Author's note: The first time I wrote this chapter, I hated just about everything I was writing. Some of it was okay on its own, but the tone jumped everywhere and I wasn't satisfied with the plot points and I just couldn't stand it. So I abandoned it, trying and failing to fix it over and over. Finally, about a week and a half ago, I decided to rewrite the entire thing and added about 6,000 words to the beginning and end. Rewrite as in change about 80% of what happened in the chapter and retype everything I did keep, which was hardly anything. Uni also got crazy as the end of the semester approached, and now that I'm on break I have a job that's taking up way more time and energy than I had imagined. But I've finally finished this... difficult chapter, so without further ado, enjoy.


It took about half an hour of fairly silent walking to reach the jump point, the old wooden bridge Azura had taken Robin, Corrin, and Jakob to back when they'd first met. It rocked back and forth in the harsh wind, creaking each time it reached the apex of its swing before falling back down again. To accompany the noise, the air around them seemed to be sucked down into the canyon by some invisible force, rolling across the ground in small clouds of dust before plunging into the blackness below the bridge with an eerie howl. The high cliffs surrounding them had grown darker the closer they grew to the bridge, the twisted trees becoming scarcer to the point only a few could be seen and all were a mess of broken branches and scorched bark.

It was one of the most unsettling places Robin had ever been. He'd had a bad feeling since he'd entered the canyon, and the increasingly barren scenery only made it grow. What had started as unsettling had morphed into disturbing, unfortunate as there was a chance it could be the last thing he ever saw and felt if the portal at the bottom of the canyon closed before he jumped. There was no way of telling whether it was open or not from the bridge, and there was no lower point Robin could stand on to get a better look. He'd considered sending one of their flyers to check, but given the fall had taken around twenty seconds the first time around and he didn't remember anything other than blackness before waking up in Valla, he decided it wasn't worth it. In all likelihood the scout wouldn't see anything at the bottom. And if they told everyone else that, then there was no way Robin or Azura or Corrin or anyone else would be able to convince them to jump. The royals had agreed to go into the portal because they trusted Corrin, and because they had no concrete evidence there wasn't a portal at the bottom. It seemed crazy, but crazy things had happened with her before. But if someone came back up and said nothing was there...well, that was why Robin had decided not to tell anyone about his little consideration.

Instead, he thought about their next move while Azura and Corrin chatted on their way to the bridge, trying to keep the conversation light as the scenery grew ever more grim around them.

The last time they'd gone to that place, there'd been nothing but ruins. No towns, no villages, no travelers passing by with supplies. That meant their supplies were limited. He'd already put that into consideration for things such as staves which he doubted they'd find lying around anywhere, but it was a different situation when it came to resources such as food and water.

There were plenty of plants around, and Robin was pretty sure he'd seen some sort of large grazing animal at least once, so that meant they could procure their own food if necessary. He knew there were birds too, since he'd heard a bunch of them tweeting their little heads off while he and Azura waited for Corrin and Jakob to wake up. But tiny birds weren't a reliable source of food. For one, they had a pitiful amount of meat on them. For another, they were hard to catch without traps, and the group would be on the move so they wouldn't have time to set any. Shooting them down with arrows was technically a possibility but that was hard to do, not to mention wasteful. And last, but definitely not least, as someone who shared a name with one of the most adorable birds out there, Robin didn't like the idea of killing and eating cute little birdies when there was much better game to be had. It was practically cannibalism! Absolutely despicable!

The three combines armies already had some food on them too, so it wasn't as though they'd be in immediate trouble if they weren't able to find food as soon as they arrived. It most likely wasn't enough to support them for their entire campaign against Anankos, but it would be enough to give them time to find a portal and leave if they absolutely could not find anything substantial to eat while there.

So with food taken care of, Robin had moved on to lodgings. The group had tents, which were useful. Corrin had her weird pocket-dimension castle thing that Robin tended to avoid using, since people in towns tended to freak out when a group as large as their suddenly disappeared without warning and appeared out of thin air the next day. (That, and because Lilith didn't like him. Or didn't like Grima, maybe. They hadn't talked about it). He was fairly certain the castle didn't have enough space for their new, expanded group, but people could take turns if they needed to.

He'd let Xander and Ryoma decide how they wanted to do it. Whether they wanted to mix their troops or go one night Hoshidan, one night Nohrian would be up to them. There would undoubtedly be pointless arguments no matter what was done, but it wasn't really Robin's problem. As a foreigner and someone who'd fought both groups as some point, the troops probably wouldn't give him much of their attention anyway. Corrin's troops liked him, but he was a new figure for Xander's and Ryoma's at the moment. Maybe he'd intervene in that sort of situation once he'd earned some of their trust. But for the moment he wanted them to grow to like him before he did anything that would tick them off, like telling them they would have to sleep outside in cold uncomfortable tents while the people they and their ancestors had fought for hundreds of years got to sleep in a cozy parallel dimension with fireplaces and feather pillows. Yeah. Gotta play good soldier before bad soldier.

Unless something really big happened and he had to snap to leadership right away. There were a few times where Corrin had looked to him for help and he'd had to do it, and a few where she just plain didn't know what to do and he'd intervened on his own. But Xander and Ryoma had led their forces for years. They had fought in battles before, and they'd been trained to go to war. Where Corrin needed Robin's guidance because she'd simply never had the chance to exercise her leadership skills before and had nowhere else to look to learn, Xander and Ryoma knew what worked and what didn't. They clearly had different styles of leadership, but their men had fought with them for years and knew how their respective leaders wanted them to respond to those differing leadership styles. Putting those together and having two very different groups respond to one set of orders could be difficult though, and he knew neither group would be happy about listening to orders given by only one of the princes. Even if both said it, there would be a hint of superiority by the person who had said it first. Taking turns, while effective when it came to sleeping situations, didn't work well when it came to giving orders to an army. Their styles were too different.

So, they'd need to choose one leader. It couldn't be Xander or Ryoma. That was too biased to Nohr or Hoshido. Instead, Robin had suggested Corrin be the one to voice their orders. Xander and Ryoma could stand to Corrin's side as she did it to give a visual sign of their support of her orders, which would help the new soldiers listen to what she had to say. When he'd asked the two crown princes if they'd go along with Robin's plan they'd agreed. All that was left was to test it when they got to the canyon and explanations began.

Admittedly, telling people to jump into a seemingly bottomless pit full of giant rocks wasn't the ideal way to start Corrin's time leading the big group. But the princes didn't know enough to start the conversation, so Corrin or Azura had to be the one to do it. They could back her up when the need arose.

When they arrived, Azura stepped to the front of the group, standing in front of the bridge. Robin and Corrin followed, with Xander and Ryoma at her back. Azura said a few words before Corrin did, explaining they would be travelling to her homeland and that it was largely uninhabited. She mentioned she'd gone there before using the canyon method, as had a few of the others in Corrin's group, so the method they were using to go there was tried and true.

Then it was Corrin's turn. She spoke.

The explanation went over about as well as Robin had expected it to. As soon as Corrin announced they would be jumping into the endless pit before them silence swept over the group. There hadn't been any chatter before the announcement, the troops listening respectfully as Corrin explained their next steps, but there'd been some noise. Armor rattling as people shifted where they stood, cloth rustling from slight movements and the heavy wind that swept across the area, the occasional clack of stones bouncing across the dirt and rock they stood on. But when Corrin announced her plan, that all stopped. It went silent.

Only the sound of wind remained. It was a harsh reminder of what they were about to do, as it whipped around violently, trying to push them into the canyon. Calling them toward what many must've believed was certain doom. Quite the ominous sign.

The silence stretched on for a full minute. No movement, no speech.

