I haven't mentioned it in a few chapters, so queue regular disclaimer from chapter one.
Once again, future children feature heavily today. They, for the most part, have their mother's hair color. Kjelle appears some, and just note that her promotional hair is black(?).
To my benevolent reviewers:
Mattariago: No Tharja this chapter... But let's just say she, Virion, a notebook, and a certain future child are going to feature heavily in the next one. ;)
Whisper6636: Heheheh. No unnamed characters this time, so less worry! I'm glad you enjoy my work.
A Shadow's Lament: Thanks! And as for incorporating supports, I'm going to try where ever I can, so keep an eye out for 'em.
: Thank you! And Robin's romantic partner is a secret. Let's just say the road to love is never straight or smooth!
Cormag Ravenstaff: More drama! And Anna will appear, I just can't find the right time, gosh darnit! The struggle is real. :T
Random Chicky: Chrom is such a cutie pie. In my head (which I guess is obvious, but whatever), he'd be super confident when it comes to leading people, but super awkward when it comes to fluffy things. Sooooo adorkable. Thanks for the support!
Guest: There may or may not be a little more Stahl in this chapter. Maybe. But I'm not saying anything.
Alsoooooo, to all my silent readers: I appreciate ya! Somehow I keep forgetting to say it, but your support keeps this story running, too!
Shout out to my shiny new followers: , Tcc12374, namelesspenname
Enjoy!
"You and Mom are keeping secrets from me." They were halfway between school and home when Robert halted. Robin strode ahead of him. "Robin." Higher than normal, Robert's voice scared the birds from their early morning perches.
"It's not secret keeping. It's none of your business," Robin said. Tugging on Robin's jacket sleeve, Robert frowned at the cracks in the sidewalk. Through the knit fabric, Robin could feel the warmth of her brother's fingers. "Let go of my sleeve. What are we? Six again?" Neither of the twins moved.
"First you were on the phone with that creepy Plegian instructor—"
"Her name is Madame Aversa, and her piano skills are so renowned she could sacrifice animals to the dark gods and still get performances in Ylistol Central Theatre." Robert sighed, long and heavy, and Robin knew it did not suit him. "I've told you this at least—"
"Then you and Mom talked for hours." As Robert's fingers dug into the fabric, Robin felt the jacket cuff tighten around her wrist.
"I thought you said Mother and I should talk more."
"Do you actually remember when we were six? When we would run around the house playing wizards and warriors, beating up the stuffed animals and couch cushions?" It was a distant haze, but the memory of tiny Robert tumbling over the side of the couch, bested by one of the cushions, and his bloody lip still remained.
"Life goes on, Robert. We moved out of that house. We're not six anymore." The jacket cuff was beginning to feel constricting.
"I remember. Our new house was in the country, and the trees and bushes of the woodlands proved more formidable than plush bears." Robin remembered this, too. "One day, I got lost in the woods." She screamed after him for a good twenty minutes and skinned her knee tripping over a tree root. "There I was, bawling in the middle of the forest, terrified I would be eaten by bears, when you stormed through some bushes, bloody knee and all. You made me hold your sleeve all the way home." Robert was always directionally challenged.
"Yeah, well, you can guide yourself now. You're old enough." Robin could not seem to yank her arm from Robert's hold.
"Are you leaving again?" As his voice wavered, Robert was the little boy clinging to his sister once more.
With a rough, difficult pull, Robin freed her sleeve. "If I were, you would know."
Henry and Severa joined band on the same day. Flipping one of her twin ponytails over her shoulder, Severa surveyed the band. Cynthia, Owain, and Cordelia all waved, but the girl only acknowledged Kjelle's nod from the back. Dropping a chair next to Chrom, Severa crossed her legs and twisted away from the boy. With his chipper smile, Henry squeezed himself next to Tharja, who shot the happy Goth a suspicious scowl. Leaning over, Henry looked to Cordelia. Cordelia, however, was suddenly rather absorbed in her music. Robert was sulking, and Robin could already sense a headache coming on.
