Life was a funny little thing. At least, for anyone that wasn't Lucina, who had the sense of humor equivalent of a peanut. How ironic was that, right when she decided to take up an attitude and finally give Peach an answer, said princess was nowhere to be found? It seemed like she had searched that entire mansion up and down, but she saw no sign of her. Sure, finding just about anyone inside that place wasn't exactly the easiest thing to do, considering how huge and crowded the Smash mansion was to begin with. Top it all with the fact that Lucina really didn't consider the option of asking about the princess' whereabouts to anyone, and it was no wonder why she was having difficulties.

She went to check the foyer a second, just in case Peach suddenly decided to show up there, when she found the Hero King Marth talking to Ike there. The two seemed to be just chatting idly and hardly noticed the presence of the future princess of Ylisse, which was great for her, because she honestly couldn't face the Radiant Hero of Legend at the moment. Not after such a disastrous defeat they had because of her poor performance in today's battle.

Lucina turned on her heels and prepared to make a quiet and swift exit, but it was too late for her because Marth had just noticed his descendant with her back to them. "Lucina, hello there!" he greeted amiably

"Oh, Hero Ki- Marth!" she corrected herself. Sometimes it felt very surreal to have to drop formalities when around her ancestor. But who could blame her for having the habit of being very respectful around Marth, when said swordsman was a living legend from the time she came from?

"Hey, Lucina," Ike said with a wave of hand, which Lucina answered with a nod of her head. "You feeling better?"

"Feeling better?"

"You seemed pretty distracted and nervous before," the muscular swordsman simply said. "I was worried something happened."

"It is nothing you should be worried," Lucina replied nervously. "But thank you for your concern."

"If you say so."

"Have… any of you two seen Princess Peach around?" she asked.

Lucina slightly cocked her head to the side as she saw Marth let out an irritated groan at the mention of the princess' name. What did she say? Apparently, she wasn't the only one confused, because Ike also gave the young king a questioning look.

"I don't know," he said with crossed arms. "Have you tried the garden? Or the kitchen? When she's not baking sweets, she's checking her turnip plantation."

"Or just goofing around with Mario or Luigi at the city," Ike shrugged.

"I do hope that's not the case now," Lucina mumbled.

"Did you have a fight with her again, Marth?" Ike asked.

"It wasn't a fight, per say," Marth sighed. "It was more of a disagreement than anything. Seriously, Peach can be such an inconvenience sometimes."

"What happened between you two?" now Lucina really wanted to know what happened between them. It wasn't always that she saw the Hero King this annoyed.

"We were just talking about the rumors of Samus and Palutena being a couple and I said that I didn't find their relationship normal," the blue-haired swordsman said bluntly. "And all of a sudden she got offended, acting as if I had just said the worst thing ever."

"O-Oh… that is very unfortunate…" Lucina shifted her weight from one foot to another awkwardly. She could feel a very cold, nervous sensation building up in her chest and running down to her stomach. "And… you don't think their relationship is normal at all?"

"Lucina, let's face it, there is nothing normal about two women being together. Men and women exist for a reason. Every other type of relationship is an aberration."

"O-Of course," her voice was barely a whisper at that point.

"I wonder why she got offended!" Ike blurted out sarcastically.

"Come on now, Ike, you know what I meant," Marth said, returning the other's glare. "This is just what I think. They can do whatever they want with their lives."

"At least keep this opinion to yourself!" the mercenary snarled. "No one here wants to know how much of an aberration you think same sex couples are."

"Lucina made a question and I just answered," he said dryly. "Right, Lucina?"

But Lucina was nowhere in their sight at that point. In the midst of their arguing, it appeared that the swordswoman had left without uttering a single word. The two legendary heroes looked confused at the spot where she stood before, not quite understanding what would make her leave just like that. "Now that's awkward," Ike commented.

"She probably went after Peach," Marth suggested with a shrug of shoulders.

"Why do you think she wanted to talk to her?"

"I don't know. Despite her being my descendant, I really don't know much about what is going on in her life."

The two blue-haired men got silent for a moment, completely forgetting about what they were talking about before Lucina appeared. Truth be told, Ike was still very resentful about what Marth had just said and apparently it showed a lot on his face, since he heard Marth muttering "sorry" under his breath.

Sometimes he wondered why he still talked to him.

Actually, he knew, but he really didn't like the answer to that question.