Robin found it odd the group was so stuck by the revelation. What had they expected, going into the canyon as they did? What had Ryoma and Xander told them they would be doing? Corrin's group already knew they would be making the jump, didn't they? But for some reason they looked as shocked as the rest of the troops around them. Perhaps Corrin had forgotten to make the announcement before. Or maybe he had. Whoops.

Another thirty seconds, and people began to turn their heads, looking to each other as they waited for someone to say the first words.

Another thirty, and Robin watched as Ryoma locked eyes with Hinoka in some silent exchange while Xander's gaze locked firmly onto Corrin. Corrin meanwhile was looking over the group, wearing an expression Robin could tell was a plea for anyone to speak.

A few more seconds passed, and Robin decided the silence was going on for far too long. The longer they were silent, the more time there was for fear to develop and take hold of the group. Left to only one's own thoughts, that churning terror wouldn't fade any time soon.

"Look-" "I know-"

Robin immediately cut himself off, looking over to Azura who'd started to speak at the exact same time. She must've been fed up with the silence too.

Since they were standing side by side, Robin leaned into Azura's shoulder to whisper in her ear. "You can start. You know far more about this than I do. I've only been to that place once, while it's your birthplace. I'm an outsider. You go ahead."

Azura let out a breath. "I don't know nearly as much as you think I do then. I've already told you nearly all I know. There's little I could say that you couldn't. I don't even remember leaving that place as a child, I just know what I've seen since its destruction in these last few years. You begin. Your voice is more powerful than mine. If you run into anything you cannot explain, I will do my best support you." Her voice shook slightly as she spoke.

Robin sighed. Azura wasn't the biggest public speaker, and he could tell she didn't favor the spotlight for grim things like this. Odd for such a fantastic performer, but he supposed the stage was different enough to explain the discomfort. Olivia was much the same. "If you say so," he whispered back.

He then straightened, clearing his throat loudly enough it joined the creak of the bridge echoing off the canyon walls.

"Look. I know the idea of jumping into a dark, pointy canyon may not be particularly appealing. When Azura asked me to do it after we first met, I found it terrifying. The idea of freefalling for what had to be at least half a mile with no one waiting to catch me and nothing I could see to soften my fall seemed insane.

"But I still did it. Why? Because I'd sworn to follow Corrin's orders when I met her. When Azura asked us all to jump the bridge, Corrin supported her. As such, it was my duty to listen to what she had to say and follow her. Now, I do believe an important part of serving a lord is to question them when their actions seem dangerous or might lead to personal injury. Blindly following someone can be dangerous if their ideals turn without them noticing, or their plan has a flaw they have overlooked. But in this case I knew Azura and Corrin had thought the plan over. Not only that, but Azura knew it would work. It wasn't something she'd come up with on a whim, it was something she knew the outcome for. To question her at that point was to imply she would lie, and that Corrin had failed when placing her trust in Azura. Neither of which was very acceptable from a person of my station. So I listened and jumped, and all turned out for the best.

"This time, Corrin and Azura have asked for me to jump once more, accompanied by you all. This time it is not only them making the request, but your crown princes and their siblings. To question the jump is to question their ability to make the right decision in who they place their trust in. It's to claim your future kings, the men under whom you've served for years and to whom you've sworn your lives, would throw you away without a second thought. You've trusted them so far when you followed them to Corrin's side.

"Many of you were there when we fought the invisible soldiers in Cyrkensia. You've seen the strange invisible soldiers we speak of. To those who haven't, I trust you believe the words of your fellow men-at-arms who shed blood trying to stop the strange phantoms from killing the innocent townspeople unfortunate enough to be there during the attack. If you don't want that kind of destruction to be wrought upon your own people, then we have to stop the enemy at its source. That source can only be reached through the portal at the bottom of this canyon. Think: if soldiers who flicker into and out of sight can exist, and if they can instantly appear in a town without any notice, why could there not be a portal here? It's unfamiliar magic. If one impossible thing exits, so can another. Especially in conjunction.

"So please believe your comrades, your princes, and Corrin. Otherwise...it's near treason."

Robin finished with a small grin. Almost sinister.

He dropped it after a second when he realized how out of place it was. Had Grima started to bleed into him again? That wasn't...ideal. Because if Grima was unconsciously affecting his feelings, then... Well, more importantly the bite to his speech meant he probably wasn't going to start off on the good foot he meant to. Oh well. He couldn't win them all. Though losing because of Grima wasn't the way he wanted to go.

"Robin, you…"

Corrin's voice was hardly audible, little more than a breath with shape carried over by the wind. She was concerned, and rightly so.

Robin whispered back. "Ah, sorry. Probably went a little overboard there." He glanced over the crowd. Most of them had at least some sign of thought going on. "I think they got the picture though, so success?"

A sigh was what Robin got in response. He shrugged. Corrin was his friend, and she had to understand. She'd played the nice side and the troops had struggled to accept it. He noticed that struggle and compensated with something a bit darker, and they began to understand the big picture. Though, on second thought maybe he should've pushed Corrin to say it instead. He didn't want her to look weak by speaking over her. Because she wasn't. Robin knew nothing he said would've had any weight had it not been preceded by Corrin's words. Overwhelming darkness and pessimism did nothing in the long run. If they took anything he had to say to heart, it was because they had Corrin's foundation to build on.

The construction didn't have to end either. Robin nodded toward Corrin, urging her to say something more. "Get the last word in and you'll look like the stronger of us two. My words might have hit them hard, but if you open and close you'll be the one whose words they really remember. I'll be the threat they want to avoid; you'll be the path they want to follow." It didn't matter if they vilified him. This was Corrin's world. She would have to live with any problems he created. For all Robin knew, he could drop dead or be transported home any second.

...and oh, what he wouldn't give for that. It was an absolute thrill to lead Corrin's army. He loved coming up with new strategies and reading all the interesting history of Hoshido and Nohr, and nothing was as invigorating as a good battle. But this wasn't his home. He missed the Shepherds. He missed Ylisse. He missed Chrom.

Who knew whether he'd ever be able to get back there. He didn't even know where to start.

It was so far away that there wasn't much point in even trying. What was more important was what he had in front of him: the war with Anankos. The conflict enveloping Canta. It was funny, almost, how he treated it. On one hand he was fine playing villain because he assumed he wouldn't have to do it forever, like he would go home after the war was over, no effort required. On the other hand, he was pouring all he had in the war because it was real and he was there and he couldn't fail the people. He didn't want to live in a world where they failed and Anankos succeeded with his plan.

He acted because he 'knew' he would leave and wouldn't have to deal with the consequences. He acted because he 'knew' he was there in the moment, and that he would have to deal with the consequences somehow. Even if he did make his way back to his original world, if he failed that knowledge would haunt him. So he had to focus on the present. Homesickness was no excuse for failure or low effort.

Corrin was counting on him, so Robin gave her his full attention when she began to speak once more.

"I know our situation seems grim," she conceded with a rather grave nod for such a cheerful girl, "but please keep your heads up. You're all here because you are great soldiers. You've proved yourselves time and time again to the great royal families of Hoshido and Nohr. You've won victory after victory for your homelands, and you've made your peoples and your lords proud. So I know you're strong. I know you're loyal. I know you have it in you to make this journey to save your people." Her grave expression melted away into her characteristic bright smile. "No coward would have made it this far. I know that right here, I stand in front of the best Hoshido and Nohr have to offer. So join me in defeating the monster who has threatened your homes! Hold onto those oaths you've made to my brothers, and follow us to victory on the path to peace!"

She raised Yato to the sky with a cheer, and Robin swore he saw it shine, even with the sun covered by clouds as it was. To her right stood Xander, who slowly withdrew Siegfried. He turned the blade skyward as well for a moment, holding the hilt at chest level with the tip pointed toward the clouds. Ryoma sent him a glance and did the same. Then the two nodded at each other, quickly flipping the blades and stabbing them into the ground. Corrin alone held hers outstretched.

