to a great winged Wyrm..." She said moving her thumbs around the mark.

Shad pulled his hand back. "Thanks, but no thanks. That... thing has been torturing me and my loved ones my whole life. I'm not about to let it out and be forced to kill everyone."

"It's a tool, nothing else... But if you're not careful, you yourself can become a tool..." She warned him.

Shad pulled his glove back on and slammed down his rage. "I am no man's tool. And I'll die before I become one. I help who I want. Never serve them as a mere... object or puppet."

"Do you know who your father is?" She asked in a serious tone.

"No. It clearly isn't Sumeragi or Garon, but in all honesty? I could care less." Shad's eyes burned with a previously untapped rage. "Both have been more of a father to me than whatever bastard sired me, and Sumeragi died before I could even meet him! And I will fight on behalf of my family. Not some man who didn't even care enough to keep me around."

Lilith seemed startled about that answer. "...Oh... I see." She said giving him a nod.

Shad kept his rage down enough that his tone wasn't hostile with his question. "Why did you follow me out here? Was it just to tell me that, or was there some other reason?" His breathing finally started to calm down as his mind cleared of rage.

"I just realized that there was something... off about you and went to investigate... I apologize if I offended..." She bowed her head in respect to Prince Shad's authority.

Shad waved it off. "It's fine. I've never really cared so much about my heritage so much as my past. This thing on my hand? I do not like talking about it. And, not even knowing your name, I doubt you'd be able to tell as much."

"Sometimes knowing your past, helps to know who you really are..." Lilith said as she turned around to look up in to the blue sky.

"Well, I know three things." Shad started to tick them off his fingers as he lied against a tree. "I'm a prince of either one of these two powers or some hidden third one; Garon and Sumeragi did not sire me; and I'm just as much a monster as my father is or was." His mind started to grow foggy as sleep began to take him. "But, whatever the case, I already know my fate. I'll spend my time avoiding killing the people I love and helping them in any way I can."

"What about your brother?" Lilith asked him, knowing if he knew what he was.

"People say he's the Prince of Nohr, even though I've been taught he's the prince of Hoshido. If it comes down to it, I doubt he'll raise his sword to either side. And neither will I."

"….." Lilith smiled as she still had her back turned to the Prince. "Then I wish you two the best of luck..." She said to him, as she slowly walked off. Shad thought that Lilith knew a lot more than her time or had some sort of secret information withheld. But pushing her for the information seemed like the worst idea possibly at the moment. While there was legitimate reason for it (who knows what it is or why she isn't saying) it all boiled down to the fact he simply was too tired to care at the moment.

(Line break)

A few hours later...

Something sniffing at his face and hot air on his cheek forced Shad to stir, letting out a loud yawn as he stretched out. "Damn, that was a good nap..." He mumbled as his brain restarted. It took him a moment to notice the literally kill a man sized rabbit staring him down. While his first instinct was to draw his weapon, the animal didn't immediately maul him to death. "… You're a big one..." That's when he noticed the armor on it. "You're not by any chance someone's pet or something, are you?" The creature headbutted him, forcing the breath from his lungs.

"Do not equate a taguel to a common pet," it growled, an unamused look in its eyes.

Shad took a few deep gulps of air before he dared to respond. "First of all, that hurt like hell... second of all, I'm sorry. Third of all, who and what is a taguel?" The creature lit up for a few seconds before changing into a woman with rabbit features. "You... really remind me of a more serious kitsune. Only you're a rabbit."

"You're... that man spawn's... brother, aren't you?" She asked, seeing Demon called her bunny rabbit... a lot.

Shad sighed and picked himself off the ground. "Yep... sorry if he, and by extension at this point I, offended you. I've just never seen a person turn into a rabbit of all things, but you seem pretty strong as one anyway."

"The Last of my kind, so yeah...I am the strongest in your assessment." She huffed out.

Shad frowned at her and tilted his head. "The last one? Don't tell me..." He let out a growl. "I'm sorry for your loss. And if I could, I'd help you track every bastard down."

"You're a lot more... sensitive that your brother was..." She said with an uneasy tone, seeing Demon set her off, compared to Shad who seemed to make her more at ease.

"I know how it feels to be on the receiving end of ridicule. I know how bad humans can be, and trust me... I am ashamed to be one more often than not. Especially when we look down on another race because they're stronger or look even a little different than us." Shad's eyes were boiling with rage, having to force himself to calm down to continue to talk.

"Well you might want to talk to the man-spawn, when he returns...we had a... 'disagreement'…. And it got physical." She growled a bit.

Shad wanted to be mad at her, but he honestly couldn't blame her. "I'll see what I can do. But I don't know him, so I can't make any promises."

"Do you want to know what happened?" She sighed, seeing that he should at least get the full story.

"As much as I want to say 'yes,' I'm afraid I will literally lose it if I get confirmation on what happened. But, let me take a guess. Humans attacked and killed your people and ruined your home at one point, something happened that finished the job."

"No, completely different subject..." She groaned.

Shad looked confused before striking his head on the tree nearby. "Sorry. I tend to skim over topics when I'm upset."

"Are you a scatter brain?" She asked.

"No, actually. I'm a tactician." Shad sighed and sat cross legged on the ground. "But yeah. I'm all for hearing what happened."

Panne smiled nodding her head with content. "So here's how it went down... this was three weeks ago... "

Flashback...

"So I was minding my own business training and getting my daily routine, when all of a sudden..."

The door to the training room busted open throwing a soldier clear out the window who was just walking into a wall. "Fee, Fi, fo, thumb! I'm a big Idiot!" Demon declared, while Gaius saluted him. "Gaius! I need you to steal more candy from the children! Bring it all in to my personal annoying vault of goodies which I steal all of Panne's well earned carrots for no reason because I'm a stupid Human!" 'Demon' ordered Gaius who had several hundred pieces of candy stuck to him. "Yes sir!" He said tripping over his own cape falling down a flight of stairs.

Shad suppressed a snicker. "Damn... You really don't like people, do you?"

"Just humans, now quiet! I'm still telling the story!"She scolded.

Lucina back flipped twice hitting the pole arm to the floor by Panne's version of Demon who was covered in cuts and bruises. "My lord, a glorious day is it not?!" Lucina asked. "IT IS NOW GO PATROL!" He snapped picking her up and throwing her out the window.

"Of course I paid no mind to his acts of cruelty, and just continued to mind my own buisness..."

This Demon stomped over to Panne, like a big bully ."PANNE! No more carrots for you, because I get all your delicious carrots and heads of lettuce! You get potatoes from now on!" He yelled at her.

"And then I didn't want to take his abuse and decided to shut him up!"

"Your tyranny is done, you moronic tyrant!" She declared punching him.

"Ha, Ha, HA! Foolish Bunny Rabbit! The lack of brain cells in my skull prevents me from feeling pain!" He said smacking her on top of the head, and yanking her ears.

"He yanked my ears so I kicked him where it hurts the most!"

Panne kicked the idiot Demon in the balls. "OW! MY AREA THAT MY BLOOD GOES TO!" The Demon dropped to the floor, while Panne stood victorious.

"I was about to claim my victory, until he tricked me..."

This version of Demon got back up yanking her ears again and putting her over his lap. "Now the powerful bunny rabbit must pay! Because I'm an idiot who doesn't like to play fair! And a pervert! And a womanizer!" Demon declared, followed by several consecutive spanks to Panne's rear end. "Let this all be a lesson! I'm King of the Man-Spawn castle!" He declared to the others who all bowed down to him.

Flashback end...

Shad was cracking up under the tree as she finished her story. "That... I'm sorry, I know that was about an argument between you two not long ago, but I can't help it! You made everything so ridiculous!" He wiped a tear from his eye. "Okay... that's out of my system. So, let me see if I can put this together without the blatant propaganda. Damon comes into the training room while you're there, starts calling you out for your animal traits. You got offended, sparred with him, and he pulled a cheap trick to win the fight. That about sum it up?"

"Uh... What, no! It happened exactly like that!" She snapped and huffed while turning around.

Shad let out a sigh and stood up, patting her head. "Sorry. If that's what you said happened, I'll trust you. At least until I hear something that contradicts it and I'm forced to sift through both to get my own answer."

"And get it from a Man-Spawn?! The absolute nerve!" She said offended, seeing that he'd get 'Man-Spawn bias.'

"Actually... no. Damon's the last person I'd want the story from given his ego. His would probably be more embellished than Takumi's bow skills. 'I don't miss' my ass... but, given what I've heard, hearing it from his end isn't a matter of 'it,' it's a matter of 'when.'" The prince let out a soft sigh. "Look... regardless if Damon somehow makes his story more believable than yours, I'm most likely going to take your word. The bare bones factors are he insulted you, you stood up to him, he beat you with dishonest means. And I apologize for my brother's callous nature on his behalf." Shad took a knee and bowed his head.

"I was humiliated in front of all those Man-Spawn creatures... Hmph..." She said, trying not to dwell on it.

Shad sighed and pulled out a bag from his coat. "Hey, you like carrots, right? Which means you probably like sugar by extension. Want to split these?" He cracked open the bag, revealing a bunch of cookies.

Her eyes widened grabbing the bag and jumping up on the tree above him. "Where did you get these?!" She demanded starting to quickly chow down.

Shad cocked his head in confusion. "I... made them earlier today." Crumbs began to fall down to the ground as she was eating them quickly, it was like watching a branch going through a saw mill if the workers were hyped up on some quick spell. "Damn... and you made it look like Gaius had the sweet tooth," he joked, climbing to her level in seconds. "They any good? First time making a Norhian sweet so I was a little nervous."

"They are sooo good!" She cried out feeling the sensation hit her taste buds.

Shad couldn't help but smile and swiped one from the bag before she could finish them all. "Well then, I guess I'll have to try one myself." He bit into the sugary dough and nodded. "Not bad. Shame we ran out of chocolate though."

"Panne! There you are, phew..." Gaius was out of breath trying to catch up to the woman.

Shad tilted his head, drawing a connection in 'Panne's' story. "I'm guessing you're Gaius then?"

"Indeed, I am, my lord, Gaius at your service...Whiskers, Lucina is looking for you, she said you ditched something about duty or something... I don't know was too busy doing own stuff..." He told Panne.

Shad's eyes seemed to light up slightly at the blue woman's name, amongst other things. "Whiskers? Really man? How the hell are you still alive?" The prince asked Gaius with a chuckle as he hopped down from the tree.

Gaius wanted to say a clever come back... but what he asked wasn't totally unreasonable. Especially with Panne involved. "I... don't know..." He said trying to think of the very many people he has pissed off down the years.

Shad looked up to the tree, brushing green off his otherwise black and blue coat. "You coming or what, Panne?"

"Yeah, yeah! I'm moving!" She huffed out, as she jumped down to meet Gaius. Shad made a mental note to toss something sweet her way if he wanted her to loosen up.

"Hey." Shad placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Ease up a little. Alright? I'm on your side here."

"Yeah, you'll forgive my attitude and skeptism though." She huffed out, seeing she was mellowing out a bit.

"And you'll forgive the lack of sweets in the future otherwise," the prince teased her.

Panne shivered and growled a bit. "You wouldn't dare..." Shad couldn't help but laugh, feeling a slight connection form between him and the rab- taguel girl.

C Rank support achieved!

Shad grabbed Gaius's wrist before the two could go too far away from the man and started to pull him along. "Alright, Sugar Thief, what's your story? You from the same place as Lucina like Panne, Tiki and Tharja?"

"Yep... same place, friends for a while now..." He responded with a laxed tone.

Shad grew a trickster's grin as he asked the next question. "So... covered head to toe in candy three weeks ago, huh?"

"Huh?" Gaius asked, seeing as Shad was bringing up Panne's 'recollection' of what happened three weeks ago.

