Azura hummed a little Hoshidan ditty to herself as she paced around the edge of the lake. The lake, for a reason she had not revealed to anyone other than Corrin, calmed her like nothing else could. Sure, the feeling of holding or petting something cute and fluffy made her want to cuddle up to it as much as she could, but here, at the lake, this was the one place where she could truly feel relaxed.

"I thought I'd find you here," a voice sounded from somewhere above her, it's owner's tone distorted by a warbling metallic sheen. "It's not like I specifically asked Lilith to create this lake for you."

Azura smiled and turned to see Corrin gliding towards her. "Hello Corrin," she greeted. "What brings you out here tonight?"

Corrin landed on his feet, catlike. His wings folded themselves into his back as his red eyes gleamed at her in the darkness. "Why, nothing, Azura," he replied playfully. "I was 'doing my work,' and all of a sudden, I saw you walking into the forest. Is there another reason why I would like to talk to you?"

Azura smiled, that familiar dollop of sunlight relighting itself in her chest. "Well, truth be told, I wanted to talk to you tonight."

That got Corrin's attention. Though she could be blunt, Azura was not one to outright tell others what she wanted.

He raised his eyebrows. "What did you need?" he asked.

Azura looked away and rubbed her arm. "Well, it's sort of a long story," she said hesitatingly.

Corrin walked up to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Well, I've had a long night. Surprise me."

At first, Corrin had thought his gesture and words might've pushed Azura away. She was definitely not one to appreciate such advances, but to his relief, she did not. Instead, she leaned into him, though neither noticed.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Are…are you going to say anything?"

Azura jumped. She had been getting used to the weight around her shoulders, that she forgot what she was going to say. "Oh, right! Like I was saying, I've wanted to tell you something. The truth."

Corrin raised his eyebrows. "The truth? Is it something like 'Anankos is secretly driving the war between Hoshido and Nohr, and he lives in a kingdom where if you say its name, you disappear,' or is it something else?"

Azura giggled before she could stop herself, but immediately sobered up. "No. I'm afraid the truth is something much smaller this time, but no less important. The truth is…I've been having these nightmares recently."

That definitely rose Corrin's eyebrows. He raised his hand off Azura's shoulder, much to her displeasure, though she made no mention of it.

"What…kind of nightmares?" he asked cautiously. Nobody knew better than him about Azura's…convoluted past, and nobody knew better than him to not bring up such memories. Especially whenever they were alone.

Azura sighed. "I've been having nightmares. About that day…"

"Oh…"

Corrin sighed and rubbed his head. "Again, Azura, you have to listen to me! "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to attack you like—"

"Oh gods, it's not you at all!" Azura said hurriedly. "It's not you! It's me..."

"You?"

Azura turned to face Corrin squarely and looked up to meet his gaze, his red eyes full of worry and concern. "Corrin," she started gently, though her voice was shaking. "I had a nightmare about you. But this time, it was different. Everything was different."

"Different how?" he breathed.

"You killed Ryoma, you killed Sakura, you killed Takumi…" Corrin appeared sickened at her words. "But the worst part was, when I tried to sing to you, when I tried to calm you down, I…I died," Azura continued. "I died. Takumi, Ryoma, and Sakura died because I died."

"Oh gods," Corrin murmured. "I'm so—"

"I didn't die because of you, I died because of my song."

"Your song? I thought you said your song—"

"—could only hurt me and not kill me," Azura finished hastily, though she felt no small amount of guilt at having to keep the secret from him. "Yes, I know, but don't you ever have a fear that you might die doing something you know shouldn't kill you normally?"

Corrin nodded silently.

"That's what happened in my dream," Azura continued. "I tried to stop you, and I failed. Takumi, Sakura, Ryoma…all of them died in my dream, all because I couldn't stop you." Here, Azura's voice began to thicken. "B-but the worst part is, when I was floating away, where I don't know, I saw you."

"M-me?"

Azura nodded and wiped her eyes on the back of her hand. "You," she agreed. "I saw the dragon rampage on, but this time, it wasn't you. You had already died, or become something very close to that, and as I watched, you...you..."

Azura shook her head, unable to continue any further. Corrin automatically rest an arm around her shoulders again. To his surprise, Azura suddenly wrapped the entirety of her body around Corrin's chest, her hair tickling his chin as she buried her face in his chest. After a moment's hesitation, he gently wrapped his other arm around her, pulling her closer to him.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I never knew I could be so terrible of—"

"It wasn't you though!" she cried. "That was the problem! You weren't there! You ceased to exist! You died! You never came back! That's the worst part!"

