Morgan yawned and stretched out her arms as she opened her eyes to start a brand new day. A thousand different ideas went through her mind on what to do first, but she forgot that her parents were not here today which significantly lowered the options. They were instead watching the first rounds of a jousting tournament while the young tactician slept in her bed longer than usual. However, Morgan would quickly discover that she was not alone in her room as a pair of eyes gazed back at her from a nearby chair.
"Good morning Morgan." Tiki greeted politely. "Judging by your bed head it appears that you are well rested.
"Tiki?" Morgan whispered surprised as she quickly patted her hair down with her hands.
"I do hope I am not intruding, but I was expecting you to wake up sooner so I could talk to you." She replied sweetly.
"I'm sorry, usually Frederick wakes me up if I sleep past ten." The young tactician said bewildered as she looked out her window to see the sun was already at its peak in the sky.
"Yes, he did come in awhile ago, but you appeared to be having a pleasant dream so I requested for him not to disturb you."
"I wish my parents shared the same sentiment." She growled at the memories of her recent trips that occurred close to five in the morning. "But I am really sorry for making you wait Tiki."
"Don't be, it allowed me to think of a few more things I wished to discuss with you before you awoke."
"Right." Morgan said intruiged and looked back to Tiki with some concern. "I imagine you want to talk to me about my father and his sickness."
"Very perceptive Morgan, but I would expect nothing less from you." She smiled back warmly.
"So my father's sickness is as bad as I feared." Morgan replied worriedly knowing that he had to seek help from Naga and her daughter. "He keeps hiding it from me so I pretend not to notice, but things are really bad aren't they?"
"I'm afraid that your father is suffering from a parting gift that Grima gave him. My mother and I have taken steps to reduce the effect, but our efforts will not last long enough for him to pass of natural causes.
"... I see." Morgan curled up and covered her knees with her hands. "H-how long does my father have?"
"It depends on how strong his soul is, but given the circumstances he has faced, it is reasonable to assume he still has many years ahead of him."
Morgan's eyes widened in a mix relief and horror. At the very least she would not lose her father anytime soon, but at the same time the reality that he was deathly sick made her tense up in a terror that could never be described. "Is he in any pain?" She asked very scared.
"No, the steps we have taken will ensure he does not have to endure any suffering or hardship."
"... Good." She said weakly.
"I am sure this can't be easy for you Morgan." Tiki replied very softy. "So if you need a moment I can come back after you have had some time to think about this."
"No, please don't stop." Morgan took a deep breath and braced herself for the worst. "If you think I might be able to help my dad in any way than I don't want to delay this any longer."
"You're a very brave girl Morgan." Tiki said admirably. "And I do believe there may be a way you can help him."
She rose her head urgently and nearly jumped out of her bed ready to act at the thought. "How?"
"I am afraid I do not know yet. That is why I wished to speak with you."
"What about?" She asked nervously.
"I would like to know if you have any memories of your father being sick when you grew up."
"No." Morgan shook her head. "I've regained a lot about my mom, but nothing about my dad being ill. Though, the last few years are still very hazy to me."
"I can see why it would be difficult to remember anything recent. That would be around the same time your father started to show signs of fatigue." Tiki said with a fixed concentration on Morgan's eyes.
Morgan immediately noticed the same correlation and said, "Do you think that maybe, I have repressed all memories of my father being sick?"
"I'm afraid it would explain a lot of things." She frowned and softy exhaled. "You see, it is my belief that you came here to either warn Robin about his sickness ahead of time, or you found a cure after it was too late to stop it. I can think of no other reason my mother would allow you to travel back in time."
Morgan carefully thought over the two scenarios and whispered in a trance, "I came back, to save my father." She tightly held her hands together and grimaced. "So why can't I remember anything?"
The Divine Dragon rose from her seat and said, "Unfortunately, there is a great mental and physical shock that comes with time travel. Only those who have a strong will and a clear head will return in the same state they left in. For Lucina's friends, some of them found themselves on another continent because they were not prepared for such a trying journey."
Morgan lowered her head depressed and said, "But instead of being warped to Elibe or Valm, I lost nearly all of my memories."
"I am afraid so." Tiki replied sympathetically. "What is the last thing you can remember before you traveled back and met your parents again?"
"... I ..." Morgan searched deep within her brain for anything she could remember. All she needed was a glimpse or a fragment of her past, but the headache she was slowly developing made it even more difficult. "I was fourteen. There was a banquet for something ...Maybe for a holiday or a ball. There was a lot of laughing and celebrating with all the shepherds gathered around, but something felt very wrong. … I don't remember seeing my parents anywhere even though I asked Chrom probably a dozen times and ... that's all I remember."