Then a voice among the troops cried "To victory!" and the cheers began.

Corrin let out a sigh of relief standing there with Yato outstretched. She'd broken the dark hold the canyon (and Robin's words) had had on the group at least somewhat. She'd made her impression, and it was a good one. She had a strong voice and a charisma that was hard to match. Even Saizo looked like he was smiling under his mask if the rest of his face was any indication. Kaze certainly was.

The noise died down when Corrin lowered her sword, the troops resuming their old positions. They were standing in several lines, a fairly standard formation. Robin was waiting until they reached that place before he talked to Xander and Ryoma about what their troops were used to before he came up with any sort of complex plan for them. Hopefully they'd have some common experience he was familiar with to make things easy. He could work with them if not, but easy was a nice thing sometimes. When they'd gone to Valm and he'd had to plan common formations for troops from both Chon'sin and Ylisse on the same battlefield he'd had his fair share of headaches. Sometimes it wasn't about whether soldiers were capable of remembering what they were supposed to do or whether he had the unit types he needed to fill out a plan. Sometimes they were just plain stubborn and didn't want to do something because it wasn't what they were used to and they were scared of change. Or something silly like that. Who cared if they liked it, what was most important was living! Because they'd have a whole lot more life to like things if they just did what he said!

...but moving on from that, troops came later. These were top brass, so there was a good chance things would be bearable. They could rally behind a common person, that person being Corrin, so that was an advantage.

Before the real fight though, they'd have to get to their battleground. Saying you could jump into a bottomless pit and actually making yourself jump into a bottomless pit were very different things.

With that, Robin and Corrin moved to split the army up into groups of five or six. The bridge was old, and while they didn't think it was going to collapse on its own, the weight of their entire force would likely be too much for it. So groups of five or six it was, with two groups of four left over where they didn't want Nohrian and Hoshidan troops to mix for fear of conflict. They'd have to mix eventually, but that could wait a little while longer.

Before the jumps began, Xander looked the group over, addressing his own troops. His voice was stern, but not overly forceful, speaking just loud enough to be heard over the winds. "I expect you all know what we must do, and will follow through with respect."

"Yes, sir!" the Nohrians shouted back, saluting.

"And I expect the same of you all as well. Let's make Hoshido proud!" Ryoma bellowed, getting a cheer from his own troops.

"Yes, Prince Ryoma!" they shouted back.

Robin grinned at Corrin. "Ready to go?" he whispered to her. She nodded in response, looking to Azura who did the same.

Azura made her way to the center of the bridge, the spot they'd jumped from the first time she'd taken Robin and the others to that place. "One last thing," Azura announced, scuffing the ground with her shoe. Her voice was completely smooth as she spoke, effortless and nonchalant. "There are a few sharp rocks that jut out in the center of the canyon. As long as you jump from this spot here and dive straight down, you should avoid hitting them. You'll be safe once you reach the bottom, but do try to dodge anything that might hit you on your way there."

With that, Azura gave a small bow and hopped the rope railing, winking at Corrin before she jumped into the blackness below.

Robin brought a hand up to his mouth to stop himself from laughing. Azura certainly had a bold exit… Very entertaining to say the least. Hopefully that wouldn't give people second thoughts after all they went through, though. Especially since the troops in front of the bridge still hadn't moved, staring at where Azura had last stood and then where she was last seen.

"Really, what kind of habits did that girl learn while in Hoshido?" Camilla sighed. She was atop her wyvern, Selena sitting behind her and Beruka and her wyvern flying to her side. "Come now, it's our turn. I'm ready to see what fun things this second world has in store for us!"

The three flew over to the jump spot, followed by Charlotte and Benny on foot. Charlotte appeared to be muttering something under her breath, while Benny looked pale. He grabbed Charlotte's hand before the two jumped, followed by Camilla, Beruka, and Selena diving down a few seconds later.

Hinoka grumbled nearby. "Show off Nohrians…! I won't let you steal all the glory!" She quickly mounted her pegasus and flew to the jump spot, Setsuna running after her while Azama walked at a slow pace. Two more Pegasus knights joined them. "Ryoma!" she shouted, "I'll see you on the other side!" Then, she too disappeared into the depths of the canyon.

So much for the planned order. But Robin supposed it didn't matter all that much, as long as everyone went down in the end. He had elected to go last to make sure there were no stragglers, so he'd be there in case someone got skipped and didn't know what to do.

It didn't take long for the rest of the troops to follow, sticking to their groups of five or six even if the order those groups went in had been altered. Leo and his retainers jumped down a third of the way through, directly followed by Elise and her retainers. More troops jumped in, and then Xander, Ryoma, and their retainers went. Xander and Ryoma jumped at the exact same time, making eye contact before concentrating on the canyon below. Sakura was next, accompanied by both her and Takumi's retainers and looking terrified the entire time. Takumi had elected to stay behind so he could talk to Robin, so he'd be jumping last as well.

While this was going on, Scarlet went up to Corrin, handing her a flower and saying something into her ear. Robin didn't want to intrude, so he walked over to where Takumi stood. The prince looked uneasy. At that point only the four of them remained.

"Not quite ready to jump?" Robin asked.

Takumi's eyes were locked onto the bridge, his body tense and eyebrows drawn together. "No, not really." He sounded tired.

"Anything I can do?"

"I don't know. I don't even know what's going on."

Robin raised an eyebrow. Was he thinking about his sudden illness, then? Robin had assumed Takumi was worried about the fall like the others. But then again, if he were then he'd probably be shaking, not still. Or look less...resigned.

Takumi continued. "It's like there are two people trying to tell me what to do. There's me and then there's something else. I'll be doing one thing, and suddenly I get the feeling to do something completely opposite that I swear isn't coming from me, but I have no idea where else it could come from."

Two conflicting feelings in his head? That sounded familiar. Robin tried to get Takumi to elaborate on the feeling, having an idea where it came from. "Like there's something in your heart that's making you feel comfortable with that opposite idea even though there's something in your mind that's screaming run away?"

"No, you have it backwards. In this case, thinking about jumping makes me feel sick to my stomach. I know that I- I mean, I like the real me- don't want to do it because I can't wrap my head around how you could fall that far and make it out alive even if you and Azura promise there's some sort of magical portal at the bottom of it. I want to stay up here and stay alive. But at the same time, there's something in my head that's practically begging me to go down there. It doesn't feel like it's coming from me though, and it's not like some regular fight you have with yourself. It's-" He paused and let out a short breath. "Look- I promise I'm not being indecisive and just trying to get out of-"

Robin cut Takumi off. "It's fine. I believe you." After all, Takumi's words only served to confirm a suspicion he had.

He was also somewhat relieved. He'd determined after Takumi's last collapse that the prince was being possessed by Anankos. The dragon could clearly influence Takumi's feelings, which wasn't a good thing. But there was a disconnect there. It wasn't like with Grima where Robin would start to feel something and only later realize that Grima had been exerting his influence, unable to tell the difference between his true feelings and what Grima had messed with until after the fact. Takumi knew the feelings weren't his as they happened. That meant Anankos was still separate from Takumi. The degree of that separation was to be determined. As a matter of fact…

"Has this other you ever spoken to you? Used actual words in an attempt to make you do something the true you doesn't want?"

Takumi frowned. "No. Just out-of-place feelings. Why?" His words quickened, growing in volume. "Do you know something?"

"I'm trying to figure it out."

So Anankos couldn't communicate verbally, then. Just through emotions. Or feeling. However would best describe the sensation. That was another good sign, since it furthered the disconnect. The more separate the two were, the better.