Azura buried her face again in Corrin's chest. "I-it's just…it's just that when I saw you being overwhelmed and losing your humanity, I…I realized something terrible."

"What is it?" Corrin whispered.

Azura leaned back and gazed up at Corrin. "I couldn't bear to lose you like that again," she whispered. "I already lost my mother, and my father. I couldn't stand it if I was to lose you too…"

Corrin immediately understood when she meant by that then. How could he not? Only a fool could've taken that out of context, especially coming from a woman.

"I…I know," he said. "I feel the same way."

Azura's breath hitched in her throat as she looked up at Corrin. Corrin looked away, his long white hair obscuring his eyes, though she could've sworn his ears were blushing pale red in the moonlight. She tried to let that sight please her, but the anguish of the situation demanded otherwise.

"I also had a nightmare tonight," Corrin admitted. "And…and it was also about that day. It was just like you described it. Ryoma was dead. Takumi was dead. Sakura too. But you…you were still alive."

Corrin finally looked at her, and Azura was heartbroken to see the amount of anguish within those red orbs glowing in the night. "You were still alive, except I was holding you there, to the ground."

"Cor—"

"You were begging me to let you live, but I killed you," Corrin finished. "I killed you. I-I—"

Corrin stopped himself before he could go any further. He took a deep breath and sighed.

"Azura," he began. "Are…were you ever afraid of me? Whenever I transform? Did you ever hate me for being part dragon?"

Azura hesitated before answering. This was a particularly sensitive topic between them. After the battle, once they finally managed to settle down in the astral plane, Corrin had ran up to her and begged, begged for her forgiveness.

Despite her never hating or thinking negatively of Corrin because of his actions that day, the bruises that Corrin had inflicted on her neck and throat never truly faded, despite Sakura's healing magic. She had immediately accepted his apologies, despite her telling him that there was no need for him to apologize. Obviously, he hadn't taken this to heart yet.

"N-no," she answered truthfully. "I never hated you for anything. Not when you accidentally called me your 'girlfriend' at that one vendor stall, nor when you snuck up on me when I was bathing, but especially not when you transformed that day."

Of course, she didn't hate Corrin, but that wasn't to say that she wasn't afraid of such a thing happening again. That was part of the reason why she had given Corrin his dragonstone on the spot after his recovery. Partially so that he could control his draconic rampages should it ever happen again, but also partially out of fear. There was no greater terror than being pinned to the ground by a dragon that was once your closest friend and ally.

Azura was no stranger to being backstabbed and betrayed, thanks to spending her childhood in Garon's court, but even the thought of Corrin willingly betraying her shook her to the very core. Corrin was far too caring and gentle for him to kill her. But when he was a dragon…and without a dragonstone…

"Corrin, I won't lie to you, but I admit it. I was scared when you attacked—" Corrin grimaced and turned away, "—but that wasn't you, Corrin. That wasn't the Corrin I know. That was the Corrin that would lash out at anyone who tried to hurt his friends. That was the Corrin that refused to choose either Hoshido or Nohr over the other because the thought of willingly hurt those who were close to him hurts him more than anything else in the world. That's nothing to be ashamed of! It just shows how much you care for other people."

"Still doesn't excuse the fact I attacked and almost killed you," Corrin muttered.

Azura cupped Corrin's cheek in her hand and turned his face towards her. "Maybe, maybe not, but that's not the important par," she said. "The important part was that you managed to calm yourself down afterwards. The mere fact that you were able to break through your rage to listen to my song enough to calm you down says more about you than anything else. You don't have to hate your other form—because gods know I never will. Your human side? That's just who you truly are. Caring, willing to help others, even if you din't know them very well. Your dragon side? That's the part where those feelings of passion and loyalty are strongest. Trust me, it's nothing to be ashamed of."

Corrin still refused to meet her eyes. "You still didn't tell me if you were afraid of me or not."

Azura sighed. "You can be really hopeless sometimes, Corrin." She stood on her tip-toes and leaned in close to his ear and whispered, "I could never be afraid of you," before falling back on the flats of her feet.

"Say it with me," she said. "Being part dragon does not make me a bad person. It just makes me more human."

"…"

"I don't hear you saying it."

"Hmph. Fine. Being part dragon does not make me a bad person. It just makes me more human," Corrin repeated dully.

"Again."

"Being part dragon does not mean I'm a bad guy, it just means I'm more human."

"Again."

