Mozu

A humble campfire roared in the depths of a forest, accompanying the sound of cicadas buzzing their usual tune. Seven people sat around it, all waiting for Niles to hurry up and pass the booze around. "Yeah yeah, gimme a minute." Niles grumbled, emerging from his tent with a few more bottles. "You all are welcome to help me grab more bottles if you really care that much!"

"Booze! Booze! Booze!" Nina chanted, curling her hands into fists and slamming them down on her legs. Ophelia and Mozu had accompanied her, while Nyx grumbled something about foolish kids, Forrest looked incredibly uncomfortable, and Rinkah was her usual silent self. The three of them cheered as Niles finally started handing out the bottles.

"I never took you for a drinker, Mozu…" Forrest chuckled nervously as the shy country girl downed half her bottle in one gulp, sighing happily. Niles handed him one, which he eyed like it was poison.

"You kidding!?" Mozu exclaimed, drinking some more. "This is the one time I can totally relax! A good drink is like Heaven on earth!" She nudged Nyx, who was sitting next to her. "C'mon, drink up!"

"Beer is such an unrefined beverage." Nyx complained, setting her still-full bottle to the side. "At least have a nice wine prepared if you insist on drinks." She suggested while crossing her arms.

"My apologies, milady." Niles mocked, taking a swig of his drink. "Next time I'll prepare a fine three-course meal at a world-famous restaurant to accompany it." Nyx blushed gently from embarrassment, turning her face away from the thief. "Now, we've gotta celebrate our three new recruits; Ophelia, Forrest, and…" He blinked, looking at Nina. "…Nancy."

Nina looked like she was about to burst into flames. "IT'S NINA!" She screamed, scaring the living daylights out of Forrest but only making Niles laugh heartily. Mozu stifled a giggle, while Ophelia just found the whole thing hilarious, laughing so hard that she snorted. Nina stewed in her own misery.

"Right, Nina. So, I used to run with this gang, and they had a way of testing new blood. They would all sit around a campfire, and ask eachother questions about their deepest, darkest secrets." Niles took another drink. "With a healthy amount of alcohol, of course. Then, in the morning, if nobody had been stabbed to death in their sleep, they knew the newbies were trustworthy. So, I'll ask a question, and the person has to answer. Then, they ask somebody else. Simple!" He cleared his throat. "Ophelia, what's with your way of talking?"

"My way of talking, you ask?" Ophelia stood up as Forrest and Nina groaned. "Why, there's nothing wrong with it at all! I merely point out the true excitement in life! In reality, everything is a grand adventure of destiny!" The fire seemed to crackle and burst to accompany her speech. "If anything, you all just see the world much plainer and duller than you should!" She sat back down as Mozu watched her in amazement. She seemed to be the only one impressed. "Nyx! What's the greatest spell you've ever cast?"

Nyx scoffed at the question. "There is no such thing as a great spell. There is only one that is less horrifying and terrible than the rest. Forrest, why are you so deathly afraid of me?" Her question caused the youth to nearly leap up from the ground in surprise. "It's understandable for many to avoid me, but you take it to heights I haven't seen in ages."

"Ah, that's because…" Forrest curled his finger around his hair, staring at the ground. Everybody watched intently as he tried to think of a proper answer. "…Y-you intimidate me." There were a few moments of silence before Niles roared in laughter.

"Never thought I'd see the day when somebody got intimidated by Nyx!" Niles kept laughing. "Next thing you know, somebody will find Mozu's presence terrifying!" The country girl's face went red as a tomato as she tried to stammer a retort, only to fail to come up with anything. He was right, after all; she wasn't exactly a scary face.

Forrest cleared his throat. "So, Nina, what do you think of everyone so far?" An easy question, though it made sense for him to give one to his friend. The three of them knew eachother far better than Mozu and the others did.

"I like Mozu. She's nice." Mozu sighed in relief, hearing that Nina wasn't ready to make fun of her just yet. "Nyx is super standoffish, but also super adorable, so she gets a pass." Another "humph" from Nyx. "Rinkah is like a blank piece of paper. Honestly, what am I supposed to say?" Everybody's attention was turned to the silent woman, who had just finished downing her – wait, since when had she drank five bottles of booze!? "I don't like Niles, though."