Meanwhile, Lucina just went on her way, her walking getting heavier and heavier with each step given and her shoulders gradually getting as stiff as stone. How she wished she hasn't stopped by to talk to Marth. How she wished she didn't still wanted to see Peach. What would the Hero king say if he ever found out what Peach had just suggested her? How would he react if he saw that Lucina would go for it?

He would look down on her. That thought alone made her guts twist in a way that made her just want to quit everything and just continue her life as if nothing was happening. She still couldn't leave Peach hanging, though.

On her way to the garden, she passed by both Robins, who seemed to be having problems of their own that Lucina quite honestly didn't have time to try to help them get over with.

"Lucina, wait!" Robin called out as she continued to hold on to her male counterpart's coat sleeve. "Rob here has something to tell you!"

"Robin, not now," the swordswoman replied hastily.

Before any of the two tacticians could do anything, Lucina has already left. Not that they would have any chances of keeping up with her, because Rob slowed the two of them down with his attempts of trying to get rid of his counterpart's grip on his clothes.

"Robin, let go."

"Look what you've done!" Robin complained as she finally let go of him. "She's gone now."

"I'm sure I will get another opportunity to talk to her," he said, shooting daggers with his eyes at Robin. "Why are you so interested in me confessing to Lucina?"

"I thought we have already discussed this."

"And I think there's something more to your motivations other than being nice and letting me confess to her first," Rob said. "You seem more worked up about this situation than me, and I'm the one that might actually lose Lucina to Peach."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Robin denied, not so convincingly.

"It's true."

"No, it isn't."

"Robin, I don't know what happened between you and the Lucina from your reality," the white haired male said cautiously. "But are you sure you're not doing this just because you're projecting yourself in me?"

Rob could see that he was getting onto something, or else Robin's wouldn't be turning so red at the moment. If that blush was from embarrassment or fury, Rob couldn't tell, but it was still a sign anyway. "Robin, just be sincere with me," he said putting a hand on her shoulder. "Are you really that afraid of Lucina rejecting you, to the point that you need me to live your fantasy for you?"

That last statement was the breaking point for the white haired girl, who violently shook the other's hand off from her shoulder. "Rob, just go confess to Lucina already," she retorted angrily.

"I'm not in a hurry. I can wait until you answer me."

"You're impossible!"

"I can say the same for you."

"How come we are the same person?"

"You can say that again."

"Ugh…" she grunted as she buried her face on his shoulder, earning from him a pat in the head in return.

"I guess we both are at loss at what to do," he mumbled as he continued that comforting gesture.


"Peach, I think I cannot accept your offer," Lucina suddenly announced.

The princess almost dropped the cup of tea she held in her hand from the announcement and looked behind her, only to find a very awkward Lucina standing behind her with her arms folded. Peach was indeed in the garden, the only place Lucina had failed to check, having her weekly cup of tea with Luigi, who also looked at the princess of Ylisse in confusion. The two were just having a casual conversation about how Toadsworth was getting kind of old and cranky, completely away from the reality of smash, so it took a couple of seconds until Peach realized what Lucina was referring to when she said "offer".

"I-Is that so?" she stuttered while switching nervous glances between Lucina and Luigi.

"Princess Peach? Is everything okay?" Luigi asked in concern.

"Oh, Luigi, you are here," Lucina commented. "I am very sorry. I didn't notice you there."

"It's okay. I'm already used to this…" the sincerity in his voice made Lucina's heart feel heavier.

"Hmm… Luigi, dear, can you please give us some space, please?" the Mushroom Kingdom princess asked. "There is something Lucina and I need to discuss alone."

Luigi eyed the two royals suspiciously, but did what he was asked. By Peach's nervous glance, it seemed like the discussion was about to get serious and the last thing he wanted was to get in the middle of an argument he knew he would add nothing to it. Once he left, Lucina took his seat, all while avoiding eye contact with Peach.

"So…" Peach started.

"Ahem, yes."

"I hope you do realize that I didn't offer anything," the princess mentioned awkwardly.

"But you did offer me help with…"

"Lucina, I was flirting with you," she sighed.

"I know. It's just that seeing this as just you being kind to me feels less wrong," Lucina fidgeted her fingers nervously. She could feel the palms of her hand getting pretty sweaty.

"Less wrong?" the blonde tilted her head. "Why would this feel wrong?"

