Fun fact: Did you know that on this very day, January 2nd, last year, I published Chapter 1 of Cold Tea? That's right, people! Cold Tea has been out for an entire year now! How crazy is that? 365 days later and the story is over 200K words strong with more to go and has hundreds of awesome followers and favorites! What a year! Thank you guys again for all the incredible support throughout! I've finished all my college applications too, so that's a huge weight off my chest! What better way to celebrate the one year anniversary than with a new chapter! Enjoy!
In which the hero returns to the world he saved and discovers some troubling news
Chapter 26 - Prince and Princess
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"...Hello?" An innocent yet seemingly distant voice asked. A pause. "Mister?" Another pause. "Why are you sleeping?"
Robin felt a little finger poke his cheek only to retreat quickly, as if whoever was prodding him was provoking a wild animal. His face instinctively scrunched up in response to the touch, but he was so exhausted that the rest of his body could very well have been made of stone.
He heard a light rustle of grass near him and a single footstep against the dirt. "That's not where you take naps, silly!" the voice proclaimed, and as Robin gradually acquired some form of conscious thought he realized the voice must have belonged to a young girl. "You take naps in beds!"
The child poked him again, curiosity quickly overcoming caution. "Hello?" she repeated. Robin felt two small but firm hands take hold of his upper arm to shake him a bit. "Wake up!" the child commanded with a hint of frustration present in her voice. "Can you hear me?"
Robin wanted to respond to her. He really did. He attempted to open his eyes to at least give the child some sort of visual indication that he was indeed alive, but his eyelids were awfully heavy, and trying to move anything else was a near impossible task.
"Wake up!" the child urged, shaking him again. "It's not sleep time now!" When she still got no reaction out of him, the girl stood silent for a few seconds, pondering her next course of action.
Instead of hearing her yelling in his ear, which is what Robin half expected she would do next, he heard the rustling of grass begin once more only to grow distant. The child was running away. Even if he couldn't respond, he didn't want her to go. It seemed like forever since he had last heard a human voice; the sounds and syllables were almost foreign by now, but they were comforting. He strained his ears, desperately diverting what little strength he had to his hearing. The crackling was growing fainter and fainter, but just when it was about to disappear, he heard the child's voice yell "Daddy!"
"What is it?" Robin barely made out the man's response.
"Look, Daddy!"
"What happened?"
"I found something!"
"What did you find? Another flower you like?"
"No, Daddy! A person!"
"A... person? Who?!" The man's voice was startled and eager.
"I don't know... But he's being silly and napping on the ground, Daddy!"
"Where?! Where is he?!"
"Over there!"
"Oh gods... Oh gods..." the man muttered excitedly as the two of them approached him. "Lissa! Come right now!"
"You found him?!" an older female voice asked.
"It's him!" the man cried back. "Oh, sweet Naga above, it's him! Robin! Robin, wake up!"
Robin knew that voice. Gradually he forced his lips open just enough to croak the man's name, causing him to laugh with relief.
"Yeah, it's me, Robin!" he spoke enthusiastically, and then hesitated for a brief moment. "You... remember everything else, right? Not just my name?"
"...I never remember you talking so loud..." Robin winced, finding that his hearing was quite sensitive at the moment.
Chrom laughed again, quieting his voice a bit for him. "It's you, alright! Can you move? Can you stand?"
"Are you hurt?" Lissa asked. "Do you have broken bones or anything? I can fix them for you!"
"I'm not sure..."
"Here, give me your hand. I'll help you up," the prince offered.
Robin weakly raised his limp hand into air, which Chrom took hold of and used to pull him upright and onto his feet. He teetered, legs threatening to buckle under the severe sensation of vertigo he was getting if Chrom hadn't been there to hold him steady. After the wave of nausea passed, he planted his feet a little more firmly on the ground and opened his crusty eyes to no more than a squint. It took him another a minute to readjust his vision, as the light was blinding relative to the darkness he had been floating in, but finally he was able to obtain a clear view of his long-time friends. They both had radiant smiles on their faces, an expression he was quick to adopt as his own.
"You're back," they remarked simultaneously.
"I'm back," he confirmed, allowing a joyous laugh to escape his lips as the two pulled him in for a hug. Words didn't have to describe their happiness and relief. When they broke the embrace, Robin became aware of the child lingering behind Chrom's leg.
The girl was no taller than Chrom's waist, and she shared his magnificent cobalt-colored hair that just barely brushed her shoulders. Her face was cute and still babyish while retaining a hint of mischievousness, and distinct green grass stains coated the bottoms of her relatively simple dress and boots. Though seemingly reluctant to step any farther away from Chrom, her round and inquisitive blue eyes were trained on him with fascination.
Robin crouched down so that he was eye level with her. "Where are my manners?" he asked with a cheerful voice to present himself to the girl as someone she could trust, pausing to rub and clear his eyes. "You were the one who found me, aren't you?"
The child nodded her head.
"Well, thank you very much," Robin smiled. "I'm awfully appreciative."
"You're welcome," the girl smiled shyly, averting her eyes.
"Can I ask you for your name?" he asked, already knowing the answer.
"Lucy," the child responded. "But my real name is Lucina."
"You're Lucina?" Robin asked in mock surprise. "My goodness, you've grown! The last time I saw you, you were just learning how to walk! Do you remember me? My name is Robin. I used to read to you sometimes when you were a baby."
"You remember me from when I was a baby?" Lucy asked with intrigue.
"A little, little baby," he nodded. "You were terribly cute, and it looks like you still are," he noted, getting a giggle from her. "How old are you now?"