"Oh, nothing... so... you're an outlaw, huh?" The black-haired prince asked, fiddling with his glove. "Stole from some nobles... a relived a baby or two of their candy?"

"Ha! My lord, I do not relieve candy from the rich and...t...ha ha ha ha! I couldn't say that with a straight face." Gaius broke down in laughter.

Shad cracked a grin and chuckled. "Hehe... you're alright, Gaius. Or at least, you seem like a cool guy."

"I try to please my viewers..." He said as he put his hands behind the back of his head.

"You know... I was a ninja back in Hoshido," Shad regaled. "The training was hell, but in all honesty? It was probably one of the few things I could do there without being judged too heavily." That caught Panne and Gaius's attention. "Fighting is just so... liberating, you know? Same with being stealthy. You have more options, versatility... freedom... no one cares who you are in a fight to boot."

"Well when you put it that way, apprehending candy when no one is looking is a thrill..." Gaius chuckled as he popped in a sucker.

Shad gave him a grin and hooked an arm around the man's shoulder. "Gaius... I think we're going to get along juuuuust fine."

C Rank support achieved!

(Line break)

A little over an hour later...

Shad's ears perked up hearing the door to Lucina's quarters finally open up again. "Thank you again for your time, Panne," the swordswoman said, bidding the taguel farewell after their talk.

The moment the rabbit shifting woman was gone, Shad slipped over and knocked on the door. "Hey... Lucina. You in there?"

The woman cracked open the door, a soft smile on her face. A stark contrast to when she met him a few days ago. "Hello, Shad. It's good to see you. Did you need something?"

"Nothing much," the prince chuckled, giving her a similar smile. "Just figured I could visit my trainer outside the scope of sword lessons every now and again. Mind if I come in? It's not that comfortable talking in the middle of a doorway."

"Sure thing, just let me finished get in to my attire... the armor is wearing thin around my waist, from that last exercise, the sword nicked the leather pretty good." Lucina informed the Prince.

Shad crushed any less than decent ideas and nodded. "Take your time. I'm in no rush." He pivoted and leaned against the wall as she got dressed.

A strap tightening could be heard as he waited. "Have you had similar experiences?" Lucina asked the young prince.

Shad thought for a moment. "Not usually. I've always been a bit wiry. The only times I can think of that happening when I was going through a growth spurt and when I started training."

"They really should upgrade the guard armor to chainmail... If an attack happened those with better grade weapons are going to have an easier time dispatching guards." Lucina grunted as she fixed her cape.

"Well, there's pros and cons to both," the prince replied, letting out a quiet yawn and stretching. "Armor like what you're wearing now is easier to get into and cheaper, even if it's a bit thinner and catches fire easier if not treated properly. Conversely, chainmail blocks more but is more expensive and harder to get into, but also attracts thunder and lightning spells and weather easier. And in Nohr, the latter is more of a problem. Hell, the most fire you ever see is in an opening barrage in a raid, defensive fire from a fort or a mage with a tome that uses fire magic. In all honesty, I prefer leather to chain. Fire doesn't hurt me and it's lighter as opposed to heavier chainmail. Not to mention quieter." He paused for a moment and chuckled. "Sorry. I'm rambling again, aren't I? It's a problem of mine that crops up when I talk tactics and the like or give analysis. Like back at Hoshido when- No! Bad Shad! No more rambling!"

"No, it's fine... come sit, I can have some tea made... if you are in to that?" Lucina asked the young prince.

Shad smirked as he walked in. "Are you kidding? I grew up in Hoshido. Tea was pretty much part and parcel with every meal we had that wasn't alcohol, milk or fruit juices." He almost seemed to glide over to where Lucina was. "Want me to help? I like to think preparation of stuff like this is one of the on- better things I can do."

"Sure thing, I mingled with cooking a bit... though I can't vouch for the flavor...at least it won't kill you or put you on your death bed..." Lucina coughed out.

"Hehe... you sound like one of the onis I met," the prince chuckled as he started to gather some of what they'd be using. Tea leaves, milk, other such things. "You like sugar or honey in your tea? Or perhaps both?"

"Sometimes I like to have a bit of warm milk and honey..." She said warmly, fixing her head piece.

Shad smiled as he started a small flame. "Coming up, milady." He stopped dead on his way to fill the kettle as the last word slipped out of his mouth.

FUCK!

"Milady?" She asked confused, at the slip of his tongue.

"Oh... hehe... sorry about that," Shad chuckled as he filled the pot and started prepping the tea. "It's an old habit of mine... I was kind of impression able as a kid and especially at one point of my life. I tended to pick up speech habits from the servants that served my sisters and mom and they kind of stuck. I've curbed them for the most part, but it crops up every now and again..."

Lucina nodded and smiled a bit, as her head was bowed in respect to his wishes. "If that is what you prefer to call me as, then by all means my Prince..." She replied with grace.

"It's not all the time..." Shad grumbled in mock offense. "I only really did it when I was bringing or doing something for my sisters and mother... Hinoka used to tease me to hell over it. But it was never to anyone else. I dunno... I guess you just have this more... regal aura to you than most other people." His mock insulted face softened as he spoke that last bit.

"From a time yes...you'd be right, my Prince... but the past is the past, and we do the ghosts no favor by bringing up their pain." She said wit a simple sigh, knowing of the horrors and close encounters she had with that menace of the darkness.

The prince frowned as he turned, leaving the pot to boil. "Hey. I know your life has been rough thus far, but it isn't bringing up their pain to be who you were born to be. I mean... look at you!" Shad flung her arms to her flamboyantly, gesturing to the woman. "You practically ooze of nobility! If that's who you were born as, why fight it?"

Yes... why indeed?

"And now I am a simple guard, protector of... wow even I failed in that task too..." She said seeing as Damon was captured on the field.

Shad frowned and took the kettle off, pulling her into a tight embrace. "That wasn't your fault... that was mine. And don't you dare blame yourself for something that was entirely my own fault."

"It may have been you that attacked him... but I failed in my duty to guard him... I wasn't there when he needed me, and now he's waiting in Hoshido as we speak." She scratched the back of her neck.

Shad grabbed a hold of her arms as he pulled away, looking deep into her eyes. "Lucina. It wasn't your fault. Your job was to keep this place safe for when he came back, if he came back. You're captain of this fort's guard. And damn the words anyone throws your way that suggests otherwise. You've been doing a fantastic job. And to be honest... this fort would probably be lost without you. Every guard respects you, you've been keeping this place in better shape than any reports I've seen prior... you're amazing. Don't you ever forget that." He released her, that load off his chest as he turned back to the tea.

"Oaths are something that aren't broken easily, Shad... and I may have had men and women swear fealty to me in the past, but I swore to your brother that his burdens, and enemies are mine." She said to him in a saddened tone. "Which means..." She took a step back drawing her sword. "I still have to defend his honor... Beat me or forfeit... " She ordered her sword pointed at him.

Shad paused, putting a slip of paper on the kettle and heated milk before turning to face her. "Lucina... fine. I'll fight you, on one condition." He drew his dagger from the previous day. A 'Soldier's knife' if what Felicia and Flora called it was correct. A straight blade with black sides, blue runes running down the length of it with a rather large flat, circular guard. "If I win, you have to stop blaming yourself... or, at the very least, switch your oath to me so you stop beating yourself over it so much. Agreed?"

"What about Damon? You are in his castle, what do you propose I do? Abandon him?" She asked the man, skeptical at first of his offer.

Shad relaxed for only a moment, giving her a smile that was warm enough and comforting enough to make it feel like a heat wave passed over her. "I'm not saying to. I'm saying to forgive yourself, or at the very least do what you think would help to alleviate the pain. That's all I want from you if I win, milady." He cursed under his breath for calling her that again.

Lucina took a moment as she thought about it, if this was really the best course of action, or was she letting her passions drive her. "Then I accept..." She said to Shad, taking a step back.

"Okay then... as the Cheve say, en guarde!" The prince got into a low battle stance, holding his blade in a reverse grip. Lucina side stepped to the left, as she aimed her sword for Shad's left flank, swinging in an upward slash. The strike didn't connect however, as the prince backflipped on his free hand before disappearing from the captain's sight.

Lucina's eyes widened as she tumbled to the ground and ducked from any aerial swings Shad tried to get on her. "Impressive," Shad stated with a smile as he jumped back to get some distance. "Almost as much as-"

*THWACK!*

Lucina cut him off in mid-sentence as she hit him with the pommel of the sword, enraged, while leaving Shad in shock, until it hit her. Blood was dripping from her own hands, from gripping the sword roughly. A look of... regret was placed on her face, seeing as she was having a memory of her own past. The prince gave her three seconds to come to her senses before booting her back, forcing her from her trance. "You know... this can wait if you need it to," he told her, his blade ready to sing again.

She dropped her blade to the ground, letting it clatter three times as the blade was rocking. "I don't know what came over me... I've seen that look in your eye before... like a monster... like Grima."

Shad felt something growl inside him. "… It's okay, Lucina," the prince smiled, glad more than ever that his glove was on. "Maybe this Grima guy just liked a good fight, huh?" He let out a nervous laugh as his hand burned with magic power, forced into containment by the enchanted article.

Lucina flinched from that comment. "A good fight? …...You wouldn't understand it..." She curbed her tongue, clearly upset that the monster that was in the past is long dead, but the scars it left behind were all but apparent to Shad now.

"… Enough beating around the bush then." Shad kept his weapon handy as he knelt to Lucina's level and forced her to look into his eyes. "Lucina. Grima is dead. All of you confirmed it. And even if he is alive... I'd never let him hurt you."

If you only knew...

I do, you damned beast. I'm not some imbecile. And that talk with Lilith all but confirmed it. And now, more than ever, I refuse to give in to your wishes.

The prince stood and offered his free hand to the blue haired woman. "Come on. Why don't we wrap this up and have that tea? Or do your oaths suddenly mean nothing?" He hated goading her, but he felt he needed to. To help her move on.

Oh... and maybe... maybe you'd like a sudden realization of who and what she's worried about...perhaps you'd like to see what truly scares her...heh...ha...HAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!

I'm no fool... she's seen my mark. OUR mark. And by the gods... if you hurt her... I'll run us through with that sword of hers myself. You know... the one that left a single damn scratch on us and burned like a bastard for the whole rest of the day? I can't imagine us taking anything worse than that? Can you?

"Lu-Lucina... can we just get back to our duel and have some tea?" Shad asked, the pressure in his hand building under the myriad of foreign influences and feelings. He pushed his hand a little closer, almost to a point where it would be in her face if she were to look up.

I seriously don't know how much longer I can keep holding back without some kind of finality. Please... get up or surrender!

"Perhaps... we could simply drink tea... and forget this happened? It was my lack of judgment that I decided to challenge you, when you yourself didn't know who you were fighting." Lucina said, as she went to her drawer taking out a bandage wrap.

The prince let out a small growl and grabbed the wraps. "Here... hang on..." He took out a small vial and put a modest amount of the contents on her fingers. "This may sting a little." Shad gently pressed the salve to her wounds, focused on his work.

The only reaction she had was a simple twitch of a few fingers, flexing them as the salve began its work on the open wound. "Thank you very much..." She sighed out in relief.

"Hold on..." He started wrapping up the injury. "Is this too tight, mi- Princess?" Shad faltered for only a second after realizing how that sounded.

THAT'S EVEN FUCKING WORSE THAN A FLAT 'MILADY!' GODS DAMN ME TO THE ABYSS! AND 'PRINCESS?!' SHAD, YOU IDIOT!

"...Shad, I can't be called princess... or grace, or even a highness... my Kingdom is gone, I would be queen of ruins... " She corrected.

To hell with it.