"Because… men and women exist for a reason," Lucina decided to repeat her ancestor's words, not really finding any other argument.

"Oh, well, alright. If you feel this way, I can't force you to do anything," Peach said resting her chin on her hand. "I'm just confused about why you suddenly think like this. You seemed to be pretty open before."

"That was before talking to the Hero King."

Lucina was taken aback by Peach sudden shift in attitude. The once laidback princess had now her fists shut tight and had her teeth gritted, as if all sorts of terrible images about the Hero King were passing through her mind. Lucina couldn't recall seeing Peach this angry before.

"That bigoted… thick-headed… gah!" she continued to cuss him under her breath, the worst insults were being thrown in a whisper so low that Lucina couldn't quite catch on what else she was saying.

"Is everything alright?"

"Yes, but you really shouldn't be listening to Marth," Peach said once she calmed down. "He may be a wise and good leader, but he isn't exactly the most accepting person in the world when it comes to people who… deviate from what he considers normal. Not everything he says is right, you know?"

"I just… don't want him thinking I'm disgusting," Lucina mumbled.

"There is nothing disgusting in wanting to sort out what you want for yourself," Peach gave a sympathetic smile. "Besides, since when does Marth need to know? You're not obligated to tell him everything about your life, right?"

"I suppose he doesn't."

"Lucina, just be sincere with me," she said with her hands rested on her lap. "Do you want to kiss me? Like I said before, I am not going to force you to do anything, so it's really all up to you."

The blue-haired girl's silence was already a good answer to Peach's question. It was really a shame, but what could she do in a situation like that? Despite her rather selfish motivations, the Mushroom Kingdom princess did also want to help Lucina sort her feelings out.

"I want it…"

Peach shouldn't be grinning this much at the moment, but hey, she was just bones and flesh.

"Really?"

"Um, yes," she rubbed the back of her neck, still not wanting to look her in the eye. "But can we keep this a secret? Please?"

"Of course!"

Lucina took a deep breath as she saw Peach moving from one chair to another in order to get closer to her. Her eyes scanned her surroundings to make sure nobody would see the two of them so close to each other. Luckily, the garden was completely empty due to very few Smashers wanting to spend time there. Also, because the table had a big open parasol in the middle, the view to anyone who suddenly decided to check up on the garden from a window above in the mansion was blocked. So maybe she was safe, after all.

She squeezed her eyes shut and let Peach take the lead, as she was too nervous to even lean forward for a bit. She could feel the other's lips gently pressing on hers and, for a moment, it felt like the world around her had just stopped. They felt sweet and soft, there was no doubt about it, but there was something inside of her that just stopped her from going in any further. Was it nervousness? Perhaps. Or maybe it was something else entirely, Lucina was not sure. Despite how good that kiss felt, something in it still missed.

Apparently, Peach had also noticed that, because no more than a few seconds later she broke their kiss apart, bringing Lucina back to reality just as quickly as she made her leave.

"You don't want to do this at all," she simply said with a bittersweet taste in her mouth. Deep down she really did want to go on with that kiss, but she would get nothing with Lucina not corresponding to it.

"I-I'm sorry," she replied.

"Eh, don't be. At least, now you know," Peach fidgeted her fingers. "So… how did it feel?"

"It felt nice, actually. Much nicer than I would have imagined," Lucina commented with a tinge on relief in her voice.

"Did it feel better than kissing a guy, or…?"

"Actually, I wouldn't know," the swordswoman said blushing. "I have never kissed anyone before."

"Wait! Your first kiss was with me?!"

"Yes."

Peach shouldn't be feeling so great and powerful, but hey, she was just flesh and bones. So her feelings might not be reciprocated by the cute swordswoman, but that was alright. Knowing that she was Lucina's first kiss really did lift her spirits up a lot. Peach's ego at the moment seemed to have gone to the moon and refused to come back.

Oh, how would she brag about this to Captain Falcon if she didn't promise to keep it a secret. What an amazing sensation!

"But, I don't know, something is still missing. I can't understand what it is," Lucina continued, completely oblivious to the other's sense of accomplishment.

"I think I know what it is," Peach said once her mind started get back to reality.

"Oh, and what would that be?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"Lucina, I know this is out of nowhere, especially after all of this that just happened," the Mushroom Kingdom princess said. "But do you have a crush on anyone here in the mansion?"