The girl looked down at her hands, extending her fingers and counting slowly on them before holding up a proud number five.
"Five years old?" Robin asked, about to say something else before he paused to make sense of things. "But... you were born... And the Valm war took... You would... just be turning four..." A look of dread filled his eyes, and he stood up immediately. "H...How long... have I been gone?"
Chrom's eyes narrowed, joy from before becoming an emotion more cold and hostile. "You know, funny you should mention that," he began, not hiding the sarcasm in his voice. "Because you've been gone eleven months."
Robin blinked, jaw falling slightly. "E...eleven months?"
"And... three... four... twenty-five days," Lissa added, matter-of-factly.
"A w...whole year? But... it seemed like only a few days... A year is..."
"Longer than you promised my daughter you'd be gone for?" Chrom asked. "Much longer?"
Everything that had happened before he died in the battle with Grima replayed over again his mind in the span of second, and Robin's eyes were flooded with terror. "Oh gods... Lucina..." he whimpered, running a hand through his messy, silver hair. "I'm such an idiot..."
"Yes you are," Chrom agreed, pointing an accusing finger at him. "And I'll tell you right now... If you weren't just dead for a whole year I'd break your nose right now for what you've done to her."
"Where is she?" he begged, looking around him wildly as if she was right there beside them. "I need to tell her I'm back right now!"
"She's back at camp not too far from here," Lissa told him. "She was sleeping when we left. Lucina's been absolutely exhausted as of late, so we decided to let her get some more rest this morning when we came out to look for you. Boy, are we going to hear it from her or what, Big Brother?" she asked Chrom. "She wanted to be the first one to find you really badly, and this is the one time she hasn't been at the lead of the search."
Robin felt a pull on his shirt, and he looked down to find Lucy gazing at him expectantly. "Are you the person Big Sister has been looking for forever?"
"Y...Yeah, I am," he muttered in response, hurriedly turning back to Chrom. "Which way is the camp? We need to go right now! I n...need to see her!" Impulsively he broke into a jog in the direction he thought he had seen Lissa come from before Chrom halted him.
"Camp is the other way, genius," he informed.
"R...Right..." Robin nodded, performing an about face and returning to the prince's side. At that moment he became consciously aware of how fast his heart was beating, and he paused to let out a loud, calming exhale. "Chrom... I'm sorry... I didn't mean for this to happen... I thought killing Grima was the best option, b...but if I had known t...that I would have left her for so long..."
It was Chrom's turn to sigh, pushing any contempt he may have been holding away as he placed his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Robin, if there are words for me to express my utmost thanks for everything you've done for us and for this world, I sure as hell don't know them. Over the years we've been fighting alongside each other, you've saved my backside more times than I can count." He bent down and slipped his hands underneath Lucy's arms, hoisting her up. "You've made it possible for me to watch my girls grow up in a world where Grima will never threaten them again, and I could ask for no greater gift. I shouldn't have been so harsh on you. ...It's just... frustrating to watch how my eldest daughter has changed in your absence..."
"Changed? What do you mean?" Robin asked with concern. "Chrom, tell me everything that's happened since I left! Please!"
"Come on. I'll tell you while we make our way back to camp. It's only a few minutes away." The man made a gesture with his head, urging Robin to walk with him. "Let's see... Well, after you disappeared, we got right to work tying up some loose ends I suppose. First and foremost was Plegia, which you can imagine was in absolute shambles after the war. For the time being, Ylisse has a temporary government set up there to keep order and peace until we can find a permanent ruler. It's been surprisingly easy actually. The Plegian people... they've lost so much that they're tired of fighting. They just want to live their lives, so they've been cooperative with our efforts."
"Speaking of permanent ruler," Lissa began with a grin on her face. "We just found him, didn't we?"
That elicited a chuckle out of Chrom. "I suppose we did, didn't we?"
"I don't think I'm following..." Robin murmured.
"You, silly!" Lissa stated like it was obvious.
"Wh... Wha?"
"She's technically right, Robin," Chrom explained. "Whether or not Validar's claims to the Plegian throne were legit is anybody's guess, but he was accepted by the Plegian people. Granted, the Plegians were desperately searching for any sort of leader they could find to bring order after the bloodbath with Gangrel and may not have made the best decision in whom to make their king, but he was king nonetheless. Considering that you're his only heir, you're technically next in line for the Plegian throne, Robin."
"Absolutely not!" Robin declared immediately, not needing to think twice.
"I thought you'd say that," Chrom laughed. "Don't worry. It is your decision. We've been working on easing the Plegians off their reliance on the monarchy. Just throwing it out there as an option if you really wanted it."
"Who would've thought that the same guy we found so long ago would turn out to be the Plegian prince, huh, Big Brother?" Lissa smiled.
"Just... don't call me that..." Robin pleaded, scratching the back of his head. "I'd much rather prefer 'that Ylissean tactician' or 'some nobody with amnesia' than that. I'm no prince."
"Stop trying to be humble. You're not 'some nobody', Robin," Chrom spoke firmly, unhappy with the terminology Robin was using to refer to himself. "Not to Lucina."
"That's me!" the girl in his arms declared at the mention of her name.
"Not you Lucina, sweetie. Your big sister Lucina."
"Daddy and Mommy said that they loved my name so much that my name is Lucina and my big sister's name is Lucina! Isn't that funny?" the girl giggled to Robin. "But it's hard to have the same name as Big Sister, so that's why my new-name..."
"Nickname," Chrom corrected.
