LUCINA'S POV

The first place I stopped at was a lovely village in the northernmost reaches of Regna Ferox. Technically, it was the road between two villages. I had run into a caravan with a bunch of panicked redheaded female merchants running around. They saw me, growled, and drew an assortment of silver weapons.

"Stop right there, brigand!" one yelled, brandishing a crooked sword crackling with magical energy. I took my hand off of Falchion's hilt. "Hold, I am not your enemy." I said, bowing slightly. "Are you plagued by brigands?" the merchants went into a huddle and began talking in quick, hushed tones. "Yes." One finally said as the huddle broke up. "Nasty brigands are charging a ridiculous toll price to get through here, and we've just ran out of food." A merchant from the back mumbled something about dumplings from Chon Sin.

"So, you need help killing brigands?" I asked, a slight smile forming. A merchant looked me up and down. "You don't look like much." She muttered, sheathing her crooked sword. I almost laughed. If she had known what I had been through… "Alright, I'll slay the brigands and you can pass through." I said, and continued down the path, my hand back on Falchion's hilt.

After a solid 20 minutes of walking, I saw the 'toll'. A large group of axe-wielding armor-clad men were sitting, drinking ale. They saw me, and immediately leapt to their feet, brandishing their axes. "Hey you, yar gotts to pay the fine if yar wanna pass! Or yar can face me axe!" one yelled, slurring his words.

"I think I'll stick with option B." I said, staring him down. "Whassat?" he said, obviously confused. I lunged, drew Falchion, and impaled him through the gut. His eyes widened in shock and he dropped his axe and his mug of ale. "G'night ma…" he murmured, and slumped to the ground.

The next half hour was a blur of whirling blades, drunken brigands, and sloshing mugs of ale. When the fighting was over, I stood panting despite the chilly air. The brigands lay on the ground before me, swimming in pools of blood. "I suppose that will be payment enough." I said, and walked back to the merchant caravan.

The merchants gasped when they saw me, and I swear I saw money passing hands. At least someone rooted for me. "Are the bandits… dead?" the one with the crooked sword asked. I nodded. The merchants all grinned at this. "Well, our names are Anna." She said, sticking out her hand.

I gasped. "Is something… wrong?" Anna asked, withdrawing her hand. "No, just a wound." I lied. "I must go now, safe travels." Then, I turned around back down the road from which I had come. "Anna, huh?" I muttered to myself, once I was well away from the caravan. Another grin appeared on my face, and I made no attempt to hide it. "Pleasure to re-meet you."

ROBIN'S POV

Three measly hours of sleep and roughly twice that amount walking, we were jumped. Yes, Chrom had woken us up at the crack of dawn. Yes, we took along a stuffy old hierarch who I had never met before. Yes, he sold us out to Plegia.

Plegia then swiftly murdered him. However, we were still surrounded by a whole lot of Plegians raring to knock us into the yawning canyon to our left. So, naturally, Emmeryn was moved to the back of the column of Shepherds with Phila, and the battle commenced.

I drew the Elwind tome I had traded with Ricken for my Elthunder, and blasted a wyvern rider into the abyss. From across the chaos, Ricken gave thumbs up and sent an arc of thunder down an enemy's raised lance. "GET THE PRINCE, YOU FOOLS!" the commander, a man named Vasto, yelled. He swooped down (on his wyvern, of course) to Chrom, lance raised.

Chrom's back was turned, and he was fighting off three mounted warriors at once. "CHROM!" I screamed, but I was too far away to help. It would take a miracle to save him. So, what happened next? A miracle, of course! There was a swish of red, and Vasto fell dead to the ground, throat slit.

Well, in Ylisse they say, the newcomer Cordelia saved Chrom's life three times that day. For at Vasto's death, the Plegians rallied, and sent Chrom flying into the abyss. I gasped as Cordelia swooped down after him, vanishing into the gloom. For a split second, there was dead silence.

Then, a javelin heralded perhaps the greatest comeback ever. The javelin, by some miracle, killed a wyvern, causing both rider and beast into the abyss. Cordelia spiraled out of the abyss with Chrom hanging on for dear life.

The Shepherds cheered, screamed, and leapt back into battle. The remaining Plegians didn't stand a single chance. I fought like I never fought before, whirling and slashing with my blade and sending enemies flying with Elwind. I felt invincible, and pretty soon, we were all surrounded by dead Plegians.

However, the battle had wielded two unexpected results. As soon as the battle was over, Cordelia burst into tears and began to tell her story. "The border… fell?" Phila said, obviously shocked. "Y-yes… My k-knight sisters… begged me to come and warn you…" she broke into a fresh wave of tears. "I can still hear them… screaming…" "It's OK, Cordelia. Your comrades rightly prized your youth."

However, Cordelia did not stop sobbing. Emmeryn's mouth formed a hard line. "I am returning to Ylisstol." She said, the twinkle of kindness almost gone from her eyes. "Emm, you can't!" Chrom yelled, sheathing Falchion. "I must, the people need me. Phila, take me back, now." Everyone was amazed at the tone of Emmeryn's voice, which had never rose above a soft, calm, quiet voice. So, uneasily, Phila allowed Emmeryn to climb on her Pegasus and they flew off.

Jack's Corner

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE! Yea, I know guys, I'm deviating from the script with the whole brigand thing. However, a certain reviewer said something that actually completely changed the story arc for me, and i'm sure they know who they are. Anyways, all that stuff aside, the wedding chapter is done! I just need to finish the last couple of chapters leading up to it. I've decided to split it into multiple parts so you don't get a overload xD And, I added a little Christmas-y thing... 'In Ylisse they say, the newcomer Cordelia saved Chrom's life three times that day!' Anyways, Merry Christmas! ^_^