Flowing through her Schumann concerto after practice, Robin couldn't keep her fingers moving. Instead she sat on the stool and stared at the keys, light reflected dully on alabaster. The piano, even trapped in this lonely school, this school where music was an afterthought, where bands were formed to get student body president votes, was beautiful. It was music, class, dedication, all things pure, without fault. Stahl sat down beside her. "I… I'm tired," Robin said.
Stahl hummed in agreement, closed his eyes, and basked in the sunny portion of the bench. "My Plegian piano instructor contacted me this weekend." An eye peeked open, hazel with long lashes Robin was close enough to count. Running a hand up and down the piano keys, Robin sighed. "When I left, I didn't tell them where I was going. My instructor found the band on Tharja's blog. She has one apparently. It's got what books I read any given day, how many times I sighed, the apple I ate two-" Gently, Stahl lowered the key cover, stopping Robin's stroking of the keys.
"And?" he asked, low and soft.
"She wants to see a performance." Stahl leaned on the key cover, but Robin did not have the heart to make him move. From her angle, Robin could find the swirls of brown in his pupils. Stahl could probably recognize the shadows under her eyes, the downward turn of her lips. "Stahl, I..." On the bench, the side of Robin's hand felt warm against his leg. She didn't even remember sliding closer to him.
"Shhh," Stahl said. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, the boy pulled Robin into his chest. The bridge of her nose pressed into his collarbone, and her arm was pinioned on the stool between their legs. However, Robin could not bring herself to move.
"I don't like touching," she said. It was muffled by his shirt, another sci-fi movie, smelling of detergent and soap.
"Well, this is what friends are for." Gingerly, Stahl freed her trapped hand and placed it on the other side of his legs, on the stool. The warmth from his hands, his chest, his collarbone, all seemed to ease away the slowly building stress. Friends… none of her friends at Plegian were quite this.
Cordelia thrust a paper out to Robin. It jabbed into her middle before Robin could grasp it, but the redhead was too interested in the opposite wall to notice. "I resign," Cordelia said. Glancing into the band room, Robin saw everyone else was oblivious, happily chatting.
"Cordelia?" Tossing some hair over her shoulder, the redhead smiled gently, a hollow smile Robin had not seen in a while. Robin studied the resignation note. The reason, penned in elegant cursive, was 'homework.' Chewing on her lip, Robin watched the redhead hobble away silently. "Well, if this is your decision, it was… nice to have you," Robin called after her.
"We aren't friends," the redhead replied from the end of the hall, "But perhaps, you can be Sumia's." Cordelia met her eyes, but Robin was too far to garner anything from them. "She genuinely cares for you, and when it comes to character… well, you are not morally deficient." Gee thanks, Cordelia. Leaning heavily on her crutch, Cordelia whirled around, red hair twirling behind her.
Cordelia made leaving seem easy, painless. "Where's my sister?" Severa's sharp demand echoed against the lockers. Spinning on her heel, Robin found the redhead poking around the doorway, face stuck in a scowl Robin was starting to think was perpetual. "Don't gape. You look like a fish. So my sister? Cordelia, of the perfect grades, complexion, and sweetness? Little hard to miss," Severa said. With a sneer, the girl pushed by Robin and looked around the hall.
"Excuse you," Robin said. As Severa rolled her eyes, Robin resisted the urge to smack the girl. While Severa and Cordelia had a similar bluntness, Cordelia tempered hers with politeness. Severa studied both ends of the hall, empty but for the lockers. "She resigned. I let her leave a few minutes ago."
Severa spun to face her, a ponytail smacking a locker with a metallic rustle. "Gawds, are you stupid?" Her sneer deepened, and Severa, with her twisted expression, looked a little similar to her sister when upset. "Which way did she go?" Somewhere underneath her exterior, there hid a hint of concern exposed in her voice.