"Then any man would be lucky to rule with you... help you rebuild your home..." Shad tugged on the wrap before pulling out adhesive to seal it. "I meant what I said. You're a princess to me. One who, in other circumstances, I would gladly serve retainer to regardless." He stuck the bandage together and brushed off his hands. "There. That oughta do it."

Lucina couldn't stop the smile forming on her face, to eventually turn in to a soft comforting laugh. "….I'll take it..." She sighed. "But only in private...and... thank you." She said to Shad hugging him for his efforts, and care.

The prince felt his heart warm and swell as he returned the hug. "You're welcome... my princess. Now... how about I serve us that tea?" He asked as he pulled away.

"I'd love that, my prince..." She smiled, with a suggestive, yet evasive tone. Shad swallowed hard as he turned and pulled the papers off the kettle and milk.

Don't... don't kid yourself, Shad. With what you are... you deserve no one. Especially her... not after what you're done to her.

"Uh... here... I put some homemade talismans on the things to keep them warm..." He told her, setting everything down and pouring Lucina a cup first, followed by the milk and honey. "I warmed up the honey too... makes it dissolve faster. I hope you like it."

"Talisman? Aren't these hard to make?" Lucina asked seeing the skillful design on the paper.

"Heh... Not in Hoshido, and especially not for me." Shad held up a few more. "Being a ninja improved my handwriting... have to keep a steady hand and all that. That coupled with my naturally high magic affinity and... well... you get these. You want a few? They aren't much good for battle, but I usually put them on my bed or clothes before I go to sleep. Keeps them warm and they're reusable too... well, as long as you keep recharging them."

"Hoshido... did you know that was our first place to go originally?" Lucina asked the Prince.

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? What made you come here then?" He added a generous amount of sugar and a bit of milk to his tea before stirring it.

"We decided it was easier to stay together rather than separating, and seeking asylum here was the best option as we hoped we could appeal to Nohrian intervention... we had an embassy there, but then a war broke out between the two countries... then the rest is history." Lucina sighed, seeing that conflict here was all too real.

Shad frowned as he put the spoon down. "Well... You're always welcome under my roof, Lucina. You and all of your friends, be it here in Nohr or in Hoshido. You know what? How about a toast?" He raised his cup. "To our friendship. May it withstand all this world will throw at us."

She nodded, raising her glass to that pledge. "To our future..." She smiled clanking her glass.

The prince smiled, even if there was a small pain in his heart. "I'll drink to that. Speaking of which..." He cupped the vesel of his drink and sipped from it, feeling it warm up his body and relaxing him immediately. "Ahhh... Sorry if it isn't as good as you're used to, but Nohrian tea leaves are a bit different than the ones back home. The blend may have come a little... off."

"...Oh Gods... this is... So … good!" Lucina downed the entire glass.

Shad felt his mouth twitch up in a smile. "Bah, it isn't that good... not to me at least. The blend was a little off and the tea seems a little... I don't know... bland compared to back home. Trust me, if I had some Hoshidan tea leaves, it would be a whole other story."

"Please, our trade in the supplies of tea ingredients back in my home land was nothing as good as this..." She said holding out her glass for more.

The Nohrian prince smiled warmly as he poured her another glass. "Well, I don't know about that... this is my first time with Nohrian tea, after all. I haven't even started trying to perfect it yet. Give me about... a week or two? and I'll blow this brew out of the water. I'm something of a perfectionist in that regard. I need to know how to do things just right so I can be useful to-" His eyes widened and his mouth clamped shut.

Shad... stop running your damn mouth... and get a better hold of your tongue.

"Ne-never mind..." He chuckled, trying to play it off as he topped off his glass.

Lucina tilted her head to the side. "What is it?" She asked the man, giving him a soft smile.

Shad, for the first time in years, felt his defenses crumble before her. And it bothered him. "It's nothing... nothing you need to worry about at least."

She shrugged her shoulders. "Say... You're good at cooking, brewing, and fighting... do you know how to fix back problems?" She asked, in a blunt way, knowing she met massage...

Shad tilted his head in mock confusion. "Back problems? You of all people have problems with your back? I mean... I picked it up in my teenage years but... I'm not allowed to give them anymore. At least, according to Hinoka and Sakura."

"I work out a lot, wearing armor, and the sword creates points on my back, to where bending over sometimes hurts..." She defended herself.

The prince smirked at her, deciding to toy with her a bit. "Oh? So, you work out a lot, and yet earlier you said you weren't getting much? Which is it, Princess? Or is it you just want to see how these hands feel on you?" He held up his free hand, covered by his silky black glove, and flexed his fingers.

Lucina's face began to redden, from both being flustered and angry. "I-I'm not going to dignify that with a response..." She huffed out as she turned around, letting her back face him.

Shad let out a small laugh and placed his tea down. "Okay, I'm sorry... I'll do it if you really want, all joking aside. But you don't need to be so evasive about it. I would have done it regardless of the reason. I want to be useful to the people I care about."

She sighed as she unclipped her cape and undid her leather armor. "Thank you..." She smiled laying down on her mattress, waiting for the Prince to make his move.

Shad felt his heart thud against his ribs as he approached. There was only one problem with what she was doing... "Apologies in advance, but..." He unclipped her bra, laying the straps at her sides before pushing her shirt up and over her head. "I can't work properly with these in the way..."

Lucina's face went red... like a red tomato. "I... okay." She whimpered as her shirt was now off.

Shad cracked his knuckles and cleared his head, forcing every ill desire from his head as his gloves came off.

Please... if no other time, then please... just this once... leave me be while I do this...

Heh...no promises...

The prince sighed and rolled his neck. "You ready, Princess? I'll start on your word."

Her back was a pale white, and smooth, it nearly glistened in the light, traveling down he could see her shapely rear and small crack peeking out, causing him to gulp again. "You...you may proceed..." She stuttered.

Shad let out a stuttered sigh and let his fingers glide over her skin, feeling heat on his cheeks as he felt the subtle abnormalities before removing his hand. "Okay... I think I have a good idea on what to do... Just a warning, this may... sting a little."

"I am... Achy..." She said as her muscles felt constricted, causing Shad's face to nearly go pale white.

"I figured..." He coughed, using a minor amount of magic to heat his hands and arms up before tossing off his coat and rolling up his sleeves. "Is it just your back though? If I'm going to do this, I may as well get it all in one go."

"Legs, back, hips, neck, arms... Thighs..." She muttered out.

Of fucking course...

"Okay... I'll be leaving your pants on for modesty's sake, but I'll make due." Shad nodded to himself.

"Uh but I heard that...skin contact is the best part of friction and relief..."

"How do you know that exactly?" Shad asked nervously, not wanting to get into something that could end bad for her.

"I've had experts before, back in my home land..." She blushed.

This woman... is testing me...

"F-fine... but only when I get to it... I respect you too much to leave you like that more than necessary." The prince let out a shaky breath before placing a hand on her back. "Okay... here I go..." He pushed in with his palm first, immediately feeling her muscles push back against him until...

*Pop*

"AAAHHH!" She yelped out feeling the bone. "That...was good..." She sighed relaxing.

"Please... for my own sanity... be quiet..." Shad begged as he started the more surface abnormalities, occasionally making her twitch or her back pop as a bone moved. His fingers worked her back masterfully, loosening and undoing her knotted muscles.

"Mmmmm! Ahpah..." Lucina made another gasp of pleasure, as sweat shot from her forehead feeling that pop again. Shad ignored it and removed his hands.

"Okay... you may feel some pressure here..." He slowly and dutifully pressed his sharp elbow into one of the worse knots, the mass of muscle giving way almost immediately, while also giving a slight pull throughout her back.

"KYAAAH!" She cried out with her tongue hanging out from the flood of relief in her back traveling up her spine.

Shad's eyes flickered between red and normal for a half second. "Yeah... that was one of the worse ones on the surface... going to need to go a bit deeper now..." He used his strong but nimble fingers to press into her surprisingly soft flesh. "Hey... about that exercise thing... were you being serious earlier or just giving an excuse to get into your armor?"

"I do squats..." Lucina said under breath. "And...running..." She gasped again.

"Nothing for your sword training or core?" Shad asked, feeling her body give in to his touch and relax again.

"That's when I'm out of the...the... room...for training..." She breathed out in a huff.

"Heh... and you said you haven't been lately... so, which is it?" Shad asked with a coy smile on his face.

"I don't know... Gods... Just keep going... you ten fingered God..." She begged as she was starting to tense up.

Shad sighed and pulled out a talisman, placing it on a candle she had burning. The aroma changed instantly, making her calm down. "Sorry... you were starting to tense up... I need you relaxed for this, Lucina. Okay?"

"Okay..." She nodded.

"Alright then..." The prince let his fingers glide over her back again. "Okay... your back is good. I'm going to move to your arms now, okay?" He gripped her arms with an uneasy feeling in his heart. He was going to being losing control if he didn't end this soon. His vision changed as he could see the nerves and bone structure, including muscle movement, before going back to normal.

Damn it! I think I might have less time than I thought.

"I uh... might need to continue this another time, Lucina..." Shad muttered, starting to reach for his gloves.

"What...but I'm still hurting... " She pouted about to turn over. Shad's hands held her in place, cursing what was happening.

"Princess, I'm sorry... I really am. But I just... It's complicated, okay?"

"I won't make any noises! I promise! It's been really stressful for me today..." She begged the Prince, hoping he'd stay and finish up.

Shad damned his bleeding heart and sighed. "Fine... but we're going to keep talking about what you said earlier in exchange. If it's something that's bothering you that much that you're having a harder time with your clothes, then I want to nail down what's happening and help you through it. Got it?" He placed his hand in hers. "Shake my hand if you understand." She shook his hand with intensity. "Okay then..." His hands went to work on her arms, feeling her lean yet soft appendages greet his fingers with ease. "Now, let's start with something a bit easy... when exactly did this start happening?"

"In all my years... here and back home... I always had a feeling of… perhaps a bit of lackluster... I was without conviction for a time... then with it, I was happy...then I wasn't...it was the constant switching is when I became so enclosed and reserved..." She began to say to the Prince.

He grabbed her other arm, having finished with the first while she was speaking. "I can relate to that... go on."

"My friends started to get more and more worried...before our fall, Robin especially... to a point. I mean if he wasn't planning for our safety he was fighting Grima at every step, but we always came up short handed... which is why I went to my father and asked to get foreign intervention, for the sake of our kingdom... but both my father and Robin were prideful... they wouldn't take it..." She continued feeling the strain in her arms.

Shad shook his head. "Pardon the coarse language, but that was downright moronic of them."

"You don't understand... it was a war we thought we could win conventionally...we didn't know how bad it really was, until it was too late... we paid the ultimate price." Lucina explained the situation with Shad.

"… I actually do, to a degree." He pressed into her forearm. "Granted, I never had to go through that before, but I can at least put myself in that scenario. If you're fighting something that powerful without understanding of what it is, you get help. Damn your pride, damn your status... if it means protecting what you love, by all means, stick you your beliefs, but pride is something you can't let control you in that situation."

"My Father was the King...his word is... was law, after that last struggle and the destruction of our Kingdom, there was no rebuilding, no supplies, no real army... we just became nomadic and fled the country side... one by one, loyal soldiers began to lose heart and our ranks dwindled from a few thousand to a few hundred..."

"And by the time you got to Grima, there wasn't enough to make up the difference... even with whatever you had to take him down. Is that right?"

"Robin's sacrifice, was... it shouldn't have happened..." Lucina winced, seeing that they shouldn't have lost that much.

Shad could feel her emotional pain as he pulled away from her arm. "Okay... before we continue our talk, I just have two things to say. First of all, I need to well... disrobe you completely now before I can move to your lower body."

"You have my permission..." She said to Shad.