Robin assumed that, had Anankos been able to speak to Takumi, he would've done so already. It was much more unnerving to have a separate voice in your head than to just have odd feelings. When there was a voice, it meant something was terribly, terribly wrong, and it wasn't like you could talk to someone about it without them deeming you insane. Strange feelings could come from stress or anxiety. A voice not your own trying to get you to do things you normally wouldn't had no reasonable explanation. The person who ran aorund saying they heard voices was the one who lost all his friends and companions. So had Anankos been able, he would've spoken.

After all, the easiest pawn to control was one who had no one to turn to.

But Anankos hadn't said a word, which had to mean that his power was limited to influence. Not control, as Grima had been capable of.

It made sense, since Takumi's connection to Anankos couldn't have been as strong as Robin's connection to Grima. Takumi's ancestors had made a deal with the unnamed Dawn Dragon, not the Silent Dragon Anankos. Robin doubted King Sumeragi or Queen Ikona had offered Takumi's soul or blood to Anankos or performed any sort of ritual to bind the two during his childhood, as Robin was fairly certain Validar had done with him. Maybe the little bit of dragon blood Takumi held made it easier for Anankos to exert his influence, but the connection was still slim. Hence why it was so broken, why Takumi was so harshly launched in and out of it, why Takumi was able to shake himself free, why he seemed so obviously distant when he was possessed…

Takumi could be freed. He wasn't entirely captive. A bond so thin could easily be broken if force was applied in the right place. The problem they faced at the moment was finding it.

"Robin."

Robin looked back to Takumi, who was staring at him with a deep frown on his face.

"You said you knew something. Tell me." His voice grew more desperate once again. "Please."

"I believe…" Robin cut himself off, unsure of how to tell Takumi his findings. How could he best phrase what he was going to say?

And more importantly, what if Anankos was listening? Robin didn't want to leave Takumi in the dark about what was going on, especially because of how troubled the teen seemed to be. But things could become very bad if Anankos discovered someone had caught onto scheme. He'd grow much more vigilant, and there was a chance he'd hurt or even dispose of Takumi if he couldn't use Takumi as a spy anymore. It wasn't something Robin wanted to risk.

But still. If Robin was ever going to tell Takumi, there wasn't going to be a better time than the present. They were in a different realm than Anankos at the moment, which was as far from Anankos as they could be. In just a few minutes, they would close the gap between them by passing through the portal to that place, where Anankos' connection to Takumi would likely grow stronger, increasing his ability to influence and potentially control Takumi. That would make it easier to use Takumi as a spy as well. So, did Robin talk where they were and risk Anankos overhearing? Did he wait until he had things more organized to tell Takumi, but run greater risk of Anankos realizing he'd been found out? Did Robin keep silent and let Takumi feel he wasn't trusted, isolating Takumi and letting him fall into a trap Anankos had laid but wouldn't have succeeded with had Robin just stayed Takumi's friend?

"You can't keep trailing off! That doesn't mean anything! Either you know something or you don't, so don't keep baiting me!"

It sounded like Robin was falling dangerously close to the third option.

He tried to appease Takumi once more. "Look, what I'm about to tell you could go very badly if I don't phrase it correctly. I'm trying to save you and me both the pain of what would happen if I were to mess things up."

Takumi narrowed his eyes.

"Just give me one more minute," Robin pleaded. "Just one."

"...Fine," Takumi said with a huff.

Robin let out a sigh of relief. At least Takumi was still on his side, even if he was getting close to the edge. Maybe if he could figure out whether or not Anankos was listening in-

'Don't bother.' Grima's voice suddenly entered Robin's thoughts, startling him. 'He isn't.'

Where had Grima been when Robin had been worrying over Anankos earlier?

'Are you sure?' he asked Grima.

'Positive. I would feel his presence, were he here with us.' Robin breathed a sigh of relief, making Grima scoff. 'Really? You get such relief from the simple knowledge that you aren't being spied on at this exact moment? It isn't as though you've managed to free the boy. He and Anankos are still bound by the dragon's magic. And he's only a single boy, a single spy. What difference does he make?"

'A big one. And he's not just a single boy, he's a prince. And also someone I empathise with and like very much.' They were similar in a way, after all. But more importantly: 'So you can tell when Anankos is possessing him?'

'I can tell the difference between when Anankos is actively controlling him or listening through him, and when he's simply acting as a passive influence, yes.'

Robin grinned. 'Well that's good to know. You better not pull any more disappearing acts on me, because I'm going to need that information.

Grima scoffed once more. 'As long as you don't pull any stupid acts of your own I should be fine. Worry about your own health, not mine. Especially as I seem to suffer far more for your mistakes than you do.'

Takumi spoke once more "Does that grin mean you've decided something? Because I don't think Corrin and Scarlet are going to wait much longer for us."

"Yeah, it does." Robin looked over to the two women. They were still chatting, but Corrin was sending over the occasional glance. "And I've come to the conclusion you'll probably like better."

Takumi's eyes brightened, and he smiled for the first time since his earlier collapse. "So you do know what's wrong with me!? Can you fix it?"

"Ah," Robin's grin fell. "Yes and maybe."

"Maybe?"

"I'll tell you on one condition. Don't freak out before I've finished explaining everything. Like I said, things could go badly if you misunderstand things and start jump to the wrong conclusions."

"Whatever. Just talk."

A nod.

Robin cleared his throat. "So, do you remember what the Rainbow Sage said back when we met him? About how he was one of the last few dragons?"

"Sort of."

"Long story short, I think one of those remaining dragons might be using you to try to get to us."

Takumi's eyes lit up. "A dragon? But why would…!" He bit his lip. "You're talking about Anankos, aren't you?" Robin nodded. "Of course. When I collapsed earlier, we were all talking about him and I...I defended him. Why would I do that? I've heard of him but I don't like him or anything. But I still-" Takumi grimaced, shutting one eye.

"Hey, hey, don't think too hard on that. It'll be alright."

"Alright? How could it be alright? The person who's trying to destroy my country and my people can use me like a puppet and I can't do anything about it! I can't stop him. I can't even tell when he's doing it."

"You're not his puppet, and don't put yourself down like that. He's not in total control either. All he's done is used you to listen. When you listened in on my conversation with Corrin and Azura, you didn't come in to attack us or run around rampant or do anything other than eavesdrop. When you collapsed earlier, you didn't do anything harmful either, even though you had what I assume are all of Anankos' prime targets all around you. All you did was listen.

"Plus, it's not as if that listening went unnoticed. You collapsed both times he used you. So we can tell when he does it, even if it's only after the fact. Though your collapse the second time around was likely because you were fighting his influence, which you did succeed in, so don't think that this is some unsolvable problem. It'll work out, I promise."

It had to. If Anankos could listen in on everything they said, then Corrin's task of defeating the dragon would become infinitely harder. Or at least, it would in theory. That all depended on how mad Anankos was. If he was completely out of his mind then he might just go straight toward them once he located them, not bothering to stop and listen in on their strategizing. But that sort of madness was unlikely, given Anankos had already shown he was capable of being more subtle when silently spying through Takumi. If he was sane enough to think to use one of their own as a spy, he wasn't going to rush in without taking advantage of the spy he'd placed.

Takumi pursed his lips, thinking over what Robin had said. Robin couldn't tell just what those thoughts were, though. Whether he was satisfied with what he had been told, whether he was confused, whether he felt even worse.

"Are we sure those are the only times he's used me?" Takumi asked after a short while.

Robin paused. That was a good question. And also one he didn't know the answer to.

Thankfully, Grima did. 'Yes. Or rather, those are the only times Anankos has taken direct control of the boy while in our presence. I can't say whether Anankos has used Takumi before we met or not, but I can guarantee those two scenes were the only ones since our introduction.'

Robin shot the dragon a thanks, conveying the news to Takumi. "Yes. At least, since we've met. But I wouldn't worry too much about whether he's done something before. Right now we're on the path to getting rid of him, so this won't be a concern much longer."