"Down the hall." Severa was gone before Robin finished. Interrupting practice with a slammed door, Severa, scowl in place, returned alone. She and Cordelia were similar, Robin decided. Severa's shirt, a rumpled button up, was unbuttoned to expose several inches of pale skin, but it was obviously Cordelia's, looser in some parts, tighter in others. Severa adjusted her hair, smoothed her pants, fiddled with her buttons. If Robin squinted, the girl's features melded into Cordelia's. Then practice was over. "Robert," Robin said. Severa packed up alone, shrugging off Kjelle's hand on her shoulder. "Let's walk back together today." Her brother nodded.
Leaves rustled in the wind, tinted gold in the slowly setting sun. A town in the middle of nowhere, it smelled of country and nature and dew, and Robert was not talking to her. The boy kicked up a flurry of leaves, crunchy and prematurely dead. "So how's school?" Robin asked.
"Good." Like Cordelia and Severa, Robin supposed she and Robert were similar, too. Skinny, pale, guarded.
"Um…" A battered truck rumbled by, causing a small leaf storm. Fishing a crinkled orange leaf from her hair, Robin folded the leathery fiber into a small boat and let it sail away on the wind. It floated by her brother's shoulder. Robert said nothing. "You taught me that trick. Heh. There weren't too many trees in Plegia Capitol, all concrete and steel. It's nice to see I didn't forget," Robin said.
Where Plegia Capitol had skyscrapers, this little nameless town had parks. There was no Metro here, only the one train that ran through town, and its comings and goings were thrilling events. Robert continued to kick the leaves.
"So…"
"I think I'm going to call Virion." Robert fished his phone from his bag, the same model as Robin's but of a different color.
"You just spoke to Virion at band," Robin said. Robert was a few feet in front of her, but every crack in the pavement was a wall between them. The boy's head was down, fingers skipping on the plastic. "Robert…"
Raising the phone to his ear, Robert glanced over his shoulder. "We have a chess competition this weekend, and I want to make sure we have everything arranged. You see, Virion and I work together, talk to each other, solve things." She tried to formulate a reply, but her tongue was too heavy. The leaves were not quite as bright and the birds not quite as cheery when Robert ignored her. Did Severa and Cordelia feel this same distance now? Robert's words, from weeks ago, whispered that she and Cordelia were similar people. If they were similar, Cordelia felt alone and small.
Twirling a pencil in one hand, Sumia propped her chin up with the other. The book they were reading lay on the table between them. Class had ended a little early, and the novel was forgotten. "Cordelia never came to band yesterday," Sumia said. The brunette slowed her twirling. "Did she tell you something?"
Yeah, some excuse about homework I'm beginning to doubt, Robin thought. "No," Robin said. Picking up the book between them, she ruffled through the pages. The rough paper against her thumbs was oddly grounding. Robert was still not talking to her. "Severa asked me something similar though. Are they close?" It was an attempt to be nonchalant, but it sounded forced.
"I don't know…" Sumia chewed on her eraser. Pulling it away hastily, the girl sighed. "Bad habit. Anyways, Cordelia doesn't mention her much, and whenever I'm over, Severa never seems to be around." The pencil drifted closer to her mouth once more, and Sumia placed it on the desk with a definitive clack. "I hope she's coming today." Over Sumia's shoulder, Cordelia hobbled by the sliver of cracked door. "Robin?"
She was standing, and Robin could not remember rising from her chair. "I…" Cordelia quit band and was none of her business besides. The girl rather disliked her, as Robin remembered. Life was probably a little simpler now that she was gone. "I…" To argue with a sibling was painful. "I need to use the restroom," Robin said.
Heaving her bag over her shoulder, Robin ignored Sumia's curious glance. As she bolted from the room, Robin nudged chairs and students out of the way, dim clatters in the background. Cordelia was at the end of the hall, but the distance did not seem quite as far as the one between her and Robert. With brisk steps, Robin caught up to the girl. Crutch under one arm, the red head was concentrated on balancing some boxes with the other. "Here. Let me grab that, Cordelia," Robin said.