Shad gulped and all but yanked her pants and undergarments off, trying not to stare as he got to work on her lower legs. He continued talking to keep the thoughts at bay. Lucina's lower body...her bottom mostly perked up a few centimeters as he was going up her legs. "Second... um... not that I mind the history lesson, but when I said 'what you said earlier' was more referring to why your clothes weren't fitting.

"The clothes they gave me were...far too big, I had to commission in leather straps, and the straps are weak to sword blows... it came undone and the leather started to loosen up...and a good soldier knows that loose armor, is a losing fight." She explained.

"Ooookay... now the truth, blushing beauty. The way you were saying it earlier made it sound like your armor was getting tighter, not looser. A busted strap wouldn't make it tighter at all."

"…. Please don't make me say it..." She begged the young Prince, to his confusion.

Shad stamped it down as his fingers moved from her lower legs to her thighs. "Sorry, Lucina, but I can't help if you won't tell me when that started and what's lead up to today."

"…..It's well...Okay! Okay! It's Camilla! She's the one that fits the females...and I heard...very truthful rumors that, she is very... very...thorough..." She said it in a way which threw Shad completely off guard.

"Um... pardon? What does that have to do with your armor not fitting?"

"She fits the armor... and I didn't want to be fitted by her... I just guessed my size... and came a size too short..." She complained. "Selena who serves under her as a retainer...recalled every harrowing step... how she was molested in all the right places..." The two shivered just thinking of it.

Shad shook his head of the thought. "Okay... but one thing in your story doesn't add up. When I was at your door, you said, and I quote, 'the armor is wearing thin around my waist, from that last exercise, the sword nicked the leather pretty good.'"

"The straps I got... I just really don't want her to catch me, in such loose armor..." She cried a bit, knowing not her most notorious touch of flesh.

The story made much more sense to Shad when so much of it instantly clicked in his head, but he decided to poke some fun at Lucina in spite of himself. "Oooooooh... and here I thought by 'wearing thin' you were referring to putting on a few pounds by accident." He had a coy and mischievous look on his face as he spoke, pressing into her thigh again. Lucina opened her mouth, but a slight moan, barely audible to most people, could be heard, as her ass started to raise a little more. Shad's eye twitched as he gently made her hips lower. "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that. What were you were saying?"

"I didn't put on a few pounds..." She said in a weak tone, his thumbs brushing up against each butt cheek, gripping her thighs and adding needed pressure to the joints.

"Well, forgive me for thinking otherwise, but with you saying something about exercise and your armor not fitting right, my mind jumped to that immediately," Shad smirked as he started to finish up her legs. "Would've helped you slim down if you-"

Lucina gripped his hands, moving it to her thighs, moving his fingers underneath to her front. "Right there..." She said to the Prince. His instincts flared and he could feel his magic begin to change him.

NO!

Shad yanked his hands back, barely keeping his newly formed claws from touching her alabaster skin. "That's... somewhere only your future lover should massage, Princess... sorry, but I can't in good conscious do that..."

"Future... lover? Shad..." She sighed, in a heavy huff, hearing that from him as she remained still for a few moments.

He took a few deep gulps of air, his features receding and disappearing as he calmed himself. "Lucina... you were guiding my hands to the other side of your body... I'm not trying to accuse you of anything, but I couldn't bear the thought of my hands defiling you, with or without your permission. Even if it wasn't what you intended."

"… You know you stripped me of everything... so why not, I was allowing you access to something this...in hopes for you to help me be hap-"

"Stop..." Shad let out a low growl, forcing his instincts down again. "I don't... you don't... Lucina..." It killed Shad to reject her advances, but he couldn't take advantage of her like that. "You're hurt... I get that... you want to be happy... I also get that. But trust me, if you knew who I really was... you'd want me dead on the spot."

"Don't say his name... please don't... I'm trying to forget Shad... I really am, I want to forget the past..." She started to shiver with rage.

Shad sighed as he put his gloves and coat back on. "… I'm not naming names... but trust me... please... as your friend... forget about the idea of us..." Hot tears burned at his eyes as he turned from her. "I don't deserve a woman like you..." She grabbed her pillow and buried her head in it, silently crying in to it, as her body tensed up and shivered with anxiety and fear of loss and pain returning to her in an adrenaline like rush.

Hey... I'm going to ask for your help once. Got it? Is there any spells you know to make her fall asleep for a little bit? Not kill her, not a coma that lasts for months, just... a nap?

Taunting the heart, and tricking it...is not a good idea fool, it always brings regret and suffering...

I already regret everything. My birth, who I am... what we've done...

If you don't fix this...something... or rather, someone else will... hehehehehehehehehehehehehe...

Shad sighed and ran a hand through her sapphire blue hair. "… Lucina... I'm not him. Okay? Or at least... I hope I'm not... but I have hurt far too many people that have tried to get close to me... I don't want you to be one of them. When I say I don't deserve you, I don't mean... I..."

Bravo...Bravo... I love your theatrics... tell me when is it going to make her accept your apology, and not play with the excuses...of your, not my taste... or no it's me not you... How deliciously savage of you...

SHUT UP!

Shad, in a move of utter stupidity and desperation, held her close. "I want to... I want to be with you... so, so badly... but you're one of the purest things in this world to me... and I could never burden you with my curse..." However, Shad found out she was fast asleep.

Oh I meant yes, Yes I knew a spell! HA! HA HA HA! Good luck of fixing that you silly child!

Shad let out a low growl and picked up Lucina's sword.

Shut... the fuck... up...

He positioned the blade to stab.

Do it...run that blade through... I'll just find my next victim...maybe the Princess...former Princess Lucina... would you like that? Hehehehe...

Heh... you idiot... kill myself? Don't make me laugh.

His gloved hand was placed on the table, her blade's tip at the mark.

I'm just going to make you pay a little.

Hmhmhmhmhm...take a look boy...

Shad's hand gripped his neck turning him over to the dresser mirror revealing a six eyed, twisted form of him.

You are an interesting tool... but a tool never the less... if our agreement is too much for you...then I will scout out for anotherr worthy vessle...but if you rather than waste your potential...then do it...make me pay a little... I'll just make you pay a lot in your next... shiny toy...

Agreement... Leave for a new vessel...

Shad let out a mad cackle, his mind foregone by madness.

You think you have ANY control over me?! That you can THREATEN me, or the people I care about?! No... like it or not, we're stuck together... and in the end, it's my body...

For now...

So... that being said...

Falchion flipped in his hand and found its tip at Shad's mark again.

Let's BOTH pay for being a blight on this world.

The blade impaled his hand, sending a billow of steam and a blood curdling scream to erupt from the prince, the Fell Dragon screaming in agony in his mind. The noise awoke the sleeping Lucina with a start, immediately noticing her sword a quarter way through Shad's hand, his abnormal features dissolving.

"SHAD!" She snapped tackling him to the ground, her body smashed up against his, before gripping and removing the blade before throwing it to the side. She glared at him as she reeled back her hand and... *WHAP!* A red hand print struck across his left cheek. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" She demanded.

The holy magic of the blade felt far worse with it affecting a stab wound rather than a scratch. "I... hurt you..." he panted, the marks around his eyes fading. "Needed... to pay... to punish..."

"I DON'T GIVE A DAMN!" She snapped at him shaking him roughly.

He managed to get over the shock of the wound enough to talk more coherently. "I... I do... I told you, Princess... I'm a blight on people who care about me... I need to be punished when I hurt them... just like with Big Sis..." Shad let out a pitiful laugh. "You think... I had time to eat with all the stuff I learnt between training ot be a gods damned ninja? To sleep? No... I tortured myself... because it's what I deserved..."

She grabbed his face and smashed her lips against his. "Shut up! You're an idiot!" She snapped at him. He felt his mind grow foggy. It was doubtful he'd remember that little moment. "You're a Big! Stupid! Coward!" She snapped at him shaking him roughly.

"Maybe... but..." The prince gave her a small, sad smile as he looked at her. "That only proves... I don't deserve a woman... like you... like anyone..." He passed out, the pain in his system too much to bear on his mind.

"Gods Damn it..." She muttered hitting him in the shoulder.

[Rank B Support- Achieved]

(Line break)

Shad awoke a few hours later with a throbbing pain in his skull and hand. He panicked for a half second, seeing it was bare, the Fell Brand staring at him fully intact. His panic was overwritten by another wave of pain in his skull. "Gah! Gods... damn it... did someone slip me alcohol or something?" He muttered, trying to figure out where he was. "Okay, okay... think... I was massaging Lucina... teasing her for her poor word choice... and then I just can't recall..." He flexed his marked hand. Outside of the pain shooting through him, there didn't seem to be anything wrong. "But what the hell happened after?" The scent of exotic candles and potions finally registered and made his head swim. "Why does this smell... familiar?"

"You're back in my room..." Tharja said to the man. "Just like fate as deemed it... as you did abruptly run off from our last... 'conversation'. " Tharja said to the man, as the scent brought it all back of their last conversation.

Shad's initial shock was replaced by regret and he decided to give her the half-truth. "I... I'm sorry... I had a hallucination and I panicked... please forgive... wait..." Something clicked in his now clearer head. "'Just like fate deemed it?' I mean, I know I didn't react the best, but that's a bit-"

Tharja gave the prince a very... Creepy smile. "Hallucination or startling realization?" She asked Shad leaning closer.

Shad was suddenly weary and decided to shift gears. "Uh... jog my memory a bit. I was just with Lucina a minute ago and now I'm suddenly in your room? What exactly happened?"

"You tried to cut yourself...the Fell Brand on your hand." She informed the Prince, as Tharja pulled out another book.

It was vague, but it seemed to make sense. "Yeah... that sounds right... but I can't remember what happened after... or much before it..." He struggled to get up, the left over holy magic in his body sending a wave of pain through him. Shad gasped as he felt his heart quivered.

"You lost consciousness after you stabbed your mark... from shock or blood loss..." She shrugged drawing a sketch of him.

"It was probably... both..." He groaned as his body relaxed again. "Shock would explain why I can't remember much around the event... but there's a far more serious question now..." The prince looked to the dark mage with an almost panicking look. "Where did my glove go? I need to get it back as soon as possible..." He gasped, feeling holy magic surge again. It was far less than last time, but it still was enough to make his body convulse.

"You are a very... interesting man Shad..." Tharja said drawing the mark on his hand, hoping to get every detail on the sheet.

"Gnh... how so?" He asked, nursing his throbbing hand. "Outside of being a reincarnated Grima with a pension for self-harm and torture, I mean?"

"That's exactly the point...but with a twist. Grima's form is in you... meaning you have dominion over his powers..." Tharja began to explain to the young prince.

Shad swallowed the next gasp of pain. "What makes that so special?"

"Shifting in to the beast of legend itself... The transition wasn't perfect, something blocked his full access to you when you were born..." She said to him examining his hand.

The prince shook his head, not having it in him to pull away. "No... he's been whittling away at my psyche my whole life. Infancy included."

"Yes he may be doing that but he has lost the ability to transfer his soul... he's missing key elements and equipment to do it again... so you're both cursed and blessed to be having that kind of magic in you... you may also experience shifting to be a thrilling form..." Tharja explained to the exhausted warrior.

Shad scoffed and growled, giving the Brand a venomous look. "No... there is no blessing in this thing on my hand..."

Tharja chuckled, hanging her head down low. "Then make it one, as I foresee you will..." Tharja retorted.

"Make this a blessing... Ha!" Shad used his unblemished hand to slap his knee. "The only way that's happening is if I subdue this bastard, and that isn't happening!"

"Shad... Grima's reincarnation isn't your enemy... " She said closing her eyes and closing the distance.

The prince saw what was happening and leaned back slightly. "… Tharja?"