"The sentiment's shared, sweetheart." Niles grinned as Nina grew enraged towards him once again.

"Call me 'sweetheart' again and see what happens, jerk!" Nina roared. Niles kept laughing, with Ophelia joining in. Nina's face began to soften as she too began to chuckle. Forrest and Mozu laughed nervously, and even Nyx and Rinkah showed the faintest of grins. Everybody seemed much more open and friendlier now that they had had a few good laughs and a few more drinks. It was nice. Mozu really did love these kinds of moments.

Azura

Azura glanced at the wall of the tent, hearing the laughing and shouting from nearby. "It sounds like they're getting along well." She turned back to face Corrin, who was currently looking over a map of Cheve that they had obtained from the last town they visited. The map rested on the ground, with Corrin hunched over it.

Corrin looked up at Azura, smiling warmly. "We can go hang out with them once we're done, if you want." She offered. Azura nodded in acceptance. Sure, she wasn't the most social person, but some drinks with friends sounded nice. It was even nicer that Azura considered them all friends, something which she didn't anticipate when she had first joined Corrin's merry band.

A single lantern illuminated the map as the crimson-eyed princess continued to pour over it, occasionally muttering to herself. It was like she had forgotten Azura was even there. "Any leads so far?" Azura inquired. Corrin nodded, pointing to a rather nondescript alleyway.

"The city follows a rather standard layout, all surrounding the river that runs through town." Corrin gently traced her finger over an illustration of Cheve's river. "It's surprisingly efficient in design. Then again, it was founded by knights. The military loves its efficiency." She pointed back to the alleyway. "This alley strays from the design. Not much, but enough to notice it if you're already looking for something out of place. Like it was hastily constructed after the town was made."

"So you believe that's where Cheve's resistance is hiding?" Asked Azura. "Even if that's correct, we aren't sure they'll know anything about the next clue to find Yato. We could just be wasting our time trying to find them."

"Nah. If anybody knows where the next clue is, it'll be the resistance." A slight grin formed on Corrin's face. "It's the worst-kept secret in Cheve that more than a few of its resistance members are descendants from some of its most honored families. The only reason Nohr hasn't stamped them out yet is because it would risk spurring the rest of Cheve into action. Not exactly the kind of people you'd want to make enemies out of."

"So, we'll start our search by going to the alley. What happens if your hunch is correct? Who's to say the rebels will be willing to help us out?" Azura wondered if she was being too skeptical. It wouldn't hurt to display some more optimism every now and then. She supposed it was just her fate to be a worrywart.

"Ah, you see…" Corrin began to chuckle nervously, rubbing the back of her head. She didn't finish her sentence, instead just continuing to chuckle. Azura very quickly realized that her worry was completely warranted.

"You don't have a plan for that, do you?" Azura asked bluntly. Corrin's chuckling only grew louder and more erratic. She let out a sigh. "I'm going to go talk with the others. I think a drink is just what I need right about—" She stopped talking as she turned around, realizing that the two of them weren't alone in the tent. Standing right in front of the tent flap was what appeared to be a ninja, with a cloth covering most of his face.

Almost immediately, Azura was yanked backward by Corrin, who had sprung to her feet with a knife in hand. She stood in front of Azura, holding said knife at the ready. "Azura, stay behind me." Corrin instructed. She glared unflinchingly at the man. "Kana, right?"

"Peace." The man held up his hands. "As you can see, I came unarmed." Kana's voice was softer than Corrin had expected it to be. He couldn't be any older than she was. Yet, he carried himself like he had decades of experience. He reminded her of Nyx in a way, albeit to a drastically smaller degree. "I understand you may not believe this, but our interests align in many places. As a result, it's in my best interest to help you."

Predictably, Corrin scoffed at this. "Oh, I'm sure. Well then, humor me. What could you possibly have that could benefit me?" Azura watched as the confrontation continued. She wished she could be as confident as Corrin was. Then again, she had also seen the girl when she let that confidence fade. Corrin had just as many faults as Azura did.

