[][Andrew][]

Velvet night and silver moonlight had made themselves known, a stunning stage for a well-deserved celebration. The chatter of their festivities lay like a blanket over the camp, punctuated by roars of pride as someone did something impressive. A lot of drinking, I'd bet.

With Gangrel dead, the remnants of the Plegian army folded, with most of it surrendering on the spot. Tomorrow, Chrom would march to the Plegian capital and get a peace treaty signed- not with Validar, I assumed. I recalled a cutscene in the game where Chrom and Robin were surprised by who the King was... or were they just surprised by the Hierophant?

The stars twinkled back at me, merry and alien. I tightened my grip on the rough wooden cane, absently following the knotted wood grain with my thumb. "How much have I forgotten?" I mused in a whisper, smiling thinly, "I wouldn't know, would I."

I chuckled at that. It was probably time to buy a journal from An- er, Mary. She might give it to me for free if I asked, but I discarded the idea as soon as it arrived. Mary was trying to be nice, and I wouldn't risk that for a free journal. Or anything else, now that I thought about it.

Mary Anna, huh. Her parents must have had a sense of humor.

Shaking that line of thought off, I resolved to pick up a journal tomorrow. Maybe Cordelia had extras?

In that case, I'd definitely have to wait until tomorrow. Her cheeks nearly matched her hair after one round of drinks- I hadn't participated, I don't drink- and Sumia volunteered to walk the poor girl back.

Um, right. Where was I? Right! Validar and the Hierophant. Grima was out there somewhere, and in two years Validar was King. The game didn't really provide information on when Validar became king, exactly, but it was probably in my best interests to prevent that from happening. Or, more realistically, I should tell someone important about it.

"Andrew! There you are. I need to talk to you about- about the future."

Speaking of important someones, Robin was a very important someone. It felt nice that she was looking for me, honestly.

I turned around, carefully keeping my weight off my right leg.

"You aggravated the injury," Libra had said to me, grasping my hand and curling my fingers onto the cane, "You must be careful not to test it further."

Nowi had then crashed into the tent, nearly tackling me- right, Robin's here, say hello. Focus, Andrew. It was clear to me that she'd just said something, and I'd missed it entirely.

Smiling apologetically, I tapped my temple with one finger. "Sorry, Robin. I missed that," I paused, looking her up and down, "Long day, mana exhaustion. I'm a bit scatterbrained. Er, more than usual," I added, recalling Ann- Mary's amusement when I told her that. "Good to see you're doing well, by the way."

She really was doing and looking well, especially compared to earlier. I'd seen her limp in to the medical tent with all sorts of burns and cuts. She'd tied her coat around her midsection, opting instead to wear a thick tan sweater that hid just as much. Pretty, in a cute kind of way.

Robin ran a hand through her hair- both were free of ink, leaving her hair to shine like silver in the light. "I heard, and thank you," she nodded, inspecting her shoes, "Maribelle, erm, told me about it over tea."

"It was worth it, though I feel bad for giving the healers extra work," I supplied, pausing, "Anyways. You wanted to talk about the future, right?"

Nodding, Robin brought her hands to her hips, fingers flexing experimentally. Her cheeks flushed a moment later. "Oh," she muttered, untying her coat, "Of course."

"No pockets in your pants?" I asked, leaning forward on my cane.

"It's the one thing I miss about- about my old wardrobe," Robin said haltingly, slipping her arms into the coat sleeves and patting down the numerous pockets, "Nothing has good pant pockets anymore. I need to ask Cordelia how she manages..."

"That's a good-" I paused, working my jaw. Wait a second. "Robin, Cordelia doesn't wear pants. There wouldn't be pockets to begin with."

"Exactly," Robin agreed, grinning as her hand landed on a particularly bulky pocket. "Ah! There it is. Cordelia always seems to have what she needs and she only wears shorts, so she must have a good system."

It sounded like Robin spent great deal of time looking at Cordelia's legs. But I didn't really know Robin that well- so I decided not to tease her about it. "You'll have to wait until tomorrow," I said instead, "Cordelia already went to bed. Anyways," I coughed awkwardly, "The future."

"The future," Robin nodded fervently, flipping through her journal. "There was something you wanted to tell me specifically, and perhaps something about the ones similar to Marth."