"… Yes, Shad?" She asked as her face was nearly up to his.

"… What is it you're doing?" He asked, slightly unnerved at her proximity.

"Seeing your future... your enemy... And it's not Grima..." She smiled.

"As well and good as that is, even if it isn't true... why are you this close to me?"

"Because your true enemy is..." Her left eye opened and was glowing yellow. "You..." She closed her eye and then opened them both up.

Shad was now very confused. "Uh... pretty sure eyes don't do that normally... even with magic... are you sure you're feeling okay?" He pressed the back of his left, regular hand to her forehead.

"Perfectly well..." She nodded, as she moved her hands around his face. "You're stressed... you need to calm down, take a big look in the mirror and say to yourself... I'm in command..." She smiled and nodded at him.

Shad thought for a moment and sighed. "Noted... now... Tharja? Do you mind letting me go?"

"I want just one good look at your face before you get this pretty thing cut up in battle..." She smiled moving her thumbs around his jawline.

"Um... Tharja... kinda freaking me out now..." Shad stated as he backed up a bit, noting the pain in his hand and body was all but gone now. But he couldn't deny, she was definitely beautiful.

"Shhh...Shhhh...don't ruin the moment, darling..." She said as she crawled on the table. "I need to tell you something..." She said to him.

DARLING?!

Shad swallowed, getting a bad feeling from her. "Uh... okay... I'm listening..." He readied his escape, slipping a blinding capsule into his hand from his sleeve.

"Why don't we... figure out how to work your magic together... " She said to him climbing on to his lap.

The prince was less suspicious, but still didn't let his guard down. "Okay... I'd be fine with that... but-"

"I want to see what your magic is truly capable of... to see if I am correct about you... and if my heart truly screams true..." She said with dazed looking eyes, moving her face up to his chin.

Gods above, she's crazy... why am I okay with that? But still...

"Yeah, no." Shad threw the capsuled down, sending a blinding flash of light through the room, dazing Tharja enough for the prince to quickly slip from her grasp and stand by the door. "Tharja... you seem like a nice woman, but I don't just... fall like that."

"Hehehehhe...not so fast..." She giggled, as the door behind him was... gone.

Shad sighed. "Look... I only intend on running if I have to. And so far, I don't. But I do want to talk right now, not... well..." He blushed. "Whatever you were thinking..."

"Oh is the poor Prince of uncertainty ready to make that commitment to himself before he makes any sorts of advances on me?" She asked laying on the table. "Besides I doubt that you could contain yourself for long..." She sighed with desire in her voice.

The prince gave her a dirty look before coming up with an idea. "Look. If you're offering lessons in magic, I'll take them. Gladly. And who knows? Maybe something could come up between us along the way?"

"Good let's get started with the blood magic... take off your clothes..." She ordered moving towards a paint brush. She heard a snap and clothes rustling behind her. When she turned back to Shad, he was right behind her, entirely shirtless and working on his pants. She could see every muscle and scar on his body.

"Okay... as you wish..." He tilted her chin up, a cocky grin on his face.

"Good...now let me get my ink..." She smiled with glee, going over to her shelf. "Lay on your stomach..." She blushed, dabbing the brush in the ink.

The prince seemed to glide over to her and turned her to face him. "Oh?" Shad cupped her chin.

"Stomach...on the table...please... I have to get a magic point in your body..." She said with a feverish blush.

"But wouldn't it be more worth it..." He brought his face closer to hers. "To learn from experience?"

Tharja took a small step back, turning her back to him. "mmmhhmm...how about you do what I say or I draw a pretty pony on your back..." She warned him, about to collapse from the blushing.

"Or... why don't I cover you in a more... whiter color?" Shad suggested, laying on the charm as his hands found her shoulders and spun her around. "That is what you want... right?" He leaned in to kiss her, his green and sliver eyes locked into her purple eyes.

Tharja tilted his head down to her breasts. "ha ha ha! Funny!" She breathed out a stuttered exhale of air.

You'll say nothing of what I'm about to do, you scaly fucker... or I'm driving that sword through us again.

Shad continued on his path, kissing the top of her breast. "Mmm... even through the cloth, I can tell..." He stared point blank into her eyes. "You're going to be delicious."

"This isn't my position... when I am in my attire..." She said to Shad, poofing away in a purple smoke, before appearing behind him, wrapping her hands around his chest.

"Well..." The prince used his skills as a former ninja to whirl around despite her grip, tilting her head up with his marked hand while his other went to the clasp of her clothes. "Maybe we should fix that."

*RRRIIIIPPPP*

Her top layer came undone by the slight tear, as she nearly fainted. "Do it you morose monster of a man... claim me... as I lie in shame of my own fear..." She said faintly in his arms.

Shad's eyes glanced to the wall and went for the kill. He leaned in close, his lips a hair's breadth from hers and whispered... "No..." He gently released her, tossing his coat over her bare breasts to keep himself from losing control. "Sorry, Tharja, but I meant what I said." He tilted her chin up. "I don't jump into relationships."

"Who's talking about relationships, Darling? Besides you're only about to hit support B..." She said to Shad.

"Cute... you came up with little names for the relationship stages..." He brought himself close to her ear and whispered. "Almost as cute as you."

"Why don't you sink your insurance and save with me... I'll be your one true love... As long as I get to follow you wherever you go..." She said to the man.

The prince shook his head and started getting dressed. "Sorry... can't. At least..." He stared at the Fell Brand, all six eyes staring back at him. "Not until I get this on lock. And even then... why do you think I deserve a beauty like you?" He gave her a sad yet cocky grin and opened the door. "I'll see you sometime soon for tome lessons, Tharja. By the way, you really need to work on your concentration under pressure..." He snapped his fingers, breaking his illusion and revealing she was fully clothed, as well as him.

"Clever boy..." The dark mage said to the man as he left the room, a loving smile on her face.

[Rank B support achieved!]

"Now then..." Shad sighed as he looked out the window. It was approaching dusk. "Not much time left... have to get everything ready for tomorrow..." He rushed to the smithy, plans rushing through his head as he descended. "I just pray to the gods this works..."

(Line Break)

The next day...

Shad drummed his fingers of the banquet hall table of the Northern Fortress. "Come on, Father... you promised you'd have them here by now..." The prince muttered, much to the confusion of his Outrealm friends.

"Hey... is it me, or does Shad seem a bit more... stressed than usual?" Gaius asked the group.

Panne pondered for a moment before nodding her head. "Yes. It's subtle, but his heart is beating a little faster than normal right now."

Cherche gave him a worried look. "Do you think he's doing okay over there? Minerva said she heard him talking to himself all last night and today..."

"Everyone, be silent," Lucina barked at them, her leader persona on full blast. "Shad doesn't need our whispers to add to his concerns."

"Lucina..." Tiki tried to say something to her friend, but the doors opened, Garon and the rest of the Nohrian nobility filing into the room.

The old king stopped at Shad's chair and looked down at the tired prince. "I must admit, my son... you have moxie to request your siblings and I here on the day before we mobilize to Hoshido and rescue your brother... this had better be worth it."

"It will be, Father... I promise," Shad grunted tiredly before walking up to his siblings, next to long side table that wasn't there before. "Xander... Leo... Camilla... Elise..." He got to a knee and bowed his head. "I'm sorry. From the bottom of my heart, from the depths of my soul... I apologize for everything. The grief I've caused you over the years, the horrid way we met after so long, and most of all... for getting out brother captured." A slight look of relief formed on their faces... mostly from Leo and Elise, Xander was a little less angry, while Camilla was still so torn up about Demon being wounded in such away, and she didn't get to him in time to save him. "In light of my transgressions..." With a flourish of his hand the table cloth beside him was gone, leaving four boxes in its place. "I spent the week making these for you. I know it isn't much, but... I wanted to show I care enough about being family that I'd go any distance for you all."

He kicked open the first box, pulling out a staff. "Elise... my darling little sister... this is for you." He handed the staff to her. "I enchanted it myself. It will heal most grievous wound, but better yet? It's unbreakable. I've had both Felicia and Flora test it for almost an hour. It didn't even crack."

"Thank you... Shad." Elise walked up to her brother, reaching for the staff. She felt it's power course through her, making her brighten up almost instantly.

The next box was kicked open, and Shad took out a sheathed blade. "Leo... my cunning dark knight of a brother... this is yours." The former ninja drew the blade, an icy chill filling the air. "I forged this with the help of the twins. It's as cold as the harshest winters I've ever faced, and sharp as a razor."

"This is an... interesting blade, I thank you for the gift." Leo nodded as he, in his own way, understood that in the face of war, you must do what you have to do... though if he killed Damon... that would've been something else entirely.

"Xander... Crown prince, and my wise older brother..." The lost prince kicked the third box open, a spear flying out and snatched out of the air by Shad's swift hands. "This is yours. A spear that rivals Gae Bolg itself."

"Thank you for the gift, I forgive you but... that doesn't make me any less upset about it..." Xander explained to Shad, seeing as he practically helped raise Damon.

The younger prince nodded. "I understand entirely... I'm no less upset now than I was now than when I learned about what I did exactly..." Shad spoke in a grave, hurt tone, but it was clearly not because of his older brother's words. "And last, but certainly not least, my beautiful rose of an older sister... the one I hurt most, both with my actions and my words when we met..." Shad carefully opened the box, procuring an axe from it. "This... this is quite possibly near the apex of the weapons I've crafted..." He handed the axe to Camilla hilt first and, in a shocking turn of events, got on his knees and stuck his neck to her. "This weapon, and any judgement you pass on me, is justly due... I can never be sorrier for what I've done to you."

She grabbed the blade, though the thought of passing swift judgement to him didn't cross her mind.

*WHAP!*

Her right hand slapped his face. "I hope for your sake... Damon forgives you, so I can move on." She said cooling down.

Shad gave them all a small smile. "I do too... so we can all be a family again... like we should have been." Before he could continue speaking, a guard barged into the room, panting.

"My lord, an army approaches!" He reported with fear in his eyes. Though the glare Shad shot him probably would have pierced even wyvern scales, the prince calmed himself down enough to assess the situation.

"What do you mean an army? Unless the Cheve rebellion suddenly grew over the past week to get past the border guard, there is no way we have an army on our front door." He clenched his fist in anger that his moment with his siblings was ruined. On top of that, he still hadn't found his missing glove, so the magic was begging to be released.

The guard fumbled with his words for a moment before Lucina took a few strides over and slapped him. "Speak, soldier! If what you say is true, then we need details!"

The guard nodded before speaking. "There's over a thousand, ease, no banner. They're all covered in this purple... mist thing. We wouldn't have seen them at all if their weapons didn't stop shining in the moonlight. They had no archers that we could tell, but there were so many men... I don't know if we can even-"

Shad was surprisingly the first to start barking orders. "You get your sorry ass to the barracks and tell everyone that I ordered every soldier who can wield a bow to get up on the walls. Cherche!" The woman saluted on instinct. "Have the wyverns drop whatever barrels of black powder we have as far away from the army as possible without risking our own walls. But don't light them. In fact, make sure the wood is dampened enough to remove the risk entirely." She nodded and rushed to the pens. "Tharja! You have a fire tome, right? And not just basic fire, things like Arc Fire?"

"Well of course darling..." She said, seeming to appear behind him.

"Without hurting yourself, how far do you think you can spread that spell across a field?"

Tharja paused for a moment to think about it. "How much damage are you looking to do?" She asked Shad.

Shad's reply was instant. "Not much, just enough to light a fuse."

Tharja had a small smile on her face. "Then I can do just that..." She nodded.

"Good. One last thing... Panne. How much weight can your beast form hold?"

"I can lift up this entire castle if I wanted to!" She boasted.

Shad sent her a venomous look, promising pain if she said something like that again. "Without the pompous front... How... much..."