"Everything from that point on is a blank?"
"Yeah …" Morgan muttered back in deep thought.
"The mind is a very fascinating and unpredictable thing." Tiki closed her eyes in deep thought. "Even my mother could never hope to decode such a complex machine, but with some effort we may be able to return your memories."
"Really?" She cried back with wide eyes.
"Somethings are woven so deeply in our hearts that we can never forget them. All there needs to be is a helping hand to push those memories back, but it may be very painful to revisit them Morgan. Your mind subconsciously repressed them for a reason. It would be unwise to think that bringing them back will come without any consequences.
"Is there a way for you to find what you are looking for without releasing all of my past at once?" Morgan asked hopefully, though she was more than wiling to bear it all if it could help her father.
"Hmm, I may be able to unlock a small shard of your memory without forcing you to suffer so many difficult events at once, but eventually the rest of your locked subconscious will fall like a stack of dominoes. Once your mind has found the missing pieces to the puzzle, it will quickly connect everything together."
"I will take it all if I have to." Morgan nodded back determined "I want my dad to be healthy again, and for both of my parents to be happy. Please Tiki. Help me remember why I came back." She pleaded as she looked back at the kind manakete.
"Very well. Close your eyes and think of a pleasant memory." Tiki slowly walked over to Morgan's bed and placed her hand on the tacticians forehead. "Are you at peace Morgan?"
"Yes."
"Then let's begin." Tiki said as her fingers tips glowed a greenish tint. She could sense a great knot in the tactician's mind that was responsible for her problems. Tiki looked carefully through it while making sure not to release three years of memories all at once, but at the same time knowing that somewhere inside the cluster lay an answer to what everyone was looking for.
...
"You're finally back!" Morgan cried excited the moment she saw her parents return from their trip to the jousting arena. The two had not even passed through the gate before their crazed daughter came charging at them.
"Ha, we've only been gone for half a day Morgan. Though, I trust you didn't burn down the castle while we were gone." Robin smiled while alongside Lucina.
Morgan stuck out her tongue in spite and said, "Did you have fun on your trip to the arena while abandoning me to my own isolation?"
Robin laughed off her usual dramatic attempt to guilt trip them and said, "Yeah, we both learned a lot. We saw some incredible sword fighters in the arena that almost compared to Lucina's skills, and there were a lot of knights at the joust this year. Luckily, both events were held at different times so we were able to catch a lot more than we were expecting."
"What about you Morgan?" Lucina asked with her calm and sweet voice "I am sure you managed to enjoy some of the day without us."
"... I talked to Tiki today, and spent some time hassling Frederick." Morgan replied back trying to smile and hide what she learned from their experience. Tiki wanted to hold a meeting with all of them gathered before discussing what they found. "But since you are back again you can spend time telling me more of the story!"
"Ha, why am I not surprised that is the first thing thing you would ask for." Robin chuckled and turned to his wife. "I believe it is your turn this time."
"Right." The princess nodded and smiled back to her daughter. "We should go inside and find a place to sit."
"Let's just do it here." Morgan quickly replied back. "It shouldn't get dark for another hour or so, and the grass is comfortable to sit on."
"It is a lovely day outside." Lucina pondered and smiled back to her daughter. "Okay Morgan." She replied cheerfully and walked over to the side of the stone castle wall. Using the wall as a support, she lowered herself to the clear-cut green grass below and rested her back on the stone wall.
The moment we stepped on the surface of the volcano I could feel the surging heat rush across my face. To make matters worse, the volcano had spewed smoke from its top for the last three hours showing signs it would erupt again soon. Every major tremor and roar the volcano unnerved us as we waited to fight.
To make matters worse, we were at a severe disadvantage. The heat forced Frederick and Kellam to fight without their body armor, my mother and Cordelia had to fight on foot without the aid of their pegasi, and the toxic fumes of burning sulfur was strong enough to cloud our senses. Naturally, our enemy would face the same problems, but as they closed in on us and initiated the battle, it was clear they would not let the volcano break their spirit.
...
"Oy, Gregor is hot in more ways than one" The mercenary laughed as the first wave of Yen fay's elite guard attacked our unit.
"It's your own fault for being warm. The amount of alcohol in your system will dehydrate you faster than these conditions." Lon'qu replied back as he blocked a sword swing and dodged an arrow heading towards his waist simultaneously.
"How can shy swordsman say such awful things about sweet spirits? Gregor's body and soul always feels refreshed by the sweet taste of sacred nectar." He replied jubilantly as he sent his sword crashing down on a sword master's head.