Ah, right. Those. I'd nearly forgotten, because that day was decidedly unpleasant. And telling Robin about her origins would probably ruin her day. "Um," I said, hastily putting together a not-lie, "The first one is important, but today really isn't the day to tell it. You'll have to trust me on that."

I'd given them reason to trust me, sure. If deserved to be a Shepherd, a thought murmured darkly, she wouldn't look so dubious right now.

She furrowed her brow, blood-red eyes inspecting me for something. Finally, she sighed and looked away. "Very well. So. Marth and the others- I take it the girl with red hair is one of these 'others'?"

Uh-oh. Call it a gut feeling, but that question wasn't as innocent as it seemed. Worst case scenario, Robin figures it out. Was that really a bad thing, though? I genuinely didn't know. "Yes," I agreed, "She's one of them. There's, uh," I counted in my head, "Twelve in total, I think. Thirteen, actually."

Robin frowned. "Thirteen? And how did they end up separated, then?"

That, I didn't know the answer to. "I don't know," I said honestly, "I probably used to know, but it's been years since I- since I looked at that information." Naga, on the other hand, might know. I resolved to ask her next time I ran into her.

"Do you know where any of them are? I've already been sending out feelers and supporting Marth while she searches, but if you know anything that could help, well," she grimaced. "We can't afford to let Grima find them first."

Right, she'd already started looking for them. I ran through my memories once again. Mary had mentioned running into Laurent, but now that I thought about it, Laurent was supposed to be somewhere in southern Ylisse. Huh. I scratched my chin contemplatively, ignoring a familiar flicker of movement behind Robin.

"One of them is or was in Ferox, and they're heading... I assume to Ylisstol. You'd have to ask Marth if they had a planned meeting point, I guess," I shrugged, "Maybe five of them were in the northern parts of Ferox, actually. Or they're supposed to be. Some of them are across the ocean in Valm. But that's all I've got for now. I'll tell you if I remember anything else."

"Please do," Robin agreed, posture slumping, "I can't- Grima's going to kill them if he finds them, Marth told me as much. I can't let that happen."

She put her journal away, pulling her coat tightly around herself.

I felt a tug on my heartstrings, and without a second thought I put my hand on her shoulder. Giving it a light squeeze, I said, "I believe in you, Robin."

Offering me a wavering smile, Robin stepped away and out of my grip. "I- thank you, Andrew. And you promise you'll tell me, um, that thing?"

And I hoped it wouldn't break her, or change things for the worse. "Of course I will, Robin. Maybe in a week or two, when things have settled down."

We stood there awkwardly for a few moments. I wasn't sure how to end the conversation, and Robin looked lost in thought. Luckily for us, that flicker from earlier turned out to be Anna- er, Mary, who looked equal parts awkward and impatient.

I owe you, I mouthed to her, making sure Robin wasn't watching.

Mary chewed on her lip for a moment, shrugged, and rolled her eyes. Obviously, she mouthed back.

"Oh, hey there!" I said with a little bit of forced cheer, waving at Mary. She rolled her eyes again, smirking lopsidedly.

Robin jumped a good half foot into the air, cheeks flushed and hands balled into fists. "Eep!" she squeaked, voice cracking. Her glare was halfhearted and frankly adorable, so the best I could do was spread my one free hand apologetically.

Clearing my throat, I gestured towards Mary and smiled. "Hey, Anna! Feeling better?"

"Absolutely fantastic," Mary drawled, sauntering over, "I got beat up by corpses, fussed over by a priest, and hit on by a drunk soldier. Couldn't have imagined a better day."

"Dinner was pretty good though," I pointed out, nodding along. "Haven't seen an entire turkey get spit-roasted before."

"I did like dinner," Mary agreed, glancing upward, "They went a bit heavy on the garlic. Nowi ate an entire turkey leg in one bite, which was," she held her hand out flat, wiggling it. "Eh, equal parts disturbing and cool."

Robin went a little green at that, sidling away. "Um, sorry. I should be- I should be going now."

Now I felt bad, darn it. Rubbing the back of my head, I turned towards Robin. "No need to apologise, Robin. Make sure to get some rest, alright?"

Robin's expression went from flushed to baffled. "Of course," she said hurriedly, "You too."

We watched her scurry off, enjoying a much more companionable silence.

It couldn't last forever, though. There were important things to discuss!