"…...a Few full-grown boars worth... so around four hundred pounds to run well, without any hamper." She said to Shad, without the boasting and grandeur.

The prince pointed to the kitchen. "Leo, I need you to go with her to the kitchen and do what you can to widen anything round and metal without breaking it. But make sure there's still some curve in them too."

Leo nodded before answering. "Got it!" He replied running off.

"What is it you're planning, Shad?" Garon asked his son as the troops started to get into position.

"You'll see... Let me think..." Shad paused for a moment, scratching his head as cogs turned in his head. "Okay... assuming my talismans can do the trick, I think we'll be set." Leo returned with Panne in her beast form, carrying a solid number of more flattened pots and pans. "Okay, let me see those for a second." He got to work slapping Hoshidan talismans on the inside and carving a few small openings into the metal. "Panne, hand me your paw for a second." The beast woman handed her paw over, to which immediately sliced with a thin blade and drew some blood, brushing it over each slip of paper.

"Okay. That should do it... Panne, by now the black powder should be on the field. Plant these over each pile you see with the curve facing up, okay? Go as far as you can without getting attacked in. I don't want anyone dying today. And for the gods sake, do not attack until I give the word. And that goes for everyone else!" There was the slightest hint of magic in his voice that made it boom throughout the fortress without hurting any ears. The taguel nodded and bounded off, the metal plates clattering on her back.

"I'd love to hear your plan... brother..." Leo stated seeing what he was doing made no sense, as he was just gathering random pieces of items.

Shad tried to think of a way to word it. "You know how when someone detonates a barrel of black powder, the wood goes everywhere and shreds everything around it? Well, what if the effect was to be replicated with metal? Those talismans I put on them will make them stick to the ground until destroyed, but it's not like that'll matter with broken metal shredding everything in range. I would have preferred to make something entirely encased in metal and alter the powder a bit, but there isn't enough time. Tharja shoots off that spell to light the powder, and boom. The ground and everyone around it is torn apart, and that leaves the archers and us to pick off the rest." The prince panted slightly, as he took little to no air in during that entire explanation. "Trust me... I used to do the same thing with clay all the time back in Hoshido. This will work."

"How do you know this will work for sure having never tried with metal?" Gunter asked Shad, seeing as he highly doubted that Hoshidan tech could triumph over Nohrian technologic advances.

There was a glimmer in Lucina's eyes. "Trust me, Gunter... it'll work."

"Heh... seems the prince has that look in his eyes... one I haven't seen in way too long," Gaius chuckled.

"I'll trust him... after all, it's a plan only one other person could have had," Tiki nodded, a smile on her face.

Lon'qu readied his blade, a serious look in his eyes. "We'll move on your orders, Shad. Just give the word."

Shad gave his friends a weak but happy smile. "Thanks guys..." The prince turned to his father, a determined look in his eyes. "Father... on my honor as a prince and a tactician, this will work. I guarantee it."

"… We shall see," the old king replied, skeptical of this plan working.

"I̼̕nte̊ͦr͇̍es̝̞ti̟n͏ͭ͊g͆.͊̿.́͆.͊.̝.̌ͬ t͉͞he͙ ̐w͍̆͟a̡ͅr̀r̍̽io̻̊̂r͖̽sͩ ͊f̼ͤͧr͛o͡m̴ͦ͞ t̛ḥ̡e͊ ̼͚̎ḓ͎ͥḙ̫ad̡ͥ ͚̕k̐i̷̤̔nĝ̞̙dom̫̚ ̑ ̊͂f͒ͫô̳l͂҉l̷ͤ͜o͚wed͎͇͡ ͎hiṃ̀ ̙͋w̰͒i̺̜t̢͖̕h́ͨ ̠ou̩t̤̜ͅ ͣ͡q̸ͪ͒u̚e̓stͣ͠ion҉.͑́ͣ.̟͈.̓̓..ͭ"

Shad and Tiki's ears perked at the sound, both heads turning to the source. The only problem was, there was no one there. Just an empty corner. "Is something wrong?" Gaius asked Shad, clasping a hand to his friend's shoulder.

"No... It's fine... come on, everyone without a flying mount or a bow to the front gate," the clever prince ordered, all in question following him. Panne bounded towards him as they walked, turning human as she got close enough.

"They're all laid out as ordered. I went for as big of piles as possible before having to retreat," the rabbit woman reported.

"Good work, Panne. I'll make you anything you want tonight if we get through this," Shad praised her as they came to the entrance. Tharja was chanting lightly, a spell ready in her tomeless hand. Despite being able to see the weapons and even the troops a fair bit, Shad held fast, spotting each plate Panne laid down. "Alright, Tharja, hold for just a little longer..." His eyes lit up red the second there were enough people in range. "Now!" The dark mage cast her spell, sending a weak fire throughout the battle field. But it was more than enough to catch the black powder and make their metal coverings explode, sending a wave of fire, metal, bodies and blood throughout the battlefield. Shad had a stupid grin on his face watching it all. Crackling explosions could be heard across the area from the excess powder as plumes of smoke filled the area with the stench of cooked flesh. "Leo... from one tactician to another, let me ask... how many do you think just died out there?"

"I... One could not even imagine..." Leo was dumbfounded by what his brother just brought to the field of battle.

"I estimate somewhere in the late hundreds... maybe even a thousand if we were lucky. Unfortunately, that wasn't all of them..." Sure enough, more troops climbed over and trampled the carcasses of the fallen. "However... I have a plan for this too. Archers and wyvern riders, focus on the mounted troops for now!" Shad took position over a glowing bit of ground and slit his palm. "After all... they'll be getting here first." He spilt the crimson over the ground and there was a resonating sound, the tarnished ground regrowing as if the carnage hadn't happened. "Dragon veins... gotta love em. Alright everyone..." Shad drew his sword, an evil glint in his eyes. "Charge!" The army let out a roar as they charged forth, with the Norhian nobility leading the way.

The Nohrian foot soldiers and officers immediately clashed towards the enemy strike force, clashing blades and splintering shields as the collision was immense. Xander's main force was still mobilizing at the border, so what force here was all they had. The enemy they fought like no other, as they seemed to be possessed souls of the damned. "Damn..." Lon'qu panted, his back to Gaius's. "There's no end to them..."

"Ain't that my line?" Gaius asked with a chuckle, nursing a wound on his arm. He dodged a strike and struck back with his iron sword, blood spraying at the enemy's death. Unfortunately, another took its place in mere seconds.

It was like a mosh pit, encircling the allied forces, trying to break their lines by sheer number. They had no fear in their eyes, what type of enemy were they fighting? Tiki transformed from her light blue drake back to human form, panting as Lucina struck down their enemy. "Lucina... I hate to sound negative right now... but do we even have a chance?"

"Of course, we do..." A serious glint was in her eyes as she bellowed her next line. "Anything can change!" The blue woman's sword was light lightning as it cleaved the head off another knight, only for her to take a small cut to the back of her shin. "But I won't lie... things aren't looking good..."

A shower of arrows began to whistle in the air as it began its descent on the Nohrian forces, many quickly raised their shields or got behind someone's shield to protect themselves from a volley of death. And while Camilla and Cherche, mainly because the latter noticed and protected the both of them herself, barely managed to evade the volley, many were not as lucky. "That was close... are you alright, Lady Camilla?" Cherche asked the princess.

Camilla smiled, thanks to the assist of Cherche. "I am, thank you for the assistance." The lavender haired princess replied to Cherche patting her on the head.

And then there was Shad. Dodging and weaving through the enemy, claiming heads as he went, but at the same time fear began to take root. These people were strong. Very strong. His makeshift traps were probably the only reason they lasted as long as they had. He faltered as an axe grazed him mid dodge, an almost costly mistake had it not been for Tharja's intervention. "Heh... I owe you one," Shad smiled at her, his sword primed for the next attack as his eyes scanned the battle field.

"Oh... now it's an owing game is it? I'll be sure to... cash it in darling..." Tharja smiled as she got behind Shad again.

While he would normally reply to that, there was simply too much going on. Xander was barely dodging blows from an enemy mage, Leo was struggling to block attacks from a berserking axe wielder, and that's only what he could see. He could hear him men dying, his friends and family cursing and getting worn out... this was going to be a nightmare come true very soon. Even Tharja wasn't looking too good, with blood seeping from a few tears in her form fitting yet thin armor.

Damn it... DAMN IT! Everyone's going to die if I don't do something! But what can I do? I haven't started using proper magic yet, and staves are entirely out of the question. But... I can't let them die! I...

A tear dropped from the prince's focused and angry face.

I can't lose my family... my friends... damn it, damn it, DAMN IT! Why do I have to be so damn USELESS?!

We can save them, you know... just give in to your rage... Let it fuel you to save the ones you love... and then you will seize the power.

Yeah, and only kill them in the cross fire? No thanks.

My power is like any tool... you have to use it carefully, you don't just go swinging a sword behind your lines...would you?

None of them will get hurt by me if I do this... right?

Only if you lose control and attack both sides...

Shad took a deep breath and calmed himself down, closing his eyes.

Fine... you win... I'll give into my darkness... for them.

Hahahaha! Finally! Now... claim your birthright and conquer all who stand against you!

Shad felt his brand's full power flare to life for the first time, his raw magic coursing through his veins as his body burned and contorted, barely suppressing a scream and alerting Tharja to his changes for the moment. Black scales sprouted from his skin, his legs fused into one long serpentine length, and his fingers turned into claws that could pierce even the toughest armor. "Gah... it... it burns..." Shad choked out, feeling his head beginning to change shape too. "It... hurts..." He started to pant, showing off a set of monstrous teeth that would strike terror into even the heartiest of soldiers as his mouth turned into a draconic muzzle. His body began to grow, eclipsing Xander's height while the Crown Prince was still on his horse from what was his waist up, eventually growing long enough to be truly considered serpentine.

Many soldiers immediately stepped away from Shad including his friends and family seeing the vicious transformation, that was claiming his body. Tharja... didn't seem too surprised. In fact, she knew he was capable of great power, but to the extent of which she knew, seeing he had no conception of the power he truly wielded... but now he was getting a rude wake up call. "Shad!" Lucina screamed out, trying to get to him, but others kept her back, in fear what he might do to her.

"You mustn't go closer, Lucina!" Xander struggled to keep her back, despite wanting to help his brother too.

"To hell with that!" Gaius shouted, trying to break free from Gunter's hold. "My friend is hurting bad and in enemy lines! Someone has to help him!"

Tiki's eyes were wide, both with hope and horror as a pair of horns sprouted from the back of Shad's head, circling around before sticking straight out like a halo of death. The prince's barely restrained grunts of pain turned into low growls as his transformation finally started to end as the usual tattoos turned into actual eyes, closed just like the original set, and four feathery wings erupted from his back. "Grima... has returned..." No sooner had she said that, Shad's six eyes flew open and his head reared back, letting out a bone chilling roar and an outrageous amount of dark power that made more than a fair share of people vomit on the spot. Purple light faded as the dragon breathed heavily.

"That... was... hell..." Shad panted, a bit more of the land in front of him dying with each labored breath. It took all of his willpower not to fly into a blind rage from the pain he had just endured. The entire Nohrian front was in a state of shock, as some of the officers who witnessed such of thing was reliving their fight against it... To them their nightmare had come crashing down on them, while the others they stood in pure awe of it. "Now then..." Six red eyes glared at the enemy around him, his friends and his loved ones. "I'm going to show all of you... why you never hurt my family..." Dark purple fire built up in his maw before he unleashed it in a ferocious roar, sending a dark flame to cascade over the enemy between him and the people he cared about. "Now get out... of my... WAY!" Shad charged forth, barreling over everything in his path on his way to his loved ones, the rest of his length coiling part of the way around them protectively. "Are you all okay? None of you are hurt too bad, right?" The long dragon glared at any enemy that dared approached, promising death to any who dared challenge him.