"Nickname is Lucy!" the child finished, and then squirmed a little in her father's arms. "Daddy, down!" she urged.
"Please?"
"Daddy, down, please?" Lucy added quickly, running ahead excitedly as soon as Chrom placed her on the ground.
"Stay where I can see you, Lucy!" Chrom called to her, making her pause.
"Okay, Daddy!" the girl chirped back. She waited for them to catch up to her before dutifully following quite literally in Chrom's footsteps, taking incredibly exaggerated strides so that her little feet fell inside Chrom's boot-prints.
"Anyways..." Chrom continued, attention drifting back to Robin. "Lucina... Lucina put her mask back on."
"She put her mask back on?!" Robin's eyes widened as he stared incredulously at his friend. "Oh gods..."
"Not her literal mask. Her emotional one," the prince clarified, taking a cautionary glance behind him just to make sure his daughter was still following him before continuing. "All her walls came back up. Every day it pains me to watch because every day it gets a little worse, and because I know that she doesn't like who she's becoming either. When she was with you, Robin... That's the real her. She feels comfortable around you. She doesn't need those walls. But ever since you left, you would say that she just returned from the apocalypse she came from."
Robin pressed one hand up against his temple and winced at the words. "I'm such a fool... Such a fool..." he scolded himself with repeated hisses under his breath. "Chrom! Tell me everything that's happened with her! I need to know!"
"Gods, that seems like such a long time ago... Where to begin? Immediately after you died she looked like she wanted to cry so badly, but she held those emotions back. For the next few days she tried to act like nothing was wrong... I don't know what was more painful: seeing her sad or seeing her trying to hide it. Sumia and I sat down with her on numerous occasions to talk with her and help her let those feelings out, but she refused. She just kept on saying, 'Everything is okay. Robin would want to see me smiling, wouldn't he?' in some poor attempt at a cheery voice. Then came the party..."
"Party?"
"We didn't want to have one, Robin! Honest!" Lissa insisted. "None of us did!"
"I don't understand... What party?"
"A party celebrating Grima's demise and us winning the war," Chrom clarified. "Lissa is right. We didn't want to hold it. Most of us didn't really feel like celebrating anything, but all of our neighboring 'allies'... You know all those small and fairly insignificant nations and provinces that contribute no more to the war effort than some encouraging words and are all too eager to accept the spoils upon victory?"
"All the nobles you hate but are forced to like?"
"Exactly. Well, they all wanted to throw a party and make the death of the Fell Dragon an annual celebration, and at the insistent urging from every single advisor I had in Ylisse and the fear of appearing rude, I stupidly said yes."
"Fear of appearing rude? When has that ever perturbed you?" Robin asked with a little smile, earning a scuff on the head from the other man.
"As I was saying... I agreed that Ylisse would host the party, but even more stupidly I convinced Lucina to attend. She didn't want to go more than anybody, but Sumia and I assured her that maybe it would be a good distraction to take you off her mind for a little while. She was reluctant at first but finally gave in. We thought it was working for a while: she and her friends all got together to help each other get ready and whether she was happy about it or not she at least seemed to be enjoying the company. So the party starts and Lucina is standing by herself all proper for the sake of making Ylisse look all dignified. Before long one of those dainty little princes with inflated egos from who knows where spots her and makes the mistake of trying to court her, and Lucina got mad. When I say mad, I mean fuming mad, but the poor guy didn't seem to know when to take a hint. It was almost comical at first because if Lucina had a sword at her hip I have no doubt in my mind she would have been threatening him with it. But the prince keeps asking her why she refused to listen to him, and she kept insisting that she already had someone she loved and she was waiting for him to return. And then, I'll never forget, the man asks her, 'What if he never comes back?' Lucina's cheeks flushed a bright red, and then she stormed out of the ballroom. Sumia ran after her, and as soon I could break away from all the mindless chit-chat that nobles love I followed."
Chrom's face grew sad at having to remember the moment. "It was like those words struck something that she knew was a possibility but was refusing to accept. ...That was the one night when she cried herself to sleep in her mother's arms... The next day... she got up bright and early, your coat in hand, and she said that she was leaving to go look for you and that she'd be back in a few days. Ever since then she's been searching for you, Robin, and she's left no barren wasteland, remote forest, or scummy town unchecked. She'll be away for hours to days at a time, only returning to the castle to rest and recover before taking off again. She even went on a month long excursion to Valm without telling us beforehand... It hasn't been until recently that she's allowed us to come with her on even her day trips like this one."
His voice grew quiet. "Not once has she stopped believing in you, and there isn't a day that goes by that she isn't optimistic... but she's getting so tired, Robin... I fear she's giving up hope... Every single time she returns without you I can see a little less light in her eyes, and more and more she spends her time either locked up in her room or out alone in the castle gardens." He paused, allowing all of that information to sink in.
"She carries that coat of yours wherever she goes. She says she wants to be able to return it to you as soon as you come back, so she's always ready. She'll wear it sometimes too. Not when she thinks anybody is watching, of course, but Sumia and I have caught her from afar with it on from time to time. Some nights she'll sit in the garden on a little bench, slip the coat on, pull the hood up over her head, and watch the stars for hours on end. And then she'll take it off, fold it up into a neat little square, and then carry it off with her to bed." He sighed deeply. "Long story short, she's missed you, Robin. A lot. We just fear that she'll reach her breaking point soon..."
"Stop! Stop!" Robin cried, clutching his head and sporting a grimace. "I d...don't want to hear anymore! I would rather be stabbed through the heart than have to listen to one more word. I...I would have never left if I had known... Where's camp?! I need to tell her that I'll never let her experience another day of sorrow for as long as she lives if I can help it!"