Cordelia flinched, and the boxes tumbled to the ground with a muffled cardboard smash. "Robin?"
"Ugh, sorry." Bending to the ground, Robin righted the boxes. Papers lay spread across the tiling, and Robin scooped them up in armfuls. Shifting her crutch, Cordelia began to lean down as well. With a wince, the girl knelt on the ground, injured leg splayed out unusually behind her. "It's okay, Cordelia. You-"
"I can do this," Cordelia replied. The breathiness of her voice suggested otherwise.
Now that they were shoulder to shoulder, Robin fumbled at the paperwork. Her throat felt sealed up, dry. "Um… So are these for Science Olympiad?" Cordelia collected paperwork as well, her weight heavily on one hand.
"I'm not really interested…" As Cordelia stretched over to reach a distant paper, her voice stretched as well. "Just, no small talk," she gasped. Paper crumpled in her fist, the girl sat quickly on her uninjured leg and pulled the injured ankle in front of her. The cast was obstructive, covering most of the remaining paperwork. Cordelia, pale and slightly sweaty, studied the pink plaster.
"Just let me help you," Robin said. It was peaceful in the hall. Sunlight reflected off the lockers, and paper rustled against the tiles.
"I don't even like pink," Cordelia muttered. "It clashes with my hair." Robin piled a few more sheets into one of the boxes. "When they were wrapping up my ankle, I told them 'any color but pink, just don't let it be pink.'" Afraid to meet the girl's face, Robin watched Cordelia pick at the plaster of her cast. It was a girlish color, the same shade as a light blush or pale rose. "Sumia sent you, I suppose."
Hunched over her cast, Cordelia looked like a child. "Actually, I came umm… just because?"
"You felt sorry for me," Cordelia said. It was a mockery, and the 'sorry' was long and sweet, with a hint of sour, like some fruit sitting too long in the sun. "Poor, poor Cordelia, all by herself with this hideous cast. She can't even carry some boxes to the faculty room without a knight in shining armor."
Cordelia was both right and wrong. Robin couldn't think of how to vocalize the similarities between Severa, Cordelia, Robert, and herself and rationalize it to the redhead. "You know, Severa said you were sweet."
"That doesn't sound like Severa at all," Cordelia replied, but the girl lifted up her head.
"Well, she's your sister, and she's worried about you. Are you trying to upset her?" Cordelia sighed, and it was Robert's sigh from days ago. It was important to comfort Cordelia. Robin could not explain why, but it was.
"With this stupid cast, she constantly worries about me." Tilting her head backwards, Cordelia studied the ceiling. The speckled squares looked spongy, soft to the touch, but Robin was too short to ever confirm it. "Everyone worries. You, Sumia, Severa, Henry—That's why they joined, you know. Henry gave me some lecture on ducking my responsibilities on Monday after band. Henry, the boy who devotes his Science Olympiad time to poking model hearts, wants to talk to me about skipping meetings." Cordelia scrubbed at her eyes with a shirtsleeve. "I don't know why." Her voice was high and shakey. "He has to follow me around with all the binders. I can't even carry them with this." Cordelia waved a hand aimlessly to her side where the crutch lay. "It'd be easier for him to handle it himself."
Robin chewed on her lip. Stahl, Sumia, Robert, even Chrom could probably solve this. They would say… "It's not your fault, Cordelia. Henry probably doesn't even mind."
"I'm helpless," Cordelia cried. "Of course he minds." Her hysterical exclamation echoed down the empty hall, and Cordelia sighed once more. "I was the star of the soccer team, the captain, and Flavia told me not to come back."
"She's worried, too. Your safety is important to the team," Robin explained patiently. It felt right. If Robert were injured, she would not want him to risk himself for anything.
"They've lost all their games since. I've failed." Cordelia collapsed over her uninjured knee, red hair a haphazard waterfall over her fair skin.