"I will never understand how you can fight so efficiently while drunk." Lon'qu broke off another strike and then bent his knees to stay low the ground as he targeted his opponents legs. The sudden jolt of pain in the man's thigh was followed by a large thud as he fell to the ground with Lon'qu about to deal a lethal blow.
Just then, another soldier with a thin curved sword rushed forwards to cut Lon'qu at his neck while he was distracted. With the deadly sword inches away from Lon'qu face, there was a loud cry "Hyyragh!" followed by the sound of metal tearing flesh as the warrior suddenly fell with a huge gash in his back that ripped his spine into two pieces. "Haha, timid sword wielder now owes Gregor a favor for saving life. Don't worry, you can make it up to Gregor by buying a keg of beauteous rum.
"I owe you nothing. I was more than ready to dodge that attack."
"Ha, no need to hide gratitude. Gregor won't tell anyone that bashful young champion nearly lost a duel to a lesser swordsman. All Gregor asks in return is for the wondrous taste of healthy and nutritious rum to satisfy Gregor's quest for happiness. Oy, thinking about the savoring flavor is making Gregor's body tingle in excitement!"
…
"Shouldn't he be paying more attention to the battle?" I asked Robin as sweat slowly dropped down my face. We were making quick work of the vanguard, but that would change when we hit the more experienced champions.
"Nah, he will be fine." Robin responded equally drenched from the intense heat. "He always does his best fighting when he is like this."
"I don't see how that is possible." I replied while carefully advancing across the rocky and unstable terrain.
"We all have our quirks that help us fight better, some are just jollier than others." Robin grunted at the end as he blocked a sword strike coming his way. The tactician purposefully kept his foe in a sword lock while he waited for me to send in the final strike to bring the man to his knees.
"Still, it doesn't seem like he is trying to conserve very much energy."
"He may look old, but he is still young at heart. I am sure that-" Robin's glanced up to the sky as we were talking and noticed something that immediately caught his attention. "Virion! Enemy wyverns and griffons to our south.
"Fear not. I shall tether my arrows to their hearts and send them to the gates of hell." He boasted confidently as he strung his bow and aimed for the sky.
"Great, great." Robin mumbled as he glanced across area trying to assess the situation with the very short time he had before our next attackers came. "Henry! I need you to clear a path up ahead. Take Tharja with you and give us some breathing room."
"Nyhaha, you can count on me! " The raven boy laughed as whatever sanity left in his brain was cooked dry. "I'll splatter this mountain with sweet, sweet blood. Hehehe."
"... Okay." Robin said a little disturbed, but he didn't have any time to worry about it. "Lucina." He quickly turned around with a determined look on his face. "It's going to get very rough from here on out, but I am trusting you will have my back."
My heart stirred a little as I nodded to him in return.
"Watch out for the Griffons, they can be very tricky since we never fought them before." He replied nearly out of breath. The combination of the heat, the tactics running through his mind, and our powerful foes were taking a serious toll on his body. I feared his strength was already running low, but he insisted on charging ahead without hesitation.
As the fighting picked up, the volcano violently shook with it. The ground quaked and cracked as more and more smoke puffed from the top of the mountain that threatened to erupt at any moment. As the tremors increased, it proved difficult to maintain a steady balance on the rocky surface, and I was one of the few who recovered quick enough to take advantage of it. I swung Falchion across my foe's chest and he came crashing down along with his double bladed axe to the glowing red ground.
Our next threat came in the form of mounted flying axe wielders heading towards us who did not need to worry about the trembling ground. If not for Virion arrows and Miriel's wind magic, we would have been overwhelmed from their sheer numbers. But as they came at us, bodies from riders and their mounts became obstacles to dodge as they were shot out of the sky and our slow advance steadily inched forward. It was extremely tiring fighting one enemy after the other and the sweat dripping into my eyes only made it only harder to see, but we pressed on without pause.
"Just a few more." Robin huffed out of breath. "Gotta hang in there for a little longer."
"Right. Do you want us to go for Yen'fay like planned or divert his guards away from him?" I asked as I eluded a javelin and rushed at its owner. The man who threw the spear scrambled for his sword to defend himself from my oncoming strike, but as our swords collided I manage to kick him in the shin from my momentum which sent him plummeting to the ground.
...
"Robin?" I looked back at him wondering if he was to busy fighting to answer my question.
"Huh?" He grunted very tiredly as he turned back to me in a daze. All the color had run from his face and whatever energy he had left was spent trying to make sure our position was still stable. "Did you say something?"