"Camp is right over there, Robin!" Lissa pointed as it came into view. "Do you see? At the edge of that grove."
He didn't have to hear another word. He broke into a run, leaving Chrom and Lissa behind. His legs screamed for him to slow down; they hadn't been used in a long time and weren't ready to be put to work so strenuously just yet. Robin ignored them, viewing his aches only as motivation to push harder. Camp was close enough that he wouldn't arrive much sooner than Chrom and Lissa anyways, but every second that he could assure Lucina that he could finally keep his end of their promise was an important one.
Robin skidded to a halt the moment he reached her tent. He couldn't hear any sounds coming from inside; she was undoubtedly still sleeping. As he stared blankly at the canvas flap of the tent, a strange new feeling of anxiety flooded through him. He hesitated. Why was he anxious? A year was a long time. What would Lucina be like? Would she look different than when he had left her? How would she feel about him walking back into her life after such an extended absence? Would she hug him? Slap him? Treat him with contempt? Anger? What would she say? What would he say? He didn't have any excuses. There was no way to tell. Her reaction would be anybody's guess, but one thing was for certain: he couldn't just stand outside like the fool he was and let his nervousness get the better of him. He took in a gulp of air and delicately pushed the tent flap open and stepped inside, allowing the canvas to slip out of his hand and fall closed behind him.
It was calm inside. Enough of the morning light shone through the canvas to make the interior visible while still maintaining a gentle darkness. Everything was perfectly still apart from the slow rise and fall of Lucina's chest as she slept. Robin tiptoed closer to take a long look at the girl he had left behind and silently released the breath he had been holding. He didn't know what exactly he had feared, but to his relief she looked just like she had when he last saw her. More beautiful, even. She was sprawled out on the little cot, half covered by a sheet that had been sloppily thrown on. Her tunic and cape lay in a little pile at the bedside next to her boots. She must have thrown them off right before she fell asleep, for she still wore her dark blue undergarments of her usual outfit. Her long hair was strewn about, individual locks snaking every which way across the pillow. The expression on her face was peaceful enough, but even in sleep she looked exhausted.
Robin carefully made his way across the tent, very slowly taking a seat on her bedside. He reached down to rest his hand on her forehead and began to delicately stroke her skin with no more than his fingertips to gently waken her. After a few seconds she stirred but didn't open her eyes, prompting Robin to continue. Knowing that she enjoyed it, he began to run his hand gently through her hair, twirling some stray strands with his finger. Lucina squirmed a bit and made a soft grunting noise as she turned her head ever so slightly into his hand. Robin couldn't help but smile. He enjoyed these little things she did.
"Father..." she murmured sleepily. "You don't have to do that... I'm getting up..."
"Is this really how Chrom wakes you up every morning?" Robin asked softly, withdrawing his hand to his lap. He had forgotten how much he had missed hearing her voice.
Lucina rose at her waist to a sitting position instantly, eyes wide open and trained on him intensely. She inhaled sharply as if she was making a silent gasp, but the air got caught in her throat mid-breath and remained lodged there. Her right hand slowly slipped out from underneath the jumbled blanket and hovered in the air almost nervously before coming to a rest on Robin's cheek. She allowed her fingers to gently mold to the side of his face, only releasing her pent-up breath when she detected a thump right below his ear.
"Why are you checking my pulse?" Robin inquired, smiling as he cocked his head to the side.
"Risen don't have heartbeats..." Lucina whispered, keeping her hand in place.
"Do I look like a Risen? I haven't checked a mirror recently," Robin chuckled. "I may be un-dead, but I'm not the undead." Lucina's eyebrows furrowed and Robin could see her teeth clenching. He frowned, giving her an odd look. "What? Did you not like that one? I'm sor..." Both of Lucina's hands suddenly seized him by the shoulders. With one abrupt and powerful motion she flung herself out of the cot and pushed Robin off the side. He landed hard on the ground, and before he could figure out what had happened, Lucina was kneeling in between his legs and had his arms pinned to the ground. He groaned at the dull ache in his back from falling, squeezing his eyes shut.
"Nice to... see you too..."
"N...Nice to see you? T...That's it?!" she cried, leaning over him and putting more pressure down on his arms. "That's all you have to say for yourself?! You're such a... a..." she stammered, searching hard to find a set of words that would properly voice her opinion of him right now. "A selfish, lying, heart-shattering... b...bad person..."
That hurt. While she certainly wasn't winning any name-calling contests, her point hit home. Robin winced as he opened his eyes again. He had been expecting this reaction, and unfortunately for him, it was completely justified. "Well you didn't let me get to my 'how much I missed you' speech yet..."
"I don't want to hear it! Do you know h...how long you've been gone?! A year! A whole year! And how long did you tell me that you would be gone?!"
"A week..."
"A week! Y...You promised you wouldn't be gone much longer than a week! A year is longer than a week! A lot longer..." She broke eye contact with him, gaze drifting to nothing in particular, and for a moment, anger disappeared from her voice entirely. "You left me alone for a whole year..." It wasn't long before the frustration returned in even greater intensity. "And do you know how much longer a year feels when you're waiting for someone? When that very same someone is someone who you saw d...die in front of your very eyes?" She didn't wait for an answer. "I spent an entire year of my life searching for someone who I knew in the back of my mind might never ever be found!"
"Lucina..."
"I tried to smile for you... I really did. I tried to clear my mind sometimes from all my longing for you and get a brief respite from the agony, but all it took was one thought, just one little thought, about what we could have been... What we could have done... What we could be doing... A...And I couldn't smile anymore..."