"It's—"
"Not my fault?" Cordelia's sneer was Severa's. "I should have known. I should have been more careful. What good is genius if you can't use it to protect people you care about?" Her sweet and sour tone was back, picking and choosing words to twist. "Everyone slips in to steal the positions I can't fill. I've fallen, and they don't need a useless person." Cordelia seemed exhausted. "Makes sense, really."
"Well, they're probably trying to help. Besides, Henry obviously doesn't think that," Robin said. She didn't know really, but Cordelia shifted some hair to cast her a sidelong glance. Perhaps this comforting people thing was more telling them what they wanted to hear rather than what you actually knew. "And neither does Severa. And Sumia asked me a few minutes ago if you were coming to practice today." Cordelia propped her chin on her knee. Her eyes were red and swollen, cheeks damp, but her eyes themselves were dry. "And… I left the first mello part open. No offense to Sumia and Cynthia, but neither of them can do those high notes justice." At that, Cordelia smiled, a light one and more genuine than all Robin had seen so far. "Umm… So we need you at least, and screw everyone else. You shouldn't pander to them anyways."
Robin rose to her feet and offered Cordelia her hand. Hoisting herself up, the redhead drummed on her crutch as Robin collected up the rest of the papers. With both of the boxes, Robin could barely see over the top. Students were leaking out of their classrooms, and the next period was soon to start. "Perhaps, you're right," Cordelia said. "I… I think I'm going to wash my face. If you want to leave those at the bathroom…" Robin rolled her eyes. Cordelia, slightly taller, could just see it over the boxes. "Or you can take them to the faculty room. O-Or wait for me? Actually, you can do what you want." Fidgeting with her buttons, Cordelia limped down the hall. After a moment, Robin trailed after her.
It was Friday, and Robin was crammed between Gaius's rather pointy elbow and the fluffy pompoms of an over-enthusiastic lacrosse fan. As Robin learned last Friday, the lacrosse team was wildly popular, mostly due to Sully's ability to knock over every player while looking unusually cool. Chrom and Vaike had already shouted themselves hoarse for the girl, and Frederick, usually reserved, boomed over the crowd now and again. Cordelia, mashed in between Henry and Sumia, looked distant, but she was back. Severa, pointing something to Kjelle, seemed cheered. And Robert was still ignoring her. A light tap on her shoulder, Robin turned around.
It was a reunion she should have expected. Madame Aversa was everything she remembered. Pale hair, the same as Robin's yet somehow more beautiful, the familiar scent of rose, a gentle smile that only strangers labelled as smug, her old instructor looked down on her. Robin's throat felt sealed. Her stomach lay somewhere below her toes. "Is this how you greet your closest teacher?" Aversa asked.
Before the woman could finish opening her arms, Robin barreled into her stomach. This hug was not Stahl's, all warmth tainted with some tugging in her stomach. This hug was home. "I…" She could feel band staring at her, and Robert's glare was almost tangible. Detangling herself from Madame Aversa, Robin spun to face the band. Chrom hastily looked back at the game, and Sumia and Cordelia struck up a sudden, loud conversation. As Stahl turned to Kellam, Robert raised an eyebrow at her. "Robert…" Robin pleaded.
He shoved his clarinet into Ricken's chest. The smaller boy stumbled backwards into Maribelle, but Robert was already at the front of the band. "Well, go on then," he said. His voice was dark, and he refused to meet her gaze.
"Robert…"
Ignoring her, her brother motioned to lead the band in a song. Chewing on her lip, Robin watched his back, but Madame Aversa placed a hand on her shoulder. Robin motioned her out of the stadium. The two sat on a bench outside. It was designed for parents to pick up their children, and from it, there was a view of the parking lot, mostly dirt and trucks. The band was a distant echo. "So this is where you've been. After your sudden withdrawal from our music academy, we've missed you," Aversa said. Her prim posture and professional clothing were at odds with the splintered wood of the bench. "Your band is… cute."