"And how can you tell? What is it that makes you so sure Anankos isn't using me now?"

"That's-" Robin's breath caught in his throat. What did he say?

'Tell him the truth.' Grima responded. 'You want to connect with the boy. You said you empathise with him. So tell him the truth. With how strange his situation is, I doubt he'll deem you insane for revealing your own.'

'And if he thinks I'm lying?'

'He won't.'

'You're too sure of yourself.'

'You aren't sure enough of yourself. Confidence makes a man; doubt cripples him. Move on and be done with it.'

"I know," Robin said, swallowing hard, "because I've faced a very similar situation myself."

Takumi's eyebrows shot up and his mouth opened as if he was going to say something, but Robin spoke again before the boy could make a sound. "My situation was actually worse than yours. Your connection to Anankos isn't nearly as strong as the connection between me and my own puppeteer. Anankos isn't really even a puppeteer anyway, since what binds the two of you isn't nearly strong enough for that." Robin gave a dark chuckle. "I'm cursed, remember? You've mentioned it a few times since the whole ordeal with Izana, so I assume you do, unless you were hit by a sudden bout of amnesia." He stopped. "Which is entirely possible now that I think about it. But regardless, when we went to Izana, he noticed there was something odd about me. He had nothing to say about you. The same with our encounter with the Rainbow Sage. I was noticeable but you weren't, even with Anankos' shadow hanging over you. I'd say I'm doing okay now, so you're going to be okay too."

Though, Grima was taking up residence in Robin's soul, whereas Anankos presumably had a body somewhere in that place that would keep him from interacting with Takumi in the same way Grima did with Robin.

Takumi laughed nervously. "What are you, some motivational speaker?"

"If I need to be."

"Then, can you get rid of him? Can you make Anankos leave me alone?"

Robin paused. Considered it for a moment.

He had nothing.

"No," Robin replied. "I don't. I can't." The response prompted a jump from Takumi. "But that doesn't mean I'm giving up. I might not have any ideas now, but that's because it hasn't been long since I figured out what was going on. Give me time, and I'll come up with something to help you. I promise. Possession isn't a situation anyone wants to deal with." Robin's voice grew quiet. "Especially when it's by someone who doesn't give a damn about your friends' safety, and is happy to get rid of them the second they get in the way…"

Grima certainly hadn't held any love for the Shepherds. From what Lucina said, in her timeline only Chrom had died that day at the Dragon's Table, when her Robin was possessed. Only Chrom stood in Grima's direct path, and he was the biggest threat to Grima's success as the wielder of the Falchion, so he'd been killed. The other Shepherds were left to the attacks of the Risen and the few surviving Grimleal soldiers in the area, unimportant for Grima's plans. It was only later that he began to pick them off. Some of the first to die had done so on the battlefield, but others Grima had killed in person, catching them when they were alone or only with a small guard. Or with their children, apparently. But Robin didn't really want to think about that. What was important was the fact that Grima had driven Robin's body to do things he never would have done had he any say in the matter. Chrom was in the way at the Dragon's Table, so he died. The rest of the Shepherds became a nuisance once they joined the war against Grima, so they died. That was that.

Anankos wanted war, and the best way to maximize destruction was to kill of the heads of the major nations. Chaos grew fastest when the chain of command was destroyed, when the last of the monarchs that had supported a people for centuries were dead or missing without explanation. He'd want to go for the royal families, Takumi's siblings included. Just like Grima had gone for the people closest to Robin in Lucina's future, because they'd been at the head of their own society.

Robin noticed Grima hadn't commented for a while. Did he feel guilty or something? He certainly hadn't shown signs of that before.

Grima didn't respond to that thought either.

Takumi spoke. "What about killing him? Anankos can't mess with me if he's dead, right?"

"No, he can't," Robin said in response. Anankos wasn't Grima. He couldn't hop bodies.

"Then all we have to do is defeat him! Then I'll be free!" Takumi sounded quite excited.

Robin nodded. "Sounds like a plan. Glad you thought of that. I don't know what we would've done about Anankos otherwise."

"You…!" Takumi broke out into a fierce blush. It reminded Robin of Sakura, so he supposed it was a family trait. "Ugh, I'm not even going to bother." He sighed. "Anyway, Corrin's been sending us looks for a while now. My siblings and the other people who've already made it to the place we're going will start to worry if we don't hop over soon. Let's go."

"You're taking this rather well."

"I don't really know what else to do at this point. There's definitely something wrong with me, and it has to be magical in origin. Why not have it be because I'm possessed by some weird dragon. I'll accept pretty much anything at this point. You're weird enough to know about this sort of thing, and it's not like the magical people we've talked to haven't pointed out how weird you are. You're the closest thing to an authority on possession, or at least weird magic, that I have." Takumi let out a short laugh. "Besides. Like you said, I haven't forgotten what the Rainbow Sage told us. He said you were an old friend, or that you were somehow connected to one, and he was definitely a dragon. Then you had all your cryptic 'oh he's here but can't talk right now' stuff. You meant you were being possessed, right? But whoever was possessing you was just…"

"Asleep, basically."

"How did you do it? Put him to sleep?"

Robin scratched his head. "It wasn't anything intentional. You know how I got badly injured on the ship a while back? So much so that everyone was convinced I was going to die?" Takumi nodded. "The dragon, Grima, was the one that saved me. But it took a lot out of him, so he went quiet for a while after that. Or went to sleep. Disappeared from my senses at least."

"Why would he save you? And if he's a dragon, shouldn't he be super strong? Why would saving just one person take so much out of him?"

"He was already weakened," Robin explained. "He didn't have much energy left, and I was so close to dying that keeping me alive took almost everything he had."

Takumi pressed on. "But why save you? You're just one person."

Robin took in a deep breath. "Because if I died, he would too."

"What…?"

"Your connection to Anankos is far weaker than my connection to Grima. You're someone Anankos uses from time to time, and can only influence so much. As for Grima and I-"

"Robin, Takumi!" Corrin shouted, waving to them from the edge of the bridge. Robin hadn't even noticed her move. "We don't have all day. The skies will change any minute now, and we need you two if we're going to win against Anankos. You're the last two after Scarlet and I, so let's go!"

Scarlet started to wave too from her spot at Corrin's side. She winked at them.

"As for you and Grima...what?" Takumi asked. "If your connection is stronger...what can he make you do?"

Robin looked away. "Nothing too terrible anymore. But I'll give you the full explanation later, if you really want it. For now Corrin's right and we need to jump."

Takumi gave Robin a doubtful look. "You promise you'll explain?"

Robin sighed, but nodded. "Yeah. In the meantime, don't tell anyone what I've told you. Especially the Nohrian retainers, and especially about Grima." He walked over to the spot where Corrin and Scarlet stood, watching as the two shook hands before plunging over the edge.

"See you on the other side," Robin told Takumi with a nod and a small smile.

Takumi nodded back. He took a deep breath, muttering something Robin couldn't quite catch. Then he jumped, and Robin was left alone.

"My turn, huh?" Robin mused.

He looked at the canyon around him. It certainly wasn't something he wanted to see again. That place was in ruins, but at least it was more pleasant to look at than the scenery around him. The combination of the grim surroundings with all the dark thoughts he'd had thinking of what Grima had once done and what he could do and what Anankos could potentially do to Takumi were draining Robin. He felt melancholic. Tired.

So with a deep breath of his own, he jumped to join the others and put that all behind him for the time being.

The fall was just as terrifying as it was the first time.

But unlike the first time, Robin heard a voice.

It wasn't Grima, but it had the same sort of weight behind it that made Robin shudder and fade away from the present while it spoke. Something more than human.

"You are not welcome here," said the voice. It was sickening. "This is my domain. I will not allow you to trespass. We have had our war, and I have won my home. What happens now is between me and those wretched humans. You are not welcome here."