"Being part dragon does not make me a bad person. It just makes me more human." This time, the words were much easier to get through, and Corrin could feel a calming sensation spreading throughout his body as Azura's amber eyes gazed at him in the dark. He felt his skin starting to burn as he realized the coolness of Azura's hand against his cheek.

"Thank you, Azura. For…for everything," he said. "I'm sorry you had to see me like this. I know you have enough on your plate to deal with without having to offer me therapy sessions every night."

Azura could only smile at his words. "Don't be. Trust me, talking with you helps me just as much as it helps you. Our fates are intertwined, and without each other, we'll never be able to make it through alive."

Corrin chuckled. "I think you're being just a tad over-dramatic."

Azura laughed as well. "Well, maybe. Maybe I am, maybe I'm not, but trust me when I say that you're one of the most important people in my life right now."

Corrin raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to reply when a guard's rough voice broke through the night.

"Hey! You two! What are you doing?" the guard shouted. "How did you two—" The guard's voice faltered as he realized who he was shouting at.

"Oh! Lord Corrin! Lady Azura! I'm sorry, I didn't know it was—"

"It's fine, Garvin," Corrin sighed, waving a hand dismissively. "We're almost done here. Don't worry, we'll head back inside in a couple of minutes."

"Ah—I see," the guard said awkwardly. "Well, um, you best wrap it up, milord. The night brings with it a chill. How weather works in this gods-forsaken land is beyond me…" Any other words the guards might've muttered into his beard was lost to the night as he walked away.

Corrin turned back to Azura with a mildly exasperated look. "Well, I think this wraps up our therapy session for tonight," he quipped. "We really should head back. Garvin's not the type of man to start gossip, but other sentries might be."

"I suppose," Azura agreed.

Corrin nodded and turned away to trudge back towards the castle when he realized he was still alone. He turned back to see Azura staring back out onto the surface of the lake.

"Um, Azura?"

"I'm fine, Corrin," she replied. "I'm just going to stay out here a couple moments longer. Take a moment to think, you know?"

Corrin nodded. "Well, make sure you don't stay out here too long. It's cold tonight, and we have to organize the army and supplies again tomorrow. We're still in the middle of a war, after all."

Azura smiled and nodded. "Of course, Lord Corrin."

Corrin shuddered. "Please, don't ever call me that. We're equals, aren't we? We don't need to be addressing each other by our respective titles, right Lady Azura?"

Azura laughed and shooed him away. "Alright, alright. I promise I won't call you by your title again."

Corrin smiled and turned away again, but before he left, he looked over his shoulder at Azura. "Uh, one last thing, Azura."

"Hm?"

"Thank…thanks for the help, Azura. You have no idea how much your words mean to me."

Azura smiled. "Anytime."

Corrin smiled back and walked away, throwing out a farewell wave with his hand as he disappeared into the trees. Azura watched his silvery-white hair fade into the darkness before sighing and turning back to the surface of the lake.

That small dollop of sunlight was still there in her chest, and no matter what she did, she couldn't find the words to name it. It made her happy, but it also made her long for something more, something different. The last time she felt such a way was all the way back in Nohr, when her mother spent their mornings and nights together brushing her long hair.

Azura smiled and shook her head as she headed back to the castle. That feeling will surely name itself in due time, but for now, she had a war to focus on, and a bed to sleep in.

As she fell back onto her cot and drifted off to sleep, she realized in the back of her head that tonight would be the first night where she would be able to sleep peacefully without being plagued with nightmares.

That still didn't mean her hair wouldn't be atrocious in the morning.

Corrin groaned and pushed open the doorway leading into his treehouse. The treehouse, he remembered, was supposedly to be a unique version of the private quarters built throughout the castle, but Corrin found himself spending more and more nights in his study than in his actual room. That was why he had commissioned Lilith to push a cot into the already cramped and overflowing room.

With a huff, Corrin fell back onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling, his feelings in turmoil. Despite Azura's words, he still felt some level of guilt for attacking her. It always surprised him, albeit in a pleasing way, that despite meeting Azura scarcely less than a couple month's ago, he already trusted her with his deepest secrets, and more importantly, his life.

Part of him wanted to put his arms around her and comfort her, to tell her that everything will be alright, but the other half reminded him of the trauma that she's been through. She wouldn't appreciate the gesture, but despite this, Corrin found himself flipping through the calendar on the wall, before finally resting his finger on the third day of the third month.

Corrin smiled at the tiny scribbles surrounding the number, no doubt Elise's work. That girl could remember everything about someone's birthday. The runes spelling out "Azura's b-day."

One day, he thought to himself. One day.

A/N: Hope you enjoy!