Lucina's eyes widened with absolute horror, seeing Grima's form...it was a waking nightmare for her, the screams of her long dead friends and family she left behind. No words were said, only waiting for her demise from the Wyrm. Shad's eyes locked onto her, chilling her to her core before his clawed hand lashed out, grabbing a spearman who tried to take advantage of her distracted state and bringing him close to a set of his eyes. "Don't you dare... lay a single fucking finger... on my Princess..." Shad growled hostilely before literally tearing the man in half and throwing the parts at an oncoming band of enemy warriors. "Are you okay, Lucina? None of these bastards hurt you, did they? I swear by the gods, if they dared to harm a single hair on you, or anyone's head..." Dark fire began to build up in his mouth again at the mere thought of it. "All of them... every single one... is a dead man..." He opened his mouth and let out another torrent of dark fire, no longer worrying about holding back with everyone safely up wind of the attack.

"Th̠͞i͜͞͞s ̐c̾͊͘h̡aṇ̪ǵe̎s..̬̚.̀.͆ͧ͢e̝̤̓v̝́͝e̅ṙ̨͌yͧt͎̻ͩhi͇̖͑n̍g͇̋.͚.̵͎͊..͎ͯ.̕͘"

Shad's claws slashed, barely catching a hint of cloth before the figure disappeared. And while the entire Outrealm forces excluding Tharja were having a mental crisis about the man turned Fell Dragon, none had it worse than Lucina, who literally just had her life saved by the very thing that initially ruined it. Twice.

Lucina stepped back seeing what was clearly Grima. "No...this is... Robin's sacrifice, he... he destroyed Grima..." She muttered as she could see the flames and charred corpses. Shad was clearly the one that transformed in to Grima, putting her mind in to a near mental shut down.

Shad let out another loud roar, malevolent energy surging through every enemy soldier that was in front of him. "Let this be a lesson... NEVER ATTACK MY FAMILY AGAIN!" The reincarnated Fell Dragon let out one more torrent of fire and death on the enemy before the scant dozens that remained fled, unwilling to die to the beast before them. Shad let out several loud pants before collapsing to the ground, a purple light enveloping him before dissipating with his prone human body passed out in the blood and decay he had caused.

"By the gods..." Leo breathed, almost not believing what he just witnessed. "That... that wasn't even a fight..."

"It was a slaughter..." Xander finished his thought, in just as much awe as the rest of his family.

It was to everyone's surprise that Camilla noticed his current status on the ground, unconscious in the blood. "By the Gods...how was that even possible?" She asked as she quickly moved over with a few other officers to check the body to see if he was breathing. Yanking him out of the pool of blood, they sat him up next to a barrier of stone.

Elise checked his pulse and placed her hand close to his mouth before letting out a sigh of relief. "He's alive and breathing... he's really worn out though. It probably took a lot to do what he just did... Sha- Big brother just saved our lives... didn't he?"

Xander crouched down, examining the wounded man. "That he did Elise..." He acknowledged.

"Alright... let's get him to the medical ward," Leo suggested, stooping low and hooking an arm around Shad. It was Gunter that relieved the younger prince of the burden, carrying Shad to the medical ward himself.

"Agreed, Lord Leo," the veteran nodded as he walked with the downed prince in his arms. "Gods know that Lord Shad deserves some proper rest after today." As he and the rest of the officers went with Shad to the medical ward, giving thanks to the sleeping man and wishing him well for a few hours until only the warriors from the Outrealms were all lingering there, looking at Shad's prone body.

It was Gaius that broke the silence. "So... Shad's apparently Grima now..." He laughed hollowly, so disbelieving of the situation he couldn't help himself. "Is this some kind of gods damned joke? I mean... Shad is almost the exact opposite of the bastard! And then he turns into some... arguably better version of that monster? Just... what the hell?"

Lon'qu, stoic and introspective as ever, addressed the real problem. "The question is... how much of him is Grima now and how much of him is the man we respect?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Tharja asked, immediately at Shad's defense. "The way he protected us clearly shows he's infinitely more Shad than Grima. Unless you think the Fell Dragon would have put himself through a living hell to save the lives of a few humans?"

Tiki, sore over the loss of Robin all over again after seeing the nemesis of her goddess, retorted with venom in her voice, a rarity for the usually calm and kind manakete. "Did you forget about the fact that Grima killed our friends? That he's the reason Robin is dead?!"

Tharja glared at the dragon shifting woman. "Bite your tongue or I'll cut it out for you... I know that Robin is dead! I've come to grips with that, as painful as it was. But this? This clearly isn't the same situation as Robin. That was all of Grima. All of him. No split powers, no amnesiac vessels, just the man, or rather dragon, himself! And that power? He may not be as strong as what he used to be, but he still could have murdered everyone here if he so desired it. But he didn't. Why? Because he might be the Fell Dragon, but he is most certainly not Grima anymore!" The dark mage turned to Lucina. "Lucina... as much as I hate to admit it, you're the only other one who knew ahead of time what Shad was. You brought him to my room for a reason, after all." Ignoring the shocked noises and shouts at the woman, Tharja pressed on. "So tell me... what is it you think about this? Is Shad Grima simply for looking like the Fell Dragon, or do you think Shad is the one in control?

"Shad... Shad is... he is in control of the powers he was born with..." Tharja smiled at Shad avoiding eye contact with the man himself. "Grima is long gone and no longer controls anything... Shad controls Grima's form." She continued to defend Shad, hoping the others would see the light.

Lucina stepped up this time, as she took a deep breath before replying. "I... I believe that... I really do, but that was Grima, if anything Shad shouldn't transform in to that thing... it could find a way back in to our world and take over his form again." Lucina urged caution while supporting Shad.

While there was obviously initial outrage, the words sunk in quick. "Yeah... guess that makes sense," Gaius nodded.

"He's been a more... bearable man spawn than the others... being Grima should not change him that much," Panne agreed.

Cherche was looking wide eyed at the man in the bed. "He's part dragon... but only a man would do what he did today."

"I can agree to that much, at least," Lon'qu acknowledged. The only one left now was Tiki, with a question that no one wanted to address.

"And should he become Grima in mind and body?" While her question left an eerie silence in the room, again Lucina stepped up, this time was a few tears ready to fall as her hand grasped the pommel of Falchion.

"I think we all know what that means... Like it or not... we can't let the travesty of Grima repeat itself." There was a grave nod around the room, even from an extremely reluctant Tharja. "But, until that happens... and I pray that it doesn't... we treat him the same as always. Are we in agreement?"

Tharja gave them one last thing to think about. "I agree... but answer me this. Should Shad prove me right that him being taken over by Grima is never going to happen, what do you intend to do then?"

"Nothing, he's normal, we don't tempt him to go over to the other side and start burning kingdoms down." Lucina said to the dark mage.

Tiki remained quiet but knowing that keeping secrets isn't in the best interests made her spill. "…..He's not the only one that can shift in to a beast of that proportion..." Tiki informed her friends only.

"Let me guess. Red can do it too?" Gaius asked, knowing there weren't many others she could be referring to.

"A fire... in his heart... I couldn't narrow the size down, but the element he wields is fire..." Tiki began to explain, proving that it was very much a Dragon.

Gaius suddenly stopped caring about that line of thought as a memory stirred from earlier. He looked Lucina dead in her eyes and said something that made the room fall silent. "So... His 'Princess,' Lucina? Care to explain?"

"I- bwuh... What?!" Lucina nearly shrieked, her face going redder than a fire tome, getting a laugh out of the lighter hearted Outrealmers in the room. Tharja, on the other hand...

"Damn blue haired harlot... show you to steal my Shad..." The dark mage muttered, a slew of different hex ideas running through her head.

"Guungh... fuck... that hurt..." Shad groaned as he began to stir, every joint and muscle in his body rebelling against him in pain. His hands slowly clasped onto his head, feeling around his face. "Looks like I'm..." His eyes cracked open to see everyone from the Outrealms standing by his bed. "Oh... Hey guys..." An awkward silence filled the room for a few moments before the prince spoke again. "So... you all know the truth now..." He started struggling to get up from the bed. "I-I'll leave you all to your- Urk!" The moment he attempted to stand Shad fell towards the ground, unable to do much of anything with the pain shooting through his body.

"So, I guess I can't call you Man-spawn completely huh?" Panne said to Shad as she was by his side.

Shad let out a low growl as he tried to pick himself off the ground, barely getting to his knees on sheer willpower alone. "Yeah... but what else is new?" The dragon prince staggered to his feet, leaning on the wall for support. "Like I said... I'll leave you all to your talk." He started inching his way out of the room, wincing with every movement. "I need to get to the twins... iron something out..."

"Shad? Are you sure you should be moving around?" She asked him. "You could literally bleed out..."

The dragon shifter winced as he felt blood escape from him. "Why do you care...? I'm surprised a single one of you even showed up..."

"Because you saved our skins you dunce!" The taguel growled, before cooling down.

Shad had the audacity to chuckle. "Yeah... even when I'm the one who almost took them?" He looked at his branded hand and pounded the wall. "I knew I was cursed... but I didn't want to believe it was this bad..."

"Hey, listen to me. You need to stop, going on yourself destructive path, sit down and listen to my story..." She said to the prince, forcing him to sit on the bed.

Oh no not another one...

"And if I refuse?" Shad growled, his self-contempt clouding his judgement.

"Then I'll bury you up to your neck." Panne threatened, giving off a vicious growl.

"Not to mention there is still five other people you have to go through," Gaius pointed out, loafing in one of the chairs.

The prince felt a few tears well up in his eyes. "Don't. Just... stop... I'm no fool. Pretty much everyone in this room is either afraid of me or wants me dead... don't any of you dare act like you actually give half a damn about me after what I've done..." He felt his magic flare slightly, his eye tattoos and claws forming with the new addition of Grima's horns and patches of black scales. "Or are you all about to forgive the damned creature that ruined your lives?"

"We don't. We care about the man, who commanded Grima's form..." Panne retorted.

Shad stopped, his draconic features receding as he relaxed. "Fine... I'll listen for a bit... but I really need to get to the twins before my siblings and I march for Hoshido.

"Good...so oh yeah...I remember the time where Damon was replacing the equipment for the smiths, moving it to his room."

Okay...this one might be more believable...

"I was attempting to clean the forge, and get started on the next tools to build, and I notice half of the tools were missing from the entire work bench, so I like a good Sarmatian went looking for the tools."

"Panne, a good Samaritan?! PFF AHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA!" Gaius cracked up.

The thief was smacked in the head, throwing him down. "Hey it's my story! I'll tell it the way I want! HMPH!" Panne roared at Gaius.

"So, as I was searching the fortress, until I spotted my friends, doing what they usually do..."

Tharja was walking on the ceiling while Elise was literally a moving flower bush with pig tails. Panne turned her head to the direction to where she heard a wheel barrow being moved, and it was Felicia in a messy dirt stained apron, pushing a barrow of tools. "HALT THIEF!" Panne declared, with Felicia running away.

Shad was quickly losing his patience with her ridiculous story. "Panne..."

"Hmmm?" Panne asked, seeing Shad was at the deep end.

"I have had it... with you slandering my friends... and my family..." The prince growled, his Grima features quickly reappearing. "Apologize now... or so help me gods..."

"Ah Ha! Grima isn't gone!" She declared getting ready to smack him down. The taguel was swiftly stopped by a smack from Lucina. "OW! HEY!" Panne cried out rubbing her head.