"Lucy..."
"Don't use that nickname! I hate it! It's not mine! It's the real Lucina's!"
"The real Lucina?"
"The Lucina of this timeline! My little sister!" She paused, questioning what she had said. "What am I even talking about? She isn't my sister! She's the Lucina who belongs! She's the rightful heir to the title of exalt, not me! I don't belong! I'm not supposed to be here! My very existence shouldn't be!"
"Lucina! Stop staying all these awful things!" Robin begged. He wanted so badly to hug her but couldn't with his arms pinned down.
"Y...You were the one reason I stayed in this world all this time! I would have left otherwise! My real family is gone... I can't get them back... The Chrom and Sumia of this timeline have their own family to tend to... They don't need me... You and Morgan are all I have left... And even with Morgan... Whenever I look at her, I see you... I see you to the point where I lose sight of her... and when you were gone, it sometimes pained me to even look at her... Do you know how much shame I feel as a mother whenever that thought even manifests in my head? To not even want to look at my own daughter because she reminds me too much of her dead father? I'm a terrible mother... I can't be a parent on my own!"
"You don't have to be anymore..."
"Don't you get it?!" she asked desperately. "I'm nothing without you! When you're gone, you make my life lose purpose! I...It's been living hell! Living hell... Do you know how many nights I've gone without sleep? Do you know how many stupid, stuck-up princes have twisted the knife in my heart because as far as they care my real love is gone forever? Do you know how many times I've had to go to Morgan after a long search for you, tell her that her daddy is still missing, and watch the look of... of utter hopelessness in her eyes?" She was breathing hard, searching his face for answers. "Do you?!"
"No... I don't, Lucina..." Robin admitted sadly, quickly deciding for both of their sakes that arguing wouldn't do anything productive. "I don't know what it was like for you... I wish I did, but I don't. I know you're mad at me, and rightfully so. I don't really know why I walked into this tent thinking that you could forgive me right away, and I understand if you never completely do, but I just want you to know that I'm sorry... No amount of fancy vocabulary or explanations I could whip up could ever really match what I mean behind those two words... If I had known killing Grima would mean leaving you to suffer without me for a year, I would never have done it... I would have done what you said and let Chrom put him into slumber... I made a hasty assumption, one of the worst things a tactician can do. I wrongly assumed how long I would be gone and you were the one who had to bear the consequences... If Naga would give me the same chance she gave you, to go back in time and set everything right, I would fix my mistakes. Stop myself from doing anything that ended up hurting you in any way..."
"B...But killing Grima wasn't a mistake, Robin..." Rage vanished entirely from her voice. "You did it for everyone else's lives except your own... You ushered in a new era of peace... And, except for how long you've been gone, I would never wish for you to change anything else about what happened in the past... That's what made us us, even if it did hurt..." She looked even more frustrated than she had been before at the confliction she was experiencing, face a mixture of emotions. "Why is it... so hard to be mad at you even when I want to be? I...I don't know whether I want to punch you or kiss you..."
"Well, while a kiss sounds terribly appealing, I deserve a punch. Probably two. A whole bunch. ...Come on. Hit me with your best shot," he offered, but she seemed hesitant. "It's my fault. I deserve it," Robin urged again. "It might help release some of those feelings..."
Lucina's grip on one of his arms weakened until finally letting go, and very slowly she brought her hand up into the air and curled her fingers into a fist. Robin braced himself for the hit. Lucina could probably knock him out cold if she wanted to. She was poised to strike, aiming towards his face, but her hand quivered unsteadily for a couple seconds. Lucina finally closed her eyes and brought her fist down fast, but immediately opened her eyes again and slowed her blow right before hitting him. What was left of her punch was barely a tap on his shoulder, and she stared at her own hand in defeat.
"...Did that make you feel better?"
"N...No... I can't hurt you..."
"Then how about this?" Robin eased his free arm around her shoulders and watched Lucina's troubled and frustrated expression crumble away as he pulled her into a soft kiss. Her eyelids drooped as her grip on his other arm slipped off. Robin could feel her entire body release the tension it had been bearing, and slowly she relaxed her chest on top of his. Their lips parted but their faces remained close. Lucina hovered above him just low enough for the tips of their noses to almost be touching.
"...Feel better now?"
"Y...Yes..." the girl responded with the corners of her mouth slightly upturning. She swept a lock of stray hair on her forehead behind her ear. "I need another," she suddenly insisted. Her hands shot up to cradle Robin's face between them as she tilted her head ever so slightly and then pressed her eager lips down on his a little harder.
Robin couldn't hide his surprise. He was usually the one who had to initiate anything romantic between them, so on the few occasions when Lucina was the one passionate with him, he was always taken off guard but loved every second of it. Weaving his fingers into the cobalt hair on the back of her head, he held her down against him for as long as they could manage until needing a breath.
"I missed you, Lucina..."
"I...I missed you too... More than you could ever know..." the girl whispered, nuzzling her head right below his chin and resting it there comfortably. "I'm sorry for all the mean things I said... I don't think you're selfish, or a liar, or a bad person at all... Maybe a little heartbreaking when you left, but none of those others... You're the opposite of all of them. ...Can you forgive me?"
"I should be the one asking for your forgiveness, Lucy... uh... Lucina..."
"I don't mind the nickname either... It sounds cute when you say it," she interrupted, just to ensure he knew she didn't mean that either.