The voice grew in volume, and echoed so strongly Robin felt his bones rattle at the noise. "Die."

Then the world flashed, a blue-violet color Robin knew didn't belong to Grima, and his head was filled with pain he'd only felt a handful of times before. The pain of a dragon meddling with his mind.

He might have cried out. Takumi might have screamed back. But all that sound had filtered into the distance as Robin fell away from the world, even the wind whipping his body sounding as though it were miles away, rushing through a valley he couldn't see. All he was sure of was the sudden throbbing of his body as that purple blue power rocked his body and attacked his mind, preventing Robin from locking onto any one spot or thought.

The thought of the sharp rocks jutting out of the canyon walls hitting him briefly crossed Robin's mind, but that was all it did. His head was a mess, a battleground between...he couldn't tell. He couldn't focus. Something was happening. He was...it was hard to tell. But his head was roaring, and that must've been why everything else seemed so far away. It was impossible to concentrate on anything in the outside world when your head was filled with the garbled noise of some unidentifiable conflict.

His thoughts cleared momentarily as he heard Grima yell, his voice laced with power Robin hadn't felt him use since they'd been back in their own world.

'Leave us alone, you crazed bastard! And don't ever so much as dare touch us again! I won't let you kill him. He's my damn body, and far better than the likes of you should ever approach. I swear, if you attempt to lay your hands on us again-'

Grima's voice disappeared before he finished what he was saying.

There was a hard hit. An impact that rocked Robin's body. Did he hit the side of the canyon? Had the battle in his mind grown to reach his physical body? Had the vibration and pulsation of his bones grown so strong it caused them to crack and break all at once when his body simply couldn't take it anymore?

Of course, these thoughts weren't answered. They hit Robin all at once, and they faded all at once. Because a moment after the impact, too short to be a second, too short to be a half, Robin was thrust into blackness. He stopped thinking.


When Corrin opened her eyes, she was on soft grass, a few small flowers peppering the ground around her. In the sky were several floating islands, some with stone pillars and walls, some empty. One even had a small stream that turned into a waterfall at the island's edge, the water turning into vapor and fading into the wind before hitting the ground. There were no whole buildings, only collapsed roofs and broken carts and the occasional right angle of two perpendicular walls lucky enough to still be standing.

She had reached Valla.

A smile broke out on her face and Corrin turned around wildly, excited to tell Robin and Azura their plan had succeeded and they'd made it to their destination.

But when she did, her smile broke. All around her were bodies strewn across the grass in clearly uncomfortable positions. Some she wasn't sure a person could even be in with all their bones in the right place. With them like that and no one running around to check on them, she was sure no one else was awake to share her joy with. Wasn't awake, or wasn't alive? She didn't want to think about the possibility that the second one was true.

"Oh no," she whispered, staring at the scene in front of her. "This wasn't-"

"What wasn't?" someone said in a completely unconcerned tone, snapping Corrin out of the dark thoughts that had started to form at the sight and making her scream.

"Jeez!" she cried (and didn't totally didn't squeal. Because she did not squeal, no matter how much Leo teased her about it). "Azura, don't scare me like that!"

Azura blinked rapidly. She had approached Corrin from behind, probably having come up over the crest of the hill they were standing on after Corrin had turned. "Oh'" she breathed "I'm sorry. I thought you had noticed me."

Corrin shook her head. "I hadn't, actually. I thought I was the only one awake. Everyone else is…"

"Fine. I checked them a few minutes ago, and everyone's breathing. No one looks any more injured than they were before the jump. Although, I'm not a healer so there's a chance I might've missed something. But overall, they seem fine."

"Oh, thank heavens for that. Some of them are in pretty weird positions, so I was worried they might've been." Corrin shrugged weakly, eyes to the ground. "You know." Dead.

Azura blushed. "Ah, yes. I tried moving one of the pegasus knights that was lying on her arm a little while ago, but then she twitched and frightened me, so I accidentally dropped her. After that I decided I wasn't going to move anyone else, just in case. I thought it might be better use of my time to ensure there weren't any enemies in the area. "

Corrin giggled. "What, worried someone would wake up when you were moving them and then thank you for trying to save them from a fuzzy arm or neck cramp?"

"It's more that I worried someone would wake up while I was moving them and get upset I touched them without permission," Azura responded.

In turn, Corrin scoffed. "Oh come on! You'd be helping them! That's a good thing."

"But not everyone wants to be helped," Azura chided. "Some would be embarrassed by their predicament. If I don't move them, then they can at least tell themselves others might not have seen and save themselves the shame."

Corrin scoffed again and made a show of rolling her eyes. Azura just giggled softly, raising a hand to her lips when Corrin shot her a frown at the noise.

To each their own, Corrin supposed. She'd appreciate the help, but that didn't mean everyone else did. Too bad for them.

She did have one more question though. "Say, why did we wake up before everyone else? You were the first to jump in so I can see why you'd be awake, but I was one of the last. Only Robin and Takumi went after me. Shouldn't I still be sleeping?"

Azura shook her head. "Not necessarily. You've gone through the portal before, so your body is somewhat used to it. The rest of the group hasn't, so they're recovering from the new sensation. At least, I assume that's how it works. I've only crossed over to this world with other people the few times you came with me. Every other time I went by myself through a lake or other significant body of water, which was much less jarring. This is new to me too."

Corrin nodded in response. That made sense. She felt sluggish for a while after her arrival the first time she'd gone to Valla, and still felt somewhat slow this time. Not as bad as the first time, but she noticed the tired feeling, so it at least existed. And if she felt it, everyone else probably did too. Hopefully they wouldn't be ambushed anytime soon. Even if everyone was awake before the attack started, she wasn't sure they'd do very well if they felt as tired as Corrin did that first time. She still cringed at all those missed swings and blows that hit her enemy in the shoulder instead of the chest because her sword arm had responded slower than it normally did to her commands. It had been okay back then because there had only been a few of them and their enemies came upon them by chance. This time Anankos had to know they had arrived, and was probably going to send his forces after them as soon as he pinpointed where they'd landed. It didn't look like the same place Corrin had arrived at the last time she'd jumped into the canyon, so she figured their arrival location was probably random. Hopefully that meant Anankos would have to spend some finding them, instead of being able to plop down some troops a minute away from where they landed in an instant.

"Wait," Corrin said, eyes going wide. "We're not the only ones who've been here before. What about Jakob, Gunter, and Robin?"

Azura looked surprised. She must not have thought of that. She probably hadn't thought of anyone waking early at all until Corrin got up, so Corrin didn't blame her for the oversight. But now she was curious too. If she and Azura got up early because they were used to the trip, then shouldn't the only other people who had been there before also wake soon?

So, the two of them started looking through the bodies ('unconscious bodies, not corpses,' Corrin told herself) for signs of the three. Corrin saw Xander near his retainers and Ryoma, as well as Sakura and her retainers by Takumi's. Takumi wasn't there, but he hadn't jumped with them, so that made sense. She and Azura agreed the placements were probably based on the groups people had jumped with, being with those who'd gone through the portal at roughly the same time.. They were spread out pretty far though, with clumps of people here and there and large gaps in between, so it was a bit of a trek to find everyone. Thankfully they didn't have to spend very long looking, as Jakob called out to them when they were about three quarters of the way through the bodies.