"Nina, Forrest, Ophelia. They're all lying to you." Kana explained. Corrin flinched in surprise for a second but quickly narrowed her eyes, keeping up her air of confidence. Showing weakness against someone like this could be fatal. Even Azura knew that. "They may be leading you to the Yato, but that road is far longer and more treacherous than they've let on." Laughing and shouting could still be heard from outside.

"My gut says I can trust them." Corrin retorted. "I tend to trust my gut."

"You only trust them based off what you know about them." Kana countered back. "You know dreadfully little. You could say the same for me, and you'd be correct. Next time you're talking to them, ask them questions about yourself that they shouldn't know the answers to. In fact, with them all getting drunk outside, now's a perfect time."

Corrin still didn't seem convinced. Azura, meanwhile, had no idea what to think. The man didn't sound like he was lying, but some people were experts at the art of misdirection. Besides, it was foolish to trust a man who hid his face. She finally spoke up. "Then what is their goal, if not to help us?" Corrin glanced back at Azura for a second before looking back to Kana.

"Do not misunderstand me. Their ultimate goal is still to help you. They too desire King Garon's demise. However, the lengths they will go to in order to achieve this goal, the measures they will take; are you truly ready to go down that path with them?"

"Maybe if you'd quit with the bullshit riddles, I'd be able to give you an actual answer." Even in a situation as tense as this, Corrin's snark seemed to never run dry.

"My apologies. I can not reveal too much. The situation is…precarious." There was a long pause before Kana spoke that last word. "However, I can see neither of you are going to be receptive to what I'm saying right now. I'll give you time to ponder what I've said." With that, he walked out of the tent flap.

Corrin ran out of the tent with Azura right behind her, the both of them looking around frantically to see where Kana went, to no avail. He seemed to have vanished almost the second he exited the tent. Corrin stopped herself from shouting in frustration since the others were so close by. "So what now, then?" Azura asked, turning to face her. "We can't just ignore what he told us. Lies or not, we need to be cautious."

Corrin took a deep breath. "I will not have anybody turning against eachother because some maniac who hides his face warned us to be careful. I'll keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary." She sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Just another migraine for the night. Great." She glanced over at the group. "You go have some drinks. I…gotta finish checking out the map."

Azura knew that Corrin was lying. She could read it on her face. She just wanted everyone else to have fun and relax while she went looking for Kana. At the same time, Azura knew that she'd never be able to convince Corrin to do otherwise. "Okay." That seemed to relieve her, at the very least. She gave a nod, returning to the tent as Azura headed to the campfire.

Takumi

Good news: The Fujin Yumi still worked fine. That was a breath of relief to Takumi. He always doubted if he was ever truly worthy to wield a Divine Weapon, but now with his left eye missing, he felt more unworthy than ever. What kind of miserable whelp would be able to use such a sacred weapon after carelessly letting something like that happen? Still, when he held it, it lit up, and he was able to let arrows fly.

Bad news: Takumi couldn't land a single hit. Even as Midori kept cheering and supporting him, Takumi missed every single shot at the makeshift target she had created for him. The straw dummy sat there with a smile drawn on by Mitama as if to mock him. He fired another arrow which soared right past it, hitting a tree. There were a lot of holes in the trees behind that target.

"It's okay, I'm sure you'll hit the next one!" Midori said reassuringly, though it was clear by the tone of her voice that even she didn't believe it anymore. "Y-you just have to keep trying!" Takumi took a deep breath, feeling the hum of another arrow materializing in his hand. It was a shame that said hand couldn't stop trembling. He fired the arrow and watched it zoom past the dummy and hit yet another tree.

A roar of anger erupted as Takumi clenched his bow so tight that his knuckles went white. "Damnit, damnit! Why can't I just hit one shot!?" He brought a hand to the left side of his face, where bandages still wrapped over his head and under his chin, covering his eye socket. The lack of depth perception was clearly a major factor, but even then, he should have hit something by now. That was what bothered him even more; he knew it was all in his mind, but he couldn't stop missing.

Midori held her thumb to her chin, looking up in the air. "That's so strange. I checked up and down for signs of brain damage, but I was certain the arrow didn't lodge in that far…maybe I just didn't check the right spot?" It was rather unnerving for Takumi to see the young girl go over complex medical knowledge like she was talking about the weather.