"That's good... I like it too," Robin nodded before continuing. "I was the one who went out and messed up everything, not you. You needed that release and I deserved every second of it. To tell you the truth, I actually expected worse names being thrown at me."
"I considered a few of them," Lucina responded. "But I could never use them to describe you. Not even when I was angry. Not when what you did made everything... the whole world... such a better place to live in..." She paused, absentmindedly running her fingers up and down his arm. "Everything would have been perfect after Grima if I just had you with me..."
"But I'm here now, aren't I?"
"You're h...here now..." she repeated as if she was just realizing it now. Her body trembled a little, not with tears but with laughter. "You're here now! You're here! You came back to me!" she exclaimed excitedly, bright smile shining on her face.
"I couldn't stay gone for long. My life is all tangled up with yours. Wherever you are, I won't be far behind, even if I take a little longer to get there." Her laugh infected him immediately.
"And Robin! Robin, look!" Lucina urged, clasping his right hand and presenting the back of it to him triumphantly.
"The Mark... It's gone..." the man whispered. Lucina released his hand as he marveled at it, spreading his fingers apart and closing them again a few times. When he looked, eyes didn't stare back at him. "The Mark of Grima is gone... T...The Mark is gone! It's gone, Lucina! It's gone!" he cried.
"Morgan's disappeared in a few days after you killed Grima," she explained through laughs. "Looks like yours did too!"
"It is! It's gone!" Robin repeated, locking Lucina in a strong hug. "I'm a free man! Did you hear that, Grima? Hear it from whatever hell you're in right now? I'm no vessel or husk of yours! I'm a free man!" he called over his shoulder, looking incredibly satisfied in doing so. "I guess that means Morgan's and my Fell Blood isn't Fell Blood anymore either, huh? That would make me plain old normal, and Morgan all exalt."
"There go your devious plans of 'tainting the Exalted Bloodline', Robin," the girl joked, recalling the very same words that Aversa had so long ago used to describe Morgan.
"Foiled again..." Robin went along with it, snapping his fingers in mock defeat and making a sorry attempt to maintain a frustrated expression before breaking out in snickers once more. "But... But in all honesty..." He released her from his embrace and struggled to calm his laughter. "Now I have some promises to make up. I want to see a whole lot of that smile from now on!"
"Deal!" she giggled. "...Oh! Promises!" She hurriedly clambered up to her feet, stumbling over his legs as she scampered over to the foot of her bed. She threw open her chest of belongings and rummaged around inside until she discovered what she was looking for. Robin stood up as well just in time for her to thrust his folded coat into his arms. "This is yours! You didn't forget about it, did you?"
"How could I forget this old thing?" he asked, holding it by the cowl and allowing it to fall to its full length so he could gaze upon it for a moment. "Thank you for holding on to it for me," he spoke, and then adopted an exaggerated tone. "But goodness! It must have been such a chore to lug this around with you everywhere you went! How in Naga's name can I repay you?"
"I'm not sure," Lucina smiled shyly. "What sort of tricks do you have up your sleeves, Mister Tactician?"
"Not many. I think you already know most of mine, but sometimes..." Robin admitted, draping one side of the coat behind her back and tugging on both sleeves to pull her closer. "The same old tricks work just as well as new ones," he whispered, stealing a quick peck on the cheek from her and grinning mischievously.
"If that's what old tricks entail, I'm all for them. They still seem like new every time," she remarked, allowing the rate of her excited breathing to calm somewhat. She took the time to look him over a little more closely, simply marveling at his very presence here in the tent.
"Is something the matter?" he asked curiously. "You're looking at me funny. How do I look for being dead for a year?"
"Just fine, Robin. Your hair is a mess as always," she noted with a smile, reaching up and making a quick attempt to comb it down with her fingers with practically no result. "Your eyes are warm and kind. Your lips are soft." She paused to lean her head closer into his undershirt, taking a deep inhale in through her nose. "You smell the same as you always do."
The man looked at her oddly. "What do I smell like? Not good?" He awkwardly raised his hand above his head and took a brief sniff underneath his arm, trying to detect what exactly Lucina was referring to. "I suppose being dead for a year also means that I haven't bathed in a year either... On a scale from one to awful how bad am I?"
"Zero, Robin," Lucina chuckled. "I mean you still smell like vanilla."
"Vanilla?"
"Old books, Robin! You smell like old books."
"Really? That would certainly make sense..." he reasoned. "D...Does it bother you? I...I can change for you! If you d...don't like my... old book smell... that is..." The man scratched the back of his head, turning a little red in the face. Lucina thought he looked awfully cute when he was nervous.
"It's a smell I've come to love. It reminds me of you," Lucina reassured, taking another long inhale to prove her point. "...You're just how I remember you. You're still my Robin." The man's cheeks flushed a deeper shade of crimson upon her use of the possessive. "Actually... you aren't the exact same as when you left... There's something different about you... People don't age after they die, but..." she murmured half to herself.
"Hmm? Do tell."
"Maybe because you weren't truly dead..." she reasoned. "You look... older... Just by the tiniest bit. A year older..." Lucina saw the concern growing in his eyes and she continued to clarify. "No... Older isn't the best word. I mean older as in more mature. More handsome."
"Funny..." He lightly placed his hands as the base of her neck, moving down her shoulders to the gentle curve of her waist before landing on her hips. "I was just about to say the same to you... And you know... You mentioned other princes had their eyes on you..."
Lucina had a few more angry words to say about that subject, but just as she opened her mouth to speak, Robin placed one finger over her lips to shush her.