Cute in the same way a child toddling around in her mother's shoes is cute, Robin supposed she meant. "They're dedicated, and they have made a vast improvement since I arrived," Robin said. Robin could hear the band on their last few strains of their song. After weeks of practice, Chrom could finally hit those higher notes critical to the melody. When he managed it, the boy's smile was radiant.
Aversa tittered. "Well, of course they've improved, dear. Under the tutelage of a genius such as you, I'm not surprised at all." Shifting on the bench, Aversa slid a little closer. "But have you improved, Robin?"
Stahl's face came back to her, his soap and detergent smell, his warm hand on her shoulder. Certain aspects of herself she had improved. Sumia, Stahl, Chrom, Robert, even Gaius and Cordelia, perhaps. Never would she have let so many people so close to her at Plegian. "I... I feel stagnant, in some regards. This town is small, and my mother has no piano." A squirrel scampered by, hopping amongst some crunchy leaves. There were far fewer squirrels in Plegian Central. "I have been working on that Schumann Concerto, though. I would love for you to hear it," Robin said. She smiled up at Madame Aversa, and Madame Aversa smiled back.
"I'm sure the piano here will not do it justice," Madame Aversa replied, and she was right. Robin chewed on her lip and watched the squirrel dig for its food. The band had started another song, one she had chosen for them specifically, a particular favorite. "The grand piano in Plegian Capitol, however, might be worthy of your piece." Robin jerked her head up. Madame Aversa's smile deepened, displaying her glossy, perfect teeth. "We at Plegian were thinking you should play it in the winter. February 29th, to be specific."
It was difficult to breath. "Why?" Robin gasped. A performance? Her fingers itched at the opportunity to touch the piano she had become familiar with, to play for a crowd, to watch the velvet curtains rise and to feel the hand of her father on her shoulder once more.
"There is a scholarship the academy offers for… poorer children such as yourself. Tuition is expensive, and if your mother cannot afford it, perhaps we can help ease your passage, provided you are the best musician at our audition in February," Aversa said. Robin's feet felt small and far away. The squirrel was but a blot in the distance. "I have already vouched for you."
"I…" Robert would not like it. Her mother would not like it. Robin played with the hem of her shirt. Somehow she could hear Severa's distress at the disappearance of her sister. She could feel a much younger Robert's fist digging into her sleeve.
"It can be difficult," Aversa said, "to leave behind friends and family, but for young talent such as yourself, to stay in a small town can mean death for a promising musical career." Gently, Madame Aversa placed a hand over Robin's. "I only look out for your future."
Madame Aversa's nails, shortened for the piano, rested on the back of Robin's hand. It was everything Robin wanted, and she knew it. "Madame Aversa… I…" With a roar, the crowd flooded out of the stadium. The match was over, and it appeared Ylissean North had won. Rising to her feet, Madame Aversa brushed wooden slivers from her skirt. Robin scrambled after her. "Are you leaving so soon?" Robin asked.
"This is but one stop of many, my dear, and I must be in Ylistol Central Theatre by tomorrow morning." Madame Aversa shifted her handbag from her left to her right hand. As she paused to dig for her keys, the woman struck an odd picture among the rush of students painted in school colors. With a jingle, Madame Aversa waved to Robin. "Think on my proposal, Robin. I look forward to hearing your response by December." The crowd roared by, swallowing her instructor whole, and Robert was definitely not talking to her.
More drama... but slightly lower key? Maybe? Anyways, Cordelia is a little happier! Poor baby. And Robin is more upset! Poor baby, again.
Anyways, next chapter guess what chess competition we'll be seeing... and which future child gets his/her debut. ;)
Well, per usual, I love your reviews/follows/favorites/PMs and appreciate everything from writing suggestions, to pairing suggestions, to character appearance suggestions. Even if I don't get to them straight away, they are not ignored!