"It's not brain damage." A sigh followed as Takumi set the Fujin Yumi on the ground, sitting down next to it. "I just…can't focus. Usually, when I take aim, I can just hold my breath and focus. Everything but the moment fades into the background. But now, I can't stop thinking about everything else. And now, with my eye…" He instinctively felt the bandages covering his eye socket. "I just can't stop and breathe long enough to find my mark."

Midori took a few moments to think about that. Then, her face lit up; a clear sign that she had struck upon an idea. She pulled her backpack off and set it in front of her, opening it up and digging through its contents. Eventually, she pulled out a steel dagger and held it out to Takumi with both hands. "Here, take it. Asugi gave it to me, in case I needed it, but I already have my yumi to protect me. You need this more than I do."

Takumi hesitated. It didn't feel right, accepting this kind of gift. But the look in Midori's eyes told him that she wasn't going to take no for an answer. He reached his hand out and wrapped it around the handle, pulling back and inspecting the blade. It showed signs of heavy wear. "You've used this before."

"Yeah." Midori looked down. "There weren't a lot of times on the way to the past that we weren't fighting or struggling." Takumi recalled what Midori had told him about their journey through time.

"There was this super-duper smart guy named Dwyer, who studied these things called Deeprealms. Think of them like mini-worlds, scattered through this thing called the Astral Plane. I'll save all the science behind it since it's a headache and a half to understand. Anyways, time flows differently there. One hour in one Deeprealm might only be a second here, or the vice-versa. Dwyer figured out that if you went through the right Deeprealms, you could end up twisting and bending time until you were actually going backwards."

"You never told me what happened to Dwyer, you know." Takumi pointed out. He felt a twinge of guilt shoot through him as he watched Midori flinch. "I'm sorry. You don't have to explain if you don't want to."

"…We were all gonna go together. There were a lot more of us, originally." Midori's hands curled into fists. "But there was a…schism. Some of us wanted to do different things, or use different methods. Eventually, disagreements broke out into fighting. After all, messing with the past is really dangerous." She took a shaky breath. "Dwyer got caught in the crossfire. He just wanted everyone to work together, but now…now he's gone."

Takumi looked towards the forest, watching the leaves gently rustle in the wind. The sun was starting to go down. Soon enough, they'd need to head back to meet up with the others. After all, he had promised that if Oboro or Hinata didn't appear within a week, he'd leave with them to go see Ryoma and tell him what they told Takumi. A week had passed, and neither of them had shown up. Takumi didn't want to dwell on what that meant. His mind was full of enough bad memories as it was.

"So, you still haven't told us where Ryoma is." Midori mentioned, staring at the horizon as well. "Do you finally trust us enough to tell us? It goes both ways, you know."

Takumi looked at Midori once again. She had to grow up fast; that much was certain. The way she talked, the way she carried herself, the things she knew, they all pointed to a girl who was robbed of the childhood she deserved. He sympathized for her. He and his own siblings had to grow up fast too, once father and Corrin had been stolen from them. "Alright, I'll tell you."

Felicia

Her job was really simple. If someone knocked on the door, she'd ask through the door how their day was. If the answer was "A bit shit, but I've had worse," she'd open the door. If they said anything else, she'd say nothing else and make sure that door was locked tight. Of course, nobody ever told her she'd have to deal with a familiar face on the other end.

Knock knock. She opened the peephole. "Hello! How was your day?" She asked cheerily. Silence came from the other end. Perhaps they didn't hear her?" Hello! How was your day?" She asked again.

"A bit more interesting, hearing your voice." No. There was no way. "How're your hair-combing skills? Hopefully better than when you last used them on me." Yep, that was Corrin alright. What was she supposed to do? She didn't have any reason to not trust Corrin, but she knew she was supposed to follow her orders to the letter!

Felicia didn't have much time to ponder on what to do, as a loud bang came from the other side. Another one. And another after that. As Felicia took a few steps backward, the door burst open, with Rinkah wielding a club now standing in the doorway. Corrin walked past her, with Azura following behind. "That was your plan in case they didn't let us in?" The blue-haired princess asked. "Sorry, Felicia." The three of them walked right past the pink-haired maid.