"And while I'd be more than happy to give them a piece of my mind for bothering you, I can see why they're..." He leaned in a bit closer as his voice fell to smooth whisper. "Drawn to you..."
Lucina had never heard him use such a tone before. He sounded almost... seductive... Whether he was trying to be or not, judging from her sizzling pink cheeks and sudden craving for his touch she was certainly falling for it. She stood completely captivated, awaiting his next move with silent anticipation.
"I fear I share something that they crave..." he continued. "I just want to gaze upon you every moment I'm around you... If a year of age was kind to me, its gifts to you were bountiful..." His finger slid down her lips to the tip of her chin, which he hooked from underneath and ever so subtly tilted her head to the side. "It's as if time sculpted such a pretty girl into such an elegant, stunning woman. My only regret is... I wasn't around to watch it unfold..."
Just as he was close enough to feel her warm, restrained breath against his skin, a few pairs of footsteps could be faintly heard from outside the tent along with a voice. "You two aren't doing anything questionable in there, are you?"
Chrom's voice seemed to snap Lucina out of her trance, and she turned her head in the direction of the tent flap. Her glossy eyes quickly became clear and filled with excitement. "Father!" she cried back, slipping from Robin's arms and bolting outside.
Robin blinked, completely dumbfounded for a moment. Now that the atmosphere was completely gone in an instant, he took the time to recount what exactly had happened and found himself a little embarrassed. Had he really used such a tone? He just started speaking like that impulsively... It was true that Lucina looked a little more womanly to him at least, and she seemed so enamored with him in that very moment that he wanted to test his boundaries just a bit. Gods...
Regardless, he couldn't help but pout to himself a little as he gazed in the direction where Lucina had disappeared outside. He had such a nice kiss planned for her too that would have been all the more lovely with such a mood in the air... He shrugged as he slid his arms through the sleeves of his coat. Next time. He had taken a risk, for Lucina could have very well responded to his approach the opposite way, but judging from that dreamy look in her eyes Robin figured he would be able to pull off that atmosphere again. He stepped outside just in time to see Lucina practically leap into her father's arms, face beaming.
"Oh, Father! Thank you thank you thank you for finding him!" she cried, squeezing his torso with all her might. "I'm so happy! I can't thank you enough!"
"That's very kind of you, Lucina," Chrom smiled. "But I can't take the real credit for finding him..."
Lucina gave him a strange look, not fully understanding what he meant. "Huh? You... can't? Then Aunt Lissa..."
"Not me, either!" Lissa informed.
"But if it wasn't you who found him... and it wasn't Father... then who..."
"It was me, Big Sister!" Lucy exclaimed, emerging from behind Chrom's legs and rocking on her feet from toes to heels. "I saw Mister Robin sleeping in the grass! Isn't that silly? That's not where you take naps, right, Big Sister? And then I said 'wake up!' and then Daddy made him get up!"
Lucina released her father and squatted down at her knees until she was at eye level with the girl, and then took the girl up in an embrace. "Thank you, Lucy... Thank you so much for finding him... I'm indebted to you..."
While not entirely sure what "indebted" meant, Lucy did notice the older girl's wide smile. She had never seen Lucina smile like that before, or really smile that much at all. "Big Sister?" she asked. "Are you happy?"
"Yes, I am. I'm very happy," Lucina affirmed as she broke the hug. "I've been looking for Robin for a whole year, and now I can see him again."
"Daddy! Big Sister is happy!" the girl cried excitedly. "I didn't know Big Sister could be happy!"
"She is, isn't she? Your big sister is happy to see Robin again, and you found him for her."
Lucy looked quite proud of herself, and should she have been wearing a cape it would probably have been waving heroically in the light breeze. Noticing Robin step out of the tent, she scampered to his side and lightly tugged on the hem of his shirt to get his attention, looking up at him with new reverence. "Mister Robin?" she asked. "Do you love my Big Sister?"
"I do," Robin nodded. "I love her very much."
Lucy gasped, enthralled by the information. "Have you and Big Sister..." she whispered in a tone not too much quieter than her normal loud voice, pausing to giggle before continuing. "Kissed yet?"
Robin grinned. Her eager face, hungry for the answer, was quite amusing. "A couple times."
The little girl's eyes widened as if she had just been entrusted with a very special secret, and she opened her mouth wide but clamped it shut before any sound could come out. "Whoa..." she finally breathed. "Mister Robin! Did you know that my Big Sister is a princess?"
"I did! And aren't you a princess too?"
"Yeah! I'm also a princess just like my Big Sister!"
"Well, you make one very pretty princess," Robin smiled. "It's only fitting for me to bow to such royalty." He put one hand behind his back and stood very stiff, taking a long bow at the waist. "Greetings, Princess Lucina," he spoke with a formal tone. "I am but your humble servant."
"You sound like Mister Frederick!" Lucy laughed. "Are you a knight too? Oh! Are you... a prince?!"
"No, I'm n..."
"He's my prince," Lucina interrupted before he could finish, clasping his hand tightly. "Isn't he wonderful?"
"Wow..." Lucy looked between them with wonder, but then her voice became a little crestfallen. "Aw... But... But I want a prince! Mister Robin?" She looked away bashfully, twirling her dress at the hips. "Can you be my prince too?"
"No funny ideas, Robin," Chrom warned.
"You'd better watch out, Chrom. If you're not careful, I'll steal two of your daughters," Robin joked, narrowing his eyes with a smirk.
"Don't make me regret allowing you to have one of them," the other man pointed his finger accusingly. He looked like he was trying to hold back a smile, yet he maintained a consistent harsh glare. "I can still forbid you from seeing her. It's not too late for that." Robin wasn't entirely sure how serious Chrom was being, but the threat alone was enough to wipe his own smirk off his face.