"... Are we going to challenge Yen'fay?" I repeated fearing that he was about to drop from fatigue.
"No." He sighed while wiping the sweat from his face. "We won't be able to make it in time so we will have to change plans. Hopefully Chrom will be able to reach him quicker than Say'ri, but everything else looks stable. All we can do now is provide support."
With that in mind, we moved forward to secure our area with only Gregor and Lon'qu to act as backup. By now most of our mages were out of commission from severe exhaustion, and Virion had to protect Maribelle while she focused on healing those with the worst cases of heat stroke.
Although Robin also looked half dead, his fighting did not diminish as he moved to a support role instead of a lead fighter. Anyone who wanted to hurt him would have to go through me, and whenever I was locked in a duel he would be there to break it open. Through our team work we held the line until there were no more reinforcements left to challenge us.
The brief moment of rest gave me a chance to look ahead and see that Say'ri and Tiki were already fighting Yen'fay. Say'ri was frantically swinging her sword again and again without hesitation as her brother made no attempt to do anything other than block.
The sight made me think of my sister who I swore to protect with my life and it horrified me to see how far this war had dragged this continent apart. I could never fathom hurting anyone in my family, but it did not stop Say'ri from driving her sword into Yen'fay's chest. In that moment her rage turned to sorrow as the man we fought so hard to defeat fell without once trying to fight back.
…
The next two days passed mainly in silence as we spent time recovering from our battle. Since Walhart's men withdrew back to the capital, Chrom and Robin were in no hurry to pursue any type of fray while we regrouped and treated those suffering from severe heat stroke.
I helped out Lissa and Maribelle in any ways I could, but on the third day I had been ordered by my father to rest and relax. When I told him I was healthy and still able to lend a hand, my protest fell on deaf ears as he refused to listen. His sentiment was very clear, either I rested today without doing anything to help, or he would make sure that I didn't do anything for the next few days.
*Sigh* I shrugged sitting on a tree stump outside our makeshift barracks as Frederick refused to let me in. My father said I couldn't work, but he mentioned nothing of training.
"That's a pretty big sigh." Robin's voice called behind me while I was trying to think of what to do for the day. "Is something the matter?"
"My parents ordered me not to do anything today." I said depressed.
"Looks like that is becoming a hobby of theirs." The tactician laughed and walked in front of me so he could see my face. "I've been ordered to do the same. Something about my face looking whiter than a sheep and if I worked anymore my mind would literally catch fire from all the stress."
"You did look very strained from the heat Robin. Though I am very glad to see you made a quick recovery." I replied while glancing at his features. His color had returned to his face along with his calming presence, but there was always something about his cheerful demeanor that made me want to smile.
"To be honest, even I wasn't expecting to be moving today. I hate to admit it, but for once your father had a good reason to keep me from my work."
"So what are you doing here at the barracks?"
"I could ask the same to you." Robin grinned already knowing the reason I came here. "But I wanted to see if Stahl was guarding the entrance today. If he was I could have bribed him with food to let me pass and review a few documents, but it appears that your parents are really determined to keep us out."
"Yeah … I really do appreciate their concern, but I don't know what to do other than train or help others." I sighed not sure how to pass the time.
"You could ask Chrom and Sumia to go into the nearby town. I am sure they would love to spend some time with you."
"... They already made the offer yesterday while you were still in the infirmary. We spent some time shopping inside the town and talking about more cheerful things."
"Oh, that sounds nice." He said happily.
"Yes, as selfish as it was … It was very enjoyable to spend time with them again." I lowered my head a little embarrassed about how childish I sounded.
"Sometimes we all deserve to be a little selfish Lucina. You especially."
I tensed up a little and replied "My parents said as much."
Robin hesitated seeing me so conflicted, but reached out to touch me on my shoulder and said, "Lucina, soon I will make it so you can spend everyday with them again. Where the greatest concern you will have is trying to make the most out of each day."
"... As nice as that sounds Robin, one day I will have to leave. I doubt I will ever be able to return to my time, or if it even still exists, but I can't come back to the castle after this is finished either. It wouldn't be right " I replied lowly. "Once Grima is dead I will go my separate way and leave the life I always wanted to my younger self.
"... I'm sorry Lucina, but I will never allow that to happen." He replied back very seriously.
"What?" I looked back at him in surprise from his sudden change in tone.
"I know you worry about the future and all, but there is no way that Chrom, Sumia, or myself will ever let you leave. The idea is completely out of the question" He spoke adamantly and with fierce determination in his voice.
"But I don't belong here. It would be very egotistic of me to enjoy the life that comes after all of this is over."
