Maybe I should have seen such a thing. It would be only natural that someone would eventually try to kill me. The Shepherds have never been the calmest or most rational people without their 'brave little tactician' who couldn't even save the former queen. Naga dammit, there went my self-decrepitation again. Maybe my wife was correct in her assertion that I was becoming nihilistic, I certainly don't have the most heartwarming thoughts in the world.

Then again, that doesn't matter right now as there is a sword being leveled at me. Surprise, surprise, I didn't think it would be that sword specifically, though I did say these folks weren't the brightest in the world. Then again, I should probably hear my assailant's reasoning. I always tended to judge the motivations and intelligence of others too hastily outside of battle. Maybe for once, I'll be proven wrong and there will be a truly valid point made where there are no alternatives to my death.

Nope, scratch that. This girl's reasoning is flimsier than Donnel's when he would try to help Morgan and me strategize. Apparently, my amusement at the girl was audible as I heard a snort of laughter break the tension surrounding the field. I doubted she was in any mood to laugh and the sound had a masculine tone to it, so all evidence pointed to me being the culprit. While I would normally be upset at the break in my bearing, this wouldn't be a true battle and I doubted my opponent would be able to use it for anything worthwhile.

The little princess growled at me, her previously reluctant hostility quickly becoming unchained, "Why the hell are you laughing? I'm trying to kill you to save our world, and you're just shrugging off my threats as if they were jokes! What the hell is wrong with you?" Her tone was harsh as her voice raised in volume. Oh, how I loved toying with enraged individuals, they're always so free with their emotions. Untying the fabric that kept my cloak on my shoulders, I let the garment fall into a heap by my feet. I could clean it of any collected dust and grass if I won, and I wouldn't need it if I lost this duel.

I smirked as I drew my own sword from its sheath, the blade coming free silently, "Why does it matter, you're already going to try and kill me. If you truly believe your path is right, then you shouldn't hesitate at all. Come then, prove your resolve." I brought my blade up and into a guard as I took a simple stance. I would let Lucina come first since it was only proper as she had issued the challenge. The muscles in her legs tightened, giving me the signal I needed to be ready to counter. As she charged at me, I quickly adjusted and parried the slash at my side before I retaliated with a thrust at her gut. As she jumped back to avoid the attack, I rushed up, my sword seemingly aimed to cleave her sword arm off at the shoulder. As she moved the alternate Falchoin to protect herself, I revealed my feint as I planted a fist into her chest.

The blow took her by surprise, knocking both her breath and sword out of her grasp as she fell to the dry ground of the field. Wasting no time, I dropped my blade as I had no intention to maim or kill the girl and pounced on top of her. The struggle began as she realized what had happened and clawed at me. A few scratches were nothing to me as we rolled about, creating a small cover of dust around us. I rained a few punches down, mostly at her arms, torso, and chest regions though a few nearly hit her head in the scuffle.

Finally, Lucina revealed her ace and pulled a small dagger from a hidden pocket. The flash of steel was evidence enough for me to grab at her wrists. She yelped as I took hold and tightened my grip but her hand remained glued to the dagger's grip. Finally, she began to falter and as the thoughts that she had lost took over, she let a few quiet whimpers, "P-please, I'm sorry..." I growled, knowing she wanted this to end and act as if it never happened. As if I would let her off without a lesson, act like we were the best of friends.

I pulled her wrist up, enough to place the blade's edge against my throat. Her eyes widened in shock, her mind confused at my actions. That shock turned to sudden fear as my smirk returned and even morphed into a smile such as a Cheshire's, "Go ahead, your majesty, show me your resolve. Kill the dragon spawn and fulfill your goals. Chrom would be proud that you killed his best friend who turned out to be an unknowingly demon child, that same best friend who protected your dead aunt during a castle siege and held your father up as he cried after her apparent death. Kill the man who helped deliver you into this world and acted as your teacher and protector. Prove to me that you're the real Princess Lucina, unlike that babe that sleeps within a majestic crib in the capital's stronghold."

My words cut through her armor as a few tears began to swell in her eyes. For a moment, Lucina tried to hold on, tried to blink away her weakness, but soon, she began to softly cry as the dagger dropped to her side uselessly. Sneering at her, I stood up as she curled into a ball-like form and began to wail. I had already seen Chrom and Frederick's horses and their riders approached, so she'll be well-protected if I left her here. Grabbing my cloak, I slung it back to its place on my shoulders and steeled my face in cold indifference. As I passed by a seemingly furious Chrom, I ignored his questioning and spat out at him, "Teach your daughter to kill her foes without hesitation, like a true heir. I doubt she'll learn anything from my teachings or be able to kill me without that fundamental truth."

I continued on, back to the tree line of the forest that hid the army's camp. A few feet inside hid my wife behind a tree, her raven hair framing her majestic facial features beautifully. My mask fell and I gave Tharja a small, gentle smile as I wrapped my arms around her, "Sorry that took so long, love. I didn't think she waste so much time before following me." The response of apology accepted was silently as Tharja suddenly captured my lips with hers. The soft, loving kiss was just as suddenly broken off by her and she buried her face her face into my chest, content with being enveloped in my arms. Giving her a final kiss on the head, I began to lead her back to the camp, wanting to sleep through the approaching night in her arms before I had to deal with the full aftermath of my scuffle tomorrow.

So yeah, I wrote most of this on my iPad while riding a bus actually. Hopefully, everything will look fine when I post it and you guys read it. This chapter... Honestly, I don't know why I wanted to write it. Maybe I was just so tired this morning that my mind thought it was a good idea. Either way, I guess you could say this me showing that my version of Robin is sociopathic in some ways. Before, he was cruel when he needed to teach someone a lesson. This, on the other hand, was kind of him just being fed up with being looked at like a traitor and taking it out on Lucina during the whole "I must kill you to save father" scene.

EDIT: Sometimes, I really hate this site when it comes to trying to format anything in a story.