It was a sunny day-slightly chilly, but overall a marvelous day nonetheless. As such, Sumia had decided to have their lunch in the garden. Since Cynthia-and later Lucina-decided on staying in Ylisstol, Sumia had insisted on getting together at least once a week to spend some time with her daughters. Occasionally they would have a guest, but it almost always consisted of her, Lucina, and Cynthia. However, today they were also joined by Cordelia, and, of course, Lucina's engagement was the topic of discussion much to the princess' dismay.
"Oh my," the redhead uttered as Sumia shared the news before flashing the princess a kind smile, "That's so romantic!"
"W-we're not actually getting married," Lucina defended with her face already turning crimson, "He did it to buy time, and to protect me."
"I'm sure he did," The captain retorted slyly before taking a sip of her tea, "But it's still sweet."
"It certainly is," Sumia smiled furthering her daughter's embarrassment.
"It is an arrangement of convenience," Lucina defended looking away from the others in a futile attempt to hide her blush, "Nothing more."
"I don't know," her sister teased, "What if he orchestrated this whole thing just so he could propose?"
"I doubt he would go that far," Cordelia defended the absent man before turning her attention back to Lucina, "But while he may have done it to protect you, he may have feelings for you yet."
"D-don't be preposterous," Lucina thought to that night on the hill where she dared to hope for such a thing.
"Ah, come on, Lucy!" Cynthia responded with her usual enthusiasm, "Don't tell me that you don't secretly wish it to be true!"
"He is quite the catch," Cordelia mused, "Several of the women in the Shepherds considered pursuing him at one point or another."
"As a matter of fact," her mother added, "I'm pretty sure that half the girls in the castle have a thing for him."
"You may have to watch your back for some jealous would be lovers!" Cynthia joked while Lucina just wanted to escape.
Sumia, picking up on her daughter's discomfort, finally decided to end the teasing, "That's enough Cynthia. I think we've tortured her enough for now."
"Fine," Cynthia crossed her arms with a pout.
"In all seriousness," Cordelia spoke, "What are your plans?"
"Well," Lucina calmed herself down, "Until the threat is eliminated, we are going to have to keep up appearances I suppose. Though I'm not terribly certain how to go about that."
"We can go over that later," Sumia chimed in, "For now, let's talk about something else."
Lucina did not participate much in the rest of the lunch. Her mind was dwelling on how they teased that Robin might actually like her. She had considered the possibility before; it was before the peace had been won. They were growing closer and she actually thought that he might want to be more than the close friends that they had become.
However, she finally gave up hope after he did not seem to have said feelings. There was one time in particular that she felt that he might have been about to tell her – he had even brought her flowers, but he just cited cheering her up as his motivation. That was the turning point: he was a dear friend, and that was apparently all he wanted to be.
She kept up those thoughts as she wandered about the castle, not paying attention to where she was going. It was not until someone called out to her that she finally broke her reverie.
"There you are!" Robin ran up to her, "I've been looking all over for you."
"You have?"
"Yeah, apparently Sumia wants to talk about something with us. She said she told you, but you never showed up."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I got distracted."
"It happens to the best of us," the tactician smiled as he led her to their destination.
"You look nice. Today was your lunch with Sumia, right?"
She looked down at her simple attire. A simple blouse and a skirt-she actually liked dresses and skirts; they were impractical in the future so she never got to wear them though. It was certainly nothing extravagant though. Was he flattering her? The words of her sister and Cordelia rung through her mind unbidden.
"Yes, Cordelia joined us today."
"That's good. Do you have any idea what this is about?"
"No, I was not very attentive during that part of the lunch."
"That boring, huh?"
"No, I was just…distracted." Lucina did not volunteer why.
"What do you talk about at those lunches anyway? Or is that confidential?"
"Different things," her mind instantly turned to what they discussed earlier as she attempted to hide her blush.
"Fascinating," Robin replied dryly before smiling.
Soon enough they arrived at their destination to find out what exactly Sumia wanted to discuss.