"Panne... I get you're hurting too... but if you coping with what happened in Ylisse means you changing this much, then I simply can't allow it to continue..." Lucina's voice was grave and serious, enough so to make the taguel step back. "What you did... wasn't drawing Grima out. That was preying on Shad's already defensive nature of people he cares for. And frankly, I'm disgusted that a warrior as proud as you would stoop to such petty tactics to frame someone who just saved your life."

Panne just crossed her arms against her chest, spinning around on her heels. "..." She didn't say anything but knew when she was outnumbered. Not to mention that the Exalted Princess's words stung.

Lucina turned back to Shad and looked him in his reddening eyes. "Shad, I apologize on Panne's behalf. If I had known what she was planning, I would have stopped her immediately... you don't deserve that kind of treatment right now."

Her voice and face soothed the boiling prince, letting out a long sigh as he calmed enough to make his draconic features dissipate again. "… Fine... I'll forgive you, Panne... I still owe you... actually, make that all of you something of your choice from the kitchen. Well... assuming I can cook by the time I finish making plans..." Shad's face turned to Lucina, giving her a small smile. "That goes double for you, Lucina. But..." His smile and entire demeanor turned somber. "I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't want it anyway... after all, for all you know I'm trying to poison you... put needles in the food... whatever the hell you think your worst enemy would do to you... I'm pretty sure you and Panne are the only two who have ever willingly partaken in something I made, but... I guess it's just like Hoshido again now, isn't it?

"After how I almost killed Big Sis... how everyone avoided me after..." His pupils shrunk as the memories flashed before his eyes. The jeers. The death threats from the very people who were supposed to be protecting him. "All the days spent alone... no one to talk to... no one who cared..." A mad smile started to break out on his face. "Gods! It really is just like Hoshido again, isn't?! My siblings probably hate me again... my friends finally learned I'm some kind of monster... I really am cursed, aren't I?!" He let out an insane laugh, his sanity finally nearing its limit. Everyone was suddenly starting to worry for the dragon prince.

"Heeey you know what usually cheers me up?" Gaius asked Shad, patting him on the back.

The contact seemed to bring him out of it slightly. "… I'll humor you I guess... what?"

Gaius popped a red sucker in his mouth. "Like you had to ask?" He smiled putting his hands behind his back, while the end of the lollipop caught on fire. "Ohh...not in the mood for candy... I guess?" He asked.

Shad's crisis, while lessened, was starting to pick up again. "Oh no. I like candy. I have a terrible sweet tooth. I just don't deserve anything from any of you... nothing except your bla-"

"Listen, Shad where did you need to go exactly?" Lucina asked Shad, obviously worried for him.

The prince was brought out of it a good bit by her voice, trying to focus on what he needed to do. "I have to find the twins... something isn't right with Garon... I'm worried for my niece and nephew..."

"Alright, well I'll take you to them right now, if you want?" Lucina asked him, wanting him to calm down.

Before Shad could deny the help, Tiki and Cherche stood. "I'll help as well," the Voice of Naga declared, not entirely comfortable with helping the nemesis of her goddess but unwilling to let her friend suffer. "I can see if I can help you formulate your plan."

"Count me in too," Cherche nodded. "I'll have Minerva help track them down."

"Shouldn't take long if I help too," Gaius grunted as he stood up.

"You all are mad if you think I'm taking even a single step away from my darling," Tharja said possessively, clinging to his arm.

Shad was floored at their willingness to help him. "Wh... why? Why are you all so dead set on helping me? I'm the Fell Dragon... I ruined your lives... and yet not a single one of you wishes ill of me? I... I'm dreaming... aren't I? I have to be... no one has ever wanted to help me after finding out what I am..." He shook his head. "No... there isn't enough time now anyways... spent too long talking..." He looked to them all with pleading eyes. "Please... if you all really care about me as much as you say you do, you need to get Flora, Felicia and their children to..." He took a map of Hoshido from his pocket and marked a spot on it. "Here. Damon and I will meet up with you not long after, but I... I can't let him get hurt again... can't let them get hurt either."

"Wait, what's going on Shad?" Lucina asked the young Prince.

Shad stood and stumbled slightly before correcting his footing. "Lucina... please... don't make me beg any more than I already have. Just... if you really trust me, do as I say. I can't say any more than that."

There was a moment of silence before Lucina responded. "...I trust you, we'll do our best, but one question? What if they don't believe us?" She asked Shad.

"That my brother Damon is going to be hurt if they don't. And it will be their fault." The former ninja faltered, leaning against the doorframe.

"But taking their kids too?" Lucina asked.

"Heh... it's those two little brats that are the biggest concern... Please... just tell them Damon and their children are in danger, okay?"

"….Alright." Lucina nodded, ready to execute the plan of action.

Tharja grabbed his sleeve before he could leave. "Wait..." She pushed a tome into his hands, bound in black letters with the words 'Le Grimoire' printed in gold at the top. "This book contains the spell Amnesia as well as a few other beginner spells and a couple higher leveled ones. It makes everyone outside a ten foot radius and within a one hundred foot radius forget up to the last three minutes from when the spell is cast and stuns them for around ten. It's a single use spell in Ylisse, but assuming my experiments finally succeeded... you should be able to use it far more."

"Do you think that'll come down to your spells?" Hearing that Shad paused to think about it.

"I... don't have my scrolls... I was banned from using them at one point..." Shad confessed. "Talismans are all I'm allowed to do now. This tome is the closest I've had to a proper magic foci in years."

Lucina took the tome. "Hopefully it won't come to that..." She stated seeing as, using spells against Nohrians were the last thing she wanted to do.

Tharja snatched it back and handed the book back to Shad. "He won't be using it against them."

Elise busted in to see Shad. "Come on Shad, we're going to save big brother!" Elise complained.

"One sec, little sis! Just saying bye to my-" He was forced to his knees by a surge of pain. "Ow... I hope I heal up on the way..." The prince slipped Lucina a talisman and leaned into her as she helped him up. "Place it on a wall if you need a quick exit and take cover... see you soon, Princess."

Elise ran over to Shad grabbing him by the left hand trying to tug him. "Come on, Damon could be hurt big brother!" She whined.

The prince chuckled in spite of himself. "Alright, alright I'm coming little sis."

Lucina was blushing as the prince was pulled out, flustered by how easily he was able to get close to her. "So... Shad, huh?" Gaius asked with a coy grin, much to the displeasure of the princess and Tharja.

"Shut it, Gaius..." Lucina said with a fevered blush.

(Line break)

Hoshidan planes, the next day...

Shad skimmed over his book as the pain faded, mouthing out the incantations to each spell he read. "Fire... Elfire... Arcfire..." A thin line of smoke emitted from his hand.

"Shad! Stop!" Leo moved over to the chasm, by Shad. "What're you doing?" He asked.

"Going over this tome Tharja gave me... is it normal for so many spells to be in one book, Leo?" Shad asked, closing his book.

"In some cases, yes, spells are the same as history, recording all sorts of information." Leo explained to his brother.

The slightly older prince thought for a moment. "Same thing in Hoshido, but maybe I should have worded that better. Is it normal for them all to be in a usable tome?"

"What? That's impossible." Leo said, as he grabbed the tome, reading it. "This...what is this? This is..." Leo said to Shad while going over the tomes.

"Tharja made it. Gave it to me for good luck," Shad explained, pulling out his map of Hoshido. "I haven't any idea how she did it, but... I won't lie..." He blushed slightly. "It's touching that she did..."

Leo was quiet for a moment. "I never suspected her of having this kind of power, especially with tomes... this isn't the light stuff either... very dangerous tomes like these can do extensive damage..." He explained to him.

A smile grew on Shad's face as he took Tharja's tome back. "Sounds perfect for me then." His eyes widened seeing just where their route would take them. "Hey, Camilla... we're crossing this bridge near the capital on the way to get to Damon, right?"

Camilla stopped as she turned to her brother. "Yes? Why?" She asked the young Prince.

"I spear headed the development of explosives like I used earlier. And I'm well enough to walk and run again... maybe I should forge ahead, make sure the Hoshidans didn't make the bridge a trap?"

"Do as you wish, just be careful..." She advised Shad.

The dragon prince gave his older sister a hug and hopped off the caravan. "Thanks, big sis, I'll see you at the bridge!" He ran off in front of the march, sadly not making as much distance as he wanted.

Damn it... I won't have time for an explosive talisman... I'll just need to pray that this tome works as well as the scrolls in Hoshido for me...

He recalled the first dozen times he tried to summon something, anything. There was a large explosion every time.

If it doesn't though, I'm stuck with the blame of burning that bridge... but I won't let my family fight each other. I just won't...

The prince pulled ahead with just enough time to do what he needed. "Okay, Shad... make or break..." Visions of both his Hoshian and Nohrian families and his friends at the Northern Fortress filled his head as he approached the bridge. "I can't let this happen... I won't let it!" Shad leapt up and readied his tome, a spell building up in his hand. "Arcfire!" The spell rained down in a wall of fire, enveloping the bridge. But no explosion.

Oh, for fuck's sake! The one time I need to fuck up a spell!

"Oh Fuck..." Demon threw up a barrier seeing how Beruka and Selena was still on the other side.

Shad was initially confused seeing his spell pitter out. "What the-" he turned around and saw his brother. "Damon?! What the hell are you doing here?!"

(Line Break)

And that's a wrap! I'll be the first to apologize for the awkward ending, but the first chapter basically picks up from there.

It showed what was going on for Shad's side of the story in Nohr, and now Demon and Shad are going to be uniting their strengths and powers to defeat the menace off Valla and the true enemy hunting them down.

But first, and I hate to do this, but I wanted to give a summary of Shad is in this fic.

I don't mind, and neither will the fans and viewers knowing Shad as at least not ignorant to Demon's plight, and an assume path of the past.

Thanks man. Anyway, outside of that, I wanted to clear a few things up. First of all, he isn't an emo. He has literally spent half his life ignored and hated by people in ways that were set up to support what they were saying about him; that his is cursed. This has also caused him to blame himself for things a little too much and made him more than a little unstable sanity wise.

Give him some time of real warfare, talkative friends, and planning for a great future, and he'll be ready to go...

But that's going to be a more uphill battle. Think how Damon was split apart mentally last version. It's like that but with self hatred and degradation. Especially toward his family and people he actually cares for after the incident with Hinoka. Also, just a heads up, given the length of these chapters, don't expect anything substantial with any of the girls who may or may not show interest in him until the next... two, three chapters. Maybe more. Hm... anything I'm forgetting, Starknight, or is that it?

Yes, as the choice system, we're playing things a little cautiously... instead of befalling to ties, if no one can decide on the decision factor, we'll flip a coin, and leave the next chapter in the hands of fate... So in any future events, do not go down that path please, as it could cause problems for the choices in the future.

Right. Almost forgot about that myself. And you can all thank Temporal King for that, by the way. We were willing to downgrade it to superficial stuff or scrap it entirely, but he convinced us to not do so. So... yeah. That's a thing again. And also, as things are a lot more clear with Shad now, let me ask again; why do you think he can use Grima like he does? Remember, we do a request from the person who gets that right.

And be on the look out for new future fics.

-DXD (Redux) Came up with some interesting ideas for this one.

-P5 (Demon Edition) Personally looking forward to that one, my favorite game.

-High School of the Dead [Redux] (Demon Edition) This one may be a bit interesting.

-Dragon Ball [Redux] (Demon Edition.) Yes, there is a difference. We'll be changing up the story a bit.

-….(Maybe a R+V Demon Edition or Undertale... we haven't really decided yet)

For the record, I'm totally fine with both of those if you guys want them. We'd really just need to nail down how we'd go about it. Undertale in particular.

Well that's about it, make sure to leave a review and follow our stories for future events.

-Hope you enjoyed-

-LyokoDragon15-

-Starknight'Renegade-

-Thank You-