"Father! How could you?" Lucina scolded, appalled by the possibility and all too ready to counter with a threat of her own. "If you forbid us from seeing each other, then I'll... I'll run away with him!"
Now it was Chrom's turn to lose some color from his face. That certainly wasn't his intention. Robin tried to make eye contact with her but Lucina still had a steady gaze trained on her father, as if to assure him with the look in her eyes that she was serious about her assertions. He looked from Chrom's pale face back to hers and grinned. How he loved her so.
Lucy wasn't really aware of the tense atmosphere and was more frustrated that Robin had yet to answer her. "Mister Robin?" she asked again a little louder. "Can you please, please be my prince too?"
"I don't see why not."
"Yay!" the girl cried, hugging his leg. "Now you're my prince and I love you!"
Lucina's eyes narrowed as she turned towards the girl and away from Chrom. Robin could feel her grasp on his hand tighten as she put on a rather empty smile. "But he was my prince first," she said quickly before feeling the need to add. "And I love him more."
"Nope!" Lucy smiled, taking Robin's other hand and giving it a slight tug. She immediately assumed her "older sister" was playing a game with her and was all too eager to play along. "He's my prince and I love him the most-est!"
Lucina pulled back, hooking her arm around Robin's defensively. "Most-est isn't even a word," she huffed. "It's just most, and I love him the most. You just met him."
"Nuh-uh!"
"Yeah-huh!" Lucina retorted, face growing a little red in frustration.
"Lucy!" Chrom called to distract the girl's attention. "Why don't you come with me and Auntie Lissa? Now that we found Robin, we need to get all of our things and pack them up in a big bag to take home."
"Ah! We're going home?" Lucy asked with delight, releasing Robin's hand in an instant and skipping over to her father's side. "I want to tell Mommy all about our adventure! Won't Mommy be happy that I found a prince?"
"I'm sure she will," Chrom nodded, ruffling her hair and urging her to walk with him and Lissa to their tent. "I'm sure she'll be just as happy to see you too. You know how she doesn't like it when I take you on trips, even if it's just for one night." He glanced behind his shoulder at the older Lucina and Robin for a second before continuing on his way.
"Yeah, Mommy gets nervous," the little girl replied. "So whenever I come back, she gives me a big kiss! I like Mommy's kisses."
Chrom laughed as he pushed aside the tent flap to the one that he shared with his little sister and daughter, and the three of them disappeared inside to prepare to return to Ylisstol.
Robin felt Lucina relax her grip on his arm, causing him to grin. "Did my eyes and ears just deceive me?" he asked. "Or are you perhaps... jealous?"
"Jealous? O...of course not! What's there for me to be jealous about?"
"Face it..." Robin grinned wider, giving her shoulder little repeated pokes from his finger. "Someone's afraid she has com-pe-ti-tion!" he joked, pronouncing every syllable of the word. "Maybe the only other person who can rival your cuteness is a younger version of you!"
"Robin, honestly..." Lucina sighed. "You think I'm jealous of a five-year-old?"
"I don't know," he shrugged back. "But judging from how defensive you got when she claimed me as her prince, I'm going to say yes."
"That's ridiculous... I wasn't being defensive..."
Robin darted out to clutch her arm like she had just been doing to him, attempting to keep a straight face as he mimicked her tone of voice the best he could. "He's my prince, and I loved him before you!" He laughed as he noticed Lucina go red in the face. "Where's this possessiveness coming from? Not that I don't like it..."
The girl averted her eyes and glanced down at the ground, now somewhat ashamed by her own thoughts. "I lost you twice... I'm not losing you a third time, and I won't let anyone take you from me... Not Grima, not my father, not even little me..." She paused. "I've just been thinking this whole year, and I promised myself that when I found you again that I would savor my time left with you. Every minute we share is precious to me, because I know full well that everything and everyone that you care about can be taken away from you in an instant... I don't want to take any chances when it comes to us being together anymore..." Before she could react, Robin wrapped her into a crushing embrace. "R...Robin!"
"I can't help it, Lucina!" he explained. "You're just... too adorable for me to think straight! I take it back! Not even little you can match how cute you are right now. And you know, I've been thinking the same thing: my time with you is far too precious to waste, and now that we're together again, we're going to make the most of it."
Lucina was quiet for a while, happily accepting his hug. "But maybe I don't have to defend our relationship from five-year-old girls, do I? I admit that was a little... extreme..."
"Just a little," Robin chuckled, letting her go. "So we're going back to Ylisstol then?"
"Right!" Lucina replied enthusiastically. "Oh, Morgan will be so happy to see you! I can't wait to see the look on her face! Our little family will be back together again!" she sighed dreamily.
"How I've missed it," he smiled, nodding his head back towards the tent. "Come on. I'll help you pack all your things."
Yay, Robin's finally back (for the second time in this story) and with Lucina again!
This chapter turned out surprisingly longer than I expected, but I didn't think you all would mind that much, haha! I guess I had a lot I wanted to include with his return and Lucina's reaction to it all. Plus, I included little Lucina because I thought it would be a fun way to mix things up a little, as much as we appreciate Chrom's dorky face waking us up all the time. I've also always thought it would be incredibly cute for older Lucina to argue with her younger self regarding who Robin loves more, with little Lucina thinking it's all a game and having fun while older Lucina actually takes it seriously and gets really protective!
Hope you liked it! Next chapter is on its way!