"Lady Corrin? Lady Azura?" Jakob was on a nearby hill, slightly above them but a little far away. Still, his voice came from rang out across the open space, clear as day. Unlike the canyon, the fields of Valla had no strong wind. There was a slight breeze that made the grass angle to one direction, but it wasn't accompanied by the dreadful whipping sound and cold that the strong wind of the canyon had carried. It was much more pleasant. Surprising, for such a barren land. Corrin had even noticed a few birds hopping around on the floating islands, proving Valla to be a more hospitable place for life than their last location. Again, it was surprising since Corrin figured the place would be abandoned given all the destruction Anankos had caused. Then again, birds were really tiny. They couldn't do much. He probably focused on humans, leaving everything else as it was. After all, the land was still green. It hadn't been razed by fire, and if it had, it had been long enough ago that things had grown back. The more she thought about it, the less she could make of the situation. Robin would probably do a better job.

Jakob made his way down the hill he had been on and up the one upon which Corrin and Azura stood. Corrin winked at him. "We're doing pretty okay for how things are right now, Sir Jakob."

Corrin had asked him to stop calling her Lady so many times in the recent months she had lost count, but Jakob still slipped into the habit. So, she'd come up with a new way to remind him. A much more fun one.

Jakob flinched, taken aback. "Sir…?" He sounded terribly confused, which made Corrin's smile widen. Even Azura grinned. Then realization filled Jakob's eyes, and he relaxed slightly. Or rather, he got into his original butler pose instead of the shocked one he'd frozen in. "That is, it's a pleasure to see you two awake, Corrin, Azura." He gave small bows in their respective directions when he said their name.

Good enough, Corrin supposed. She moved on. "Where were you? Did you wake up all the way over there?" she asked. It could be a problem if other people were that far away. Not only would they be hard to find, but they would be isolated from the others if and when an attack came, and that was no good.

"First, I apologize for running off without informing you. Second, I did not wake up over there. I was in the middle of the others when I awoke a short time ago. I saw Azura looking nearby and meant to call out to her, but I was distracted by motion in the other direction and went silent in case it was an enemy, wary they might hear my voice."

Azura said something under her breath. Then she spoke at a level Corrin could hear. "Was it?"

"No, it was not," Jakob replied with a shake of his head. "Or rather, I pray that it wasn't. It was Gunter, riding off on his own."

"Gunter?" Corrin repeated. "Wait, did you say he went off alone!? Without any backup? Why?"

A frown grew on Jakob's face, and he huffed. "I cannot say what drove the old man to do it. Perhaps he wished to scout the area. He certainly didn't care to inform me of his goal, nor did he make any indication of noticing me when I ran off after him. It is as much a mystery to myself as to you two."

A scouting mission? That made sense. Gunter was the type to take charge for those sorts of things, and they were in unfamiliar territory so it needed to be done at some point. But going alone was too much. Not too much to grasp, but it hurt.

It had been a few years since she'd heard him talk about it, but once Corrin had heard Gunter mention something about a wife and child. He was either talking to another servant or to himself, so he hadn't meant for Corrin to hear, but she'd been eavesdropping and the damage was done. When she asked him later if he was married (purposefully not mentioning what she'd heard), his face twisted into a painful smile, and he'd told her no. She only saw him smile like that a few more times, and they were all relating to family. One case was when one of the other servants joked that Jakob could be Gunter's son, to which Jakob started stammering about how he was not that old coot's son while Gunter stood in the background with that familiar terrible expression. He stayed unusually quiet for a few days after that. Reserved with a sad aura about him. And sometimes he'd stare out into the distance with a haunted look. A few times she'd snuck out of her room at night and saw him staring at her door with the same look. Hatred and sadness. She didn't get it. She felt bad for him, but she didn't get it. Then came his self sacrifice and Valla, and suddenly Corrin began to feel he wasn't just sad. That there was something deeper going on.

Maybe he didn't want to deal with that anymore. Maybe that's why he sacrificed himself to save her. It was a good excuse as any to go. Gunter had to know she'd be crushed if he ever disappeared or hurt himself, so he'd done it in the most acceptable way possible.

That had to be why he ran off alone on a scouting mission. He thought he wouldn't be missed, and he was doing her a service. If he came back, he'd help Corrin. If he didn't...he'd be back with his family. That had to be it.

So Corrin took a deep breath.

"Okay."

Jakob's eyebrows shot up. "Okay? That's all? Not that you need to say more, of course. I just want to ensure you have thought this through entirely. I know this must be a trying-"

Corrin waved him off. "Jakob, it's fine. Really. I believe Gunter did what he thought was best. It was stupid and dangerous but...I believe in him. He's always been there for me, so I'm giving him my trust."

"Should we send someone after him when the others wake up?" Azura asked softly.

Corrin shook her head. "No. I don't think he'd want that. Besides, right now the last thing we should be doing is splitting our forces. We're in unfamiliar territory. The enemy's home field. We've got to stick together if we want to survive this without major casualties. As much as I really, really hate to admit it, trying to find Gunter will only weaken us, so we have to forget about him for now and just pray he finds his way back to us once we're on the move."

Azura gave a solemn nod. "I understand. You're quite the tactician."

"Aw, thanks!" Corrin rubbed her head. "But speaking of tacticians...where's Robin?"

"Ah, you're right. Everyone else who has come here before is awake, now that Jakob's here and we know what happened to Gunter. He's the only one left."

Jakob was the one to respond, pointing to an area in the shade of one of the floating islands. There were two small heaps underneath it. It was too dark to tell what they were. "I saw some purple resembling his coat over in that direction. But again, I was too distracted by Gunter's ridiculous decision to examine it. I apologize."

Corrin sighed. "No need to apologize so much Jakob. The more you do it, the less I like to hear it. If anything, you should apologize for bad mouthing Gunter. I know you two've never gotten along, but I liked him. So please?"

"Of course." Jakob bowed.

The trio then walked to the spot where Jakob had thought Robin fell. And there he was, lying on the ground face up, hood over the top half of his face, one hand on his belly, one to his side, one knee bent to the side and one straight forward. It was a silly position.

But it was also familiar, and Corrin had to hold back a laugh. What a situation. She, Azura, and Jakob standing over Robin while he slept soundly on the grass, not a single other (well, conscious) person in sight. It appeared to be morning in Valla, so it was a whole lot brighter than it had been back when they'd first met. But the shadow of the island darkened things which compensated a bit. Or more than a bit. It was kind of hard to see details.

The other big difference was that Takumi was next to him. He looked peaceful, sleeping there. Unlike many of the others, he was in a fairly comfortable position. On his side, curled up slightly. More than anyone, he looked like someone that had just set themselves down on the grass for a nice outdoor nap. It was nice to see, knowing all he'd gone through in the past few weeks. The past day. He deserved it.

And while Corrin liked Robin and knew he didn't sleep nearly as much as he should and really wanted to leave him there for a little while longer, she also knew it would help them out a lot if he was awake, and that she'd have to wake him up herself if he didn't suddenly rise in the next few seconds. He was their tactician, even if Corrin did fil in sometimes. He could offer advice she couldn't come up with even if she thought for days. He was much more experienced, after all, with two whole wars under his belt. So she reached down and put a hand on his shoulder, shaking him gently.

He twitched, but didn't get up.

She shook him again, slightly harder.

Another twitch, this time more noticeable, but otherwise stayed motionless.

Her third shake was more of a jostle, and thankfully it worked. Robin jerked and moved his hand from his belly to the ground, shoving himself into a sitting position. Then he swayed for a moment, and Corrin watched as he steadied himself, ready to put out a hand if he needed it. When he stopped swaying he finally looked up, eyes still half closed. Then they widened, and he blinked. A lot. While swinging his head back and forth to take in the scene around him.

Corrin huffed, not quite a giggle, but definitely not anything bad. "Glad to have you back with us, Robin."