Lucina hesitated for a couple of seconds, earning a sly grin from the blonde.

"A crush, uh? Well, there is this person," she started awkwardly. "I-I'm not sure if it counts as a crush, though."

"Do you like being in this person's company?"

"That doesn't say much. I like being in your company too and I don't have a crush on you."

"You're very sweet, despite that last part being totally unnecessary," Peach said.

"Anyway, yes, I like their company a lot," she said. "And, okay, I do find them really attractive."

"Them?" Peach thought.

"But I'm still not sure how to approach them regarding, erm, romance," Lucina looked down. "I don't want to make things awkward between us, you know?"

"You never talked about the possibility of you two being together before? Not even dropped a hint that you like them?"

"Never really thought about that, no."

There was an awkward silence between the two princesses.

"Lucina, just go talk to Robin already," Peach said in a deadpan voice.

"How did you…?"

"Just go talk to Robin."


Lucina was very grateful for that particular day not having any more matches. She has been walking around the mansion for so long that she felt her feet almost turning into dust. Talking to Peach really did take a huge weight from her consciousness, though. Granted, not enough to make her want to look the Hero King in the face for the next couple of months, but she somehow felt at peace with herself and a little more secure about her feelings.

Now what she would do about these feelings was a different story. She had them sorted out alright… and that was exactly the issue.

She needed to rest.

Lucina slumped over the couch of the foyer, grateful that it was now vacant and that there was no one in sight. She still wondered how Peach guessed right off the bat that she had a crush on Robin. Maybe the princess was a lot more insightful than anyone in the mansion gave credit for. It was either this, or she was really good at making right guesses.

"Lucina!"

Speak of the devil.

"Hey there you two," she replied tiredly, turning her head to the two magicians that stood side by side.

It took them a good couple of seconds before Rob decided to say something. "A-Are you alright? You sound tired," he asked.

"A little," she said while sitting up properly. "So, why are you here?"

"I guess we could talk another time, then."

"No, no, no!" Robin interjected, giving a strong push to her counterpart's back. "We have discussed this. Say it, now."

"Okay…" he took a deep breath. "Lucina, Robin and I like you."

"Uh?"

"You were not supposed to include me in this declaration!"

"It was only fair."

"Rob, do you like to sabotage yourself?" the white-haired girl asked, almost pulling her pigtails out. "Do you have some sort of self-destructive personality? Because this was your chance at declaring to Lucina and you blew it!"

"Robin…"

"I just didn't think it was okay for you to pressure me into confessing my feelings for Lucina alone," Rob replied equally irritated. "You want to be with her as much as I want to."

"Rob…"

"No, because I know that she'd rather be with you!"

"H-Hey, both of you…"

"So you were planning on projecting yourself in me, in the end."

"Would you two just listen to me?"

"No, I wouldn't!"

"Yes, you would!"

"ENOUGH!"

The two tacticians stopped their bickering instantly and turned their attention to the girl they have been fighting for in question. They expected to find her completely furious at the complete clusterfuck that their love confession (if that could even be called that) was. To their surprise, however, they saw her giving them the most heart-warming smile they have ever seen coming from her.

"You two are impossible, you know that?" she asked getting up from the couch.

"We know," the two answered in unison.

"I… like you too."


Yeah, you guys all saw that coming, Lucina didn't end up with Peach. I'm not telling which Robin she ended up choosing yet, but I'm not sure if the answer is obvious, so I wanna know what you guys think: who Lucina will end up with?

"But Mah, what about Mario's reaction to this whole situation? Doesn't he love Peach?"

I'm glad you made this question, person I just made up to ask this question for other people. The answer is: no, he doesn't. It's been a while since I've stopped shipping MarioxPeach. Mario is dating Pauline, instead. I like to think that Peach has this really special and platonic bond with Mario (and Luigi, as well) and I really wanted to explain this in this story, but I couldn't find the opportunity to include this bit of information there. So I'm just writing this in the author notes.

Anyway, thanks a lot for reading! And I'll see you on the next and last chapter!

P.S: to the Anonymous review who said Peach chose to be a lesbian, I just wanted to correct you by saying that no one chooses their orientation. Also, because I like to think that she is actually bisexual. And I also would love to discuss the double standard of people (seemingly) being more accepting towards lesbians than gay men, but this is not what I intend to do in the author notes. PM me if you'd like to talk more, though. I really like discussing this subject with people.