"Even if that was true, which it's not. Do you think any of us would care?" He gathered his thoughts together and quickly spoke again before I had a chance to answer. "I mean, you have a greater impact on us than you think. Your hope and strength have a way of inspiring people. To deny this world of your incredible nature would be far more selfish than staying and enriching our lives."
"Robin ..." I barely muttered both stunned and speechless.
"Once we defeat Walhart and Grima, our mission will not be over. We still have a long way to go to help people recover and fight for our dreams of grandeur. That is not a mission Chrom and I can do alone. We will need someone like you to keep us going."
"... W-what makes you think that I would be so important?" I asked as a flurry of emotions ran through me.
"I already told you." He looked at me in the eyes with his sincere and warm gaze, "You are an incredible person Lucina. I know for a fact that I will never meet anyone like you again in my lifetime. You are someone that is invaluable to this world because of all the amazing traits you have, and it would be a devastating loss to all of us if you left."
I immediately blushed and looked down at the ground as he said those things. For no reason my heart started beating faster and I had to battle with these strangely powerful emotions like last time. "Robin" I clutched my hands in a panic as my stomach churned. "I … want to stay-"
"Then promise me you will." He asked gently which made it hurt even more. "You are too important for us to risk losing."
I shook my head as my hands trembled. "I can't."
"Of course you can." He smiled back. "Is it so wrong to spend time with those you enjoy being around?
I felt my stomach churn again and sighed in pain. "Why? Why must you use my emotions against me? I want to stay. I really do. Nothing would make me happier than to be able to spend the days with my parents again and reclaim the time Grima stole from me. However, I've told myself over and over again that is a childish dream that I have to abandon for the greater good. I can't do it despite how much I want to"
Robin fell silent as he watched me cry out.
"But you … you don't play fair! The way you look at me with such tender and caring eyes. I can't even breath right now because of the swirling in my stomach. My heart is racing and I can barely keep myself together. It's not fair, my mind and my immature desires are both yelling at me and I can't concentrate! I don't know what you did to me, but please make it stop!"
Robin grimaced as he saw me on the verge of tears. "I'm sorry." He quickly said in a panic. "I didn't mean to make you-" His face went pale as a revelation crossed his mind. Immediately, his body went stiff and he violently swore to himself in anger. Whatever he was thinking severely affected him and he changed to a stoic and mechanical voice that had no trace of anything human.
"Forgive me, I was completely out of line. I had absolutely no right to say any of that. I stupidly said somethings without thinking and for that you have my sincerest apologies."
"W-what do you mean?" I asked even more confused as he turned rigidly cold. The pain in my stomach now turned to fear as he refused to even look at me.
"I panicked. It is simple as that." He responded automatically without any emotions. "You have a way of effecting me as well, and hearing that you might leave misguided my thought process. I know it is impossible to take back what I said, but I hope it will not cause you to think less of me."
"Huh? Robin you are not making any sense." I said very confused.
"I suppose I am not." He sighed to himself. "I better leave before I make things even worse. It seems like the heat from the volcano has affected me more than I thought."
"Wait! Robin." I asked urgently as he started to walk away. "I still don't understand."
"Just ignore what I said." He replied back and shook his head in frustration. "I do hope you choose to stay when things finally end, but it is not my right to ask such a thing. That is a conversation you need to have with your parents, not with a random stranger."
"... Stranger?" I asked horrified as he quickened his pace to get away. His sudden reaction was just as bad as mine, and I desperately tried to piece together what just happened. Nothing made sense, and I could swear those feelings I was experiencing around him only got worse each time I met him. It was very frightening that I could not control them and it made me wonder what was wrong with me.
I had fought so hard for the last five years to keep my emotions bottled up. They always made it harder to think through things clearly and were a menace to my mission. I swore to myself that I had to be strong and never let them break free, yet he found a way to bring them out of me. It was incredible scary and I just wanted it to stop. And yet at the same time, I wanted him to come back.
…
…
"You realized mom had a crush on you!" Morgan turned to Robin and smiled evilly.
"Yeah ..." Robin said a little ashamed. "I also realized I could not control what I said in front of her either. The last two conversations made that abundantly clear so I shut down and tried to get out of there"
"Hehe, it's funny how silly you two act around each other."
"Laugh all you want Morgan, but when you find someone you like I'll be sure to make it as awkward and embarrassing as possible for you too." Robin grinned as he got even.
"Okay, I suppose I had that coming, but what about you mom? How do you feel about it?"
"Well, I would be glad to tell you, but that was only the first part of what happened that day."
"There is a second part?"
"Yes, would you like to hear it?"