"H-hey, where do you think you're going!" Felicia chased after them, but they were already descending down the stairwell and into the basement of the building. Oh man, she was gonna be in so much trouble for this!

"That kind of tactic may not work out too well." A woman's voice became audible as the group entered the basement. "After all, we have to imagine that there's gonna be more guards than usual, considering the stuff we stole the other night."

"Fair enough. Still, I—" The conversation abruptly ceased as Corrin and the others were noticed. A few rebels were in the basement, all silent as well. In the center of the room, standing around a map of the town, were Scarlet, the leader of Cheve's resistance, and Felicia's new lord to look after. The High Prince of Hoshido, Ryoma. He looked at Corrin. She looked back. Felicia looked like she was about to pass out. The silence was deafening.

"Big brother. It's good to see you." A hint of a smile formed on Corrin's face. Azura, meanwhile, looked rather worried.

"It's good to see you both. I was wondering when you'd stop by Cheve." Ryoma looked back to the map, his smile significantly larger than Corrin's. "Come, help us with our newest strategy. We could use your perspective." It seemed he had expected company.

Velouria

Ooh, a rope! All torn and tattered, slightly moldy from the water that had been dripping onto it from the ceiling. A perfect treasure. "Look what I found, Siegbert!" She displayed the treasure proudly to her fiancé, who was currently holding Lord Trayon by his collar, pushing him against the wall.

Siegbert turned to look at it, smiling. "That's gotta be one of the best ones yet. If only because it isn't part of a living thing." He teased, before looking back to Trayon. Velouria puffed her cheeks, pouting. It was just like him to tease her about things she got excited about. If anybody else did that, she'd be furious, but she just couldn't stay mad at him. She knew he never said it to be rude.

"U-u-unhand me this instant!" Trayon shrieked, his pale face having shrunk and twisted into a grimace. "I am a prestigious nobleman from an honored house, and—"

"And it's truly a shame that you're the heir to its name. I sincerely hope you manage not to ruin it before you die." Siegbert slammed him against the wall again. "The thief that you so carelessly let escape. What did she steal from you, and where did she go?"

"She stole my prized locket! A family heirloom that went back generation upon generation! Honestly, I don't understand why you insist on treating me so harshly, we're on the same side!"

"Lord Trayon, with all due respect I doubt she cared one bit about your locket. There's something you're not telling me." Siegbert spoke with a blunt honesty that Velouria could just swoon over. "I suggest you do. You may be a nobleman, but Lord Xander has given me rather generous autonomy. I'm sure I could get away with much more than just grabbing you by the collar. So, prove to me that we're on the same side and tell me what I need to know."

Trayon squealed like a mouse. Velouria liked mice. They were the best snacks. "Fine, fine! It was what was in the locket that mattered! Our family was entrusted with a secret that led to a great treasure! When she stole the locket, she stole the secret as well!"

"Let me guess." Siegbert's voice grew quiet. "The path to the Yato?"

"H-how did you—"

"What did it say?" Siegbert interrupted. After a few seconds of silence in response, he slammed Trayon against the wall one last time. "That's the last time I'll ask politely."

"I-it was a clue that pointed to Cheve! That's where the next part of the puzzle is hidden! That's all I know; we were never supposed to pursue the other clues, just guard this one!"

Siegbert let go of Trayon, causing the man to fall to the floor, wincing in pain. "Thank you for your help. I assure you, your deeds will not go unnoticed by the Royal Family." He turned around and began to walk out of the lord's room. "Come on Velouria, we don't have any time to waste." The wolfskin girl nodded, taking the string with her.

"Damn royals, thinking they can get away with whatever they want…" Trayon muttered. Siegbert stopped, and so Velouria stopped too. The prince turned his head just enough so that Trayon could see one of his eyes.

"If you're so upset with your situation, put in the initiative to change it. Even those rebels in Cheve have more of a spine than you do when it comes to that. If you can't back up your words with action, they become as empty as your own drive to act upon them." And with that, the two of them resumed walking, leaving the room.