Robin frowned and slowly turned to face Corrin. He took a deep breath as if he was about to say something, but kept quiet. Because of course he did. He had a really bad habit of going silent while thinking things over and determining what to say when sometimes all you needed to do was speak from your heart and be out with it. Thinking was good, but overthinking wasn't, and Corrin was almost certainly he did the second more than the first. He was probably trying to think of something clever or punny to say about their situation when all he really had to say was, 'we're here!' or 'we all made it!' or something. After all, there were bodies all over the place. Clearly they had all-

"Oh," Corrin whispered. She hadn't really meant to voice that, but it happened anyway. Whoops. That probably made things worse. So, hit with the sudden realization of why Robin would've made such a horrified or confused or whatever wide-eyed expression, Corrin did her best to explain what was going on before Robin's prone-to-overthinking mind came up with too many Very Bad Things.

"Before you start freaking out, although it's probably too late for that, please know everyone's fine! They're not dead! Just unconscious. Right now the four of us are the only ones awake, but everyone else is alive and well, okay? I promise you your plan didn't fail and kill everyone horribly while you were asleep." Corrin delivered the last sentence with the brightest smile she could manage.

Jakob choked behind her, while Azura made a sound that might have been choking, might have been laughter. But Robin didn't make any noise other than the soft creak of his leather gloves and quiet, normal breathing, and that's what mattered. Jakob and Azura could think her point was terribly phrased all they liked as long as Robin, the one she was actually talking to, received it well. So she considered her little talk a success.

Robin then scoffed. Or maybe snickered. It turned into his characteristic chuckle a second after anyway, so it didn't really matter. Then he raised an eyebrow, giving her a little smirk. "Well, you certainly have a way with words."

Corrin grinned back. "Glad to know that at least you appreciate them." She looked back at the two behind her when she emphasized 'you,' making sure they got the point too.

Robin's little smirk turned into a full on grin. "Mm, I didn't say I appreciated them. Just that they were...interesting."

Azura burst into laughter, while Jakob made one of those offended gasps that signaled the beginning of some long speech to defend her. Corrin waved him off before he could start. "Oh really? Then how would you say it? You know, tell the previously unconscious person whipping their head around at all their seemingly dead comrades that everything is okay in the shortest way possible to make sure they're well informed, but not worried or guilty."

"Easy," Robin responded. "I wouldn't."

"You wouldn't?" Corrin's eyes widened, confused. Then they narrowed as she frowned. "Oh I get this one. Because you don't have to, since you weren't the one in the situation?"

"That is true," Robin said with a small nod and a smaller smile. Was something wrong?

"Well we have a ton of people to wake up after this, so you better come up with something. You're the tactician, so this sort of thing falls under your jurisdiction."

"Mm," Robin responded, running a hand through his hair and knocking the hood off his head in the process.

He brought his hand in front of his face. Then, the corners of his lips turned down oh-so-slightly. "Ah," he said, his voice perfectly smooth. "I thought I felt a bump."

Corrin looked to his gloved hand. He didn't appear to be holding anything. But the center, which Corrin suddenly realized had that weird eye thing he wore on his coat, seemed slightly discolored. It was hard to tell how though, as the heavy shadow of the island above them meant the colors underneath were muted.

So she instead looked to the hair Robin had just uncovered when he knocked back his hood, and her breath caught in her throat. She couldn't see color well in the deep shade, but she could tell that the back half of Robin's hair was much darker than his bangs. And when the breeze started to blow in her direction, coming from behind Robin's back, she caught a distinctly metallic smell.

"Oh," she repeated. She was saying that a lot lately. That would explain why Robin seemed slightly off.

Corrin shot to her feet from the kneel she had taken. "Jakob-"

"Of course!" he shouted back, taking out his staff.

Robin frowned once more, putting out a hand to motion for Jakob to stop. "I'm fine, really. There's nothing to heal. No need to waste a staff use."

Corrin felt her face morph into a scowl. "Fine? No, you aren't! How many times do we have to have this talk Robin! You're hurt. Clearly. The back of your head is covered in blood. I don't-"

"Corrin," Jakob said, voice calm. "He's right."

Corrin blinked. "What are you talking about? Please tell me you see the blood-"

"I do," he responded. "And I apo- and I know you're upset, but please take a breath. He's not lying. At least, not about there being nothing to heal. There is no wound on his head." His voice grew distant, like he was considering something. "It's like a repeat of the ship..."

Robin moved to his feet, swaying for half a second before straightening himself. "I'm fairly certain a significantly larger portion of blood was lost during that incident."

"Are you sure he's not concussed?" Azura asked, reminding Corrin of her presence.

"Actually, I'm fairly certain he is. So I suggest you sit back down while we get the others. You were already injured before this lost recent incident. Even if you somehow managed to magically heal yourself once again, you were hurt, and you aren't acting quite yourself."

"I'm not?" Robin asked, one eyebrow raised.

"No," Jakob shot back. "You're speaking more slowly than you usually do. And much more cocky. If I wasn't certain you hadn't had a drop of alcohol in the past few days, I'd say you were drunk."

"Drunk…?" Robin almost sounded outraged. He was at the very least offended.

Now that Jakob mentioned it…

Corrin agreed. "Yeah. You totally do. Remember that big party after the victory in Izumo? When we were on the road and celebrating Izana's miraculous survival? You totally acted like this back then. Right Azura?"

She nodded, as did Jakob.

"..." Robin still looked offended, but he didn't offer a verbal retort.

Azura cleared her throat. "So what should we do? Leave him here? That's what we did with the onmyouji during the last battle."

Corrin sighed. "And with Robin, who seems to be hurting himself more and more lately."

Robin looked to the ground and muttered under his breath. "Yes, he certainly does."

"There's no need to beat yourself up over it," Azura told the man as he stared at the ground, upset. "You've done a wonderful job while with us. And the rocks are very hard to avoid. It's a miracle no one else hit them."

He looked up at her with a frown. "I suppose that's good news."

Azura then smiled. A rare sight, and a nice treat. "Yes, it is."

Corrin straightened herself up. "Then it's decided. We'll start walking the others up while you wait here and rest, Robin. Once we're done we can get back to you and how you feel." She faced Azura and Jakob. "Let's start with the royals. I don't think they'd want their subjects seeing them so vulnerable. Or rather, I don't think the Nohrians would want the Hoshidans to see them so vulnerable, and vice versa. We can start from the top with Xander and Ryoma and then work our way down to Elise and Sakura. Then we ask them how they'd like to wake the rest of the groups and agree upon a common method. Does that sound good to you?"

"Crystal."

Corrin then turned back to Robin, holding his hands for a moment. "I'm sorry we keep having to leave you behind. But at the moment, it's for the best. Now go lie down in the shade and get some rest, but try not to fall asleep. I'm not totally sure how to deal with concussions, so this might be totally wrong but I think it's how it goes so just...do that."

Robin stared at her in disbelief. "Corrin. You are incredibly…" he trailed off. "Just go do what you need to do. I'll be here in the meantime." He then gave an over-the-top bow and sat back down on the grass, pulling his hood back up (or down?) to his eyes before putting his head down on the grass.

Corrin sighed. Good enough. He had a head wound and he had been frustrated for a while anyway, so she'd give it to him. For the moment, she had other things to occupy her time.


Author's note:

It's weird. I'm sort of satisfied with this chapter, sort of not. I think it comes from how many times I rewrote sections, to the point I forgot whether I'd included something in the new version or not and got frustrated reading over everything again and again to figure it out. For one example of the changes, the original draft had 1.5k words of a fight between the some troops who weren't happy about having to side with the other country and the royals having to sort it out yadda yadda. Oh well. I also read a couple of fantasy books I really loved and would like to imitate style-wise, so that added to my frustrations when I'd sometime capture that spirit, but the section wouldn't match the rest of my writing because the styles didn't match. One day I'll rewrite this, and hopefully by the time I do I'll have found the style I really love and developed the ability to write it. Thank you all for your patience.

Originally posted June 23rd, 2019. Word count: 13,501, not including author's notes.

Until next time, Mariyekos.