"Did Nowi really eat an entire turkey leg in one go?" I said, raising an eyebrow. "Or were you just trying to get Robin to leave?"

Tilting her head downwards, she looked at me the same way a librarian looked over their glasses. Assuming they had glasses, of course. "Please, Andrew. Would I lie?"

I opened my mouth.

"Rhetorical question," she continued, waving me off, "Don't answer that. Yes, Nowi did eat an entire turkey leg. Dragons are weird."

"Bone included?"

"Bone included."

Not so much a discussion, now that I thought about it. We lapsed into a comfortable quiet, soaking in the sights and sounds.

An old pain worked its way up from where I'd pushed it, finding company in new doubts and familiar worries. But I wasn't quite ready to name it, let alone talk about it. "Is Tiki doing alright?" I said softly, "She was asleep, last I saw her, but- well."

"You worry," Mary supplied, tapping a finger to her chin.

"Of course I do," I said simply, "She's important to me. I-I mean, I know you two don't get along as well, so if you didn't check in, I get that. I figured I'd ask."

She looked at me, chewing her lip. "I did. Check on her, that is. She's still asleep, and I know she's survived worse."

"Yeah," I paused, trying to grab at a gut feeling that was drifting around my head. Oh. Oh. "And you, A- Mary? Are you doing alright?"

Her expression wavered between irritation and relief. "You already asked that, Andrew. I'm fine," she gave a flimsy smile, rubbing one arm. "Nothing that'll scar too badly, but I'll be sore for a few days."

A pause.

Mary laughed softly, rolling her shoulders. "Gods, we're terrible at this. I saw most of your treatment, so I know you're doing alright, but-" she grinned, "It's just funny to me, hm? We can argue about dinner 'till the fire dies, but once this feeling-y stuff get involved? It's like pulling teeth."

"Absolutely awful," I agreed, smiling back, "Last time we did this, I'd just saved your life. The time before that, nothing actually happened, and the time before that-"

"-you told the Voice of Naga to shut her trap," Mary covered her mouth, stifling a chuckle. "What next? Throwing ourselves at the enemy?"

Oh that's awkward. Absently rubbing my side, I leaned a bit more heavily on my cane.

"You didn't," Mary said, eyes narrowing.

I coughed awkwardly, which utterly failed to fool her. "Well, it's a bit complicated, and I wasn't exactly in a good place mentall-"

Mary leaned forward and flicked me on the nose, striking with the swiftness of a snake. Flinching backwards, my hand jerked up to my nose. "Ach! What was that for?"

"Doofus," she smirked, crossing her arms over her chest.

A dragon roared from inside the camp, deep and rumbling like thunder. It shattered the moment like a mirror across concrete- I doubt either of us minded, though.

"Rawr!" the dragon giggled, punctuated by a concerning amount of shouting, "Now I have the biggest muscles! See?"

Over the tops of tents, I spotted Nowi's head and parts of her wings. "I should probably deal with that, shouldn't I?" I said, suddenly feeling quite tired.

"She isn't causing any-" a loud crunch interrupted Mary, making her wince. "Never mind then. Sounds like you'll need some moral support, too."

Something told me that this was going to be a long night. But hey, at least I had a friend along for the ride.

{}{}{Anna}{}{}

There are very few things in my life that I'm ashamed of, believe it or not. A handful of dumb choices in my childhood, stowing away on a boat bound for Valm, and... that gets the point across. I'm not going to pour my heart out for money, let alone for free.

And I will stand by the giant mountain of romance novels until my dying day with pride. No regrets or shame there- sure, I'd spent way too much money on them, but you can't put a price tag on comfort.

Eighty gold, three silver, and fifteen copper's worth of books, sure, but who's keeping count? A farmer could make twice that in a year. Plus, I was supporting a thousand-odd year heritage of emotionally repressed Valmese men and women exploring their romantic fantasy. There's no harm in that, either.

As much as I would stand by that particular life choice, it was significantly cheaper on my time to not mention my tastes in literature.

Why am I saying all this? Well, as Andrew would say when he's rambling, "It's to set the stage, or something."

Or something, mhm. Once Andrew had wrangled Nowi and talked her down from setting the whole camp on fire, I'd retreated to my tent to polish off another romance novel. After all, once things got back on the road, I'd have less privacy and more people to scout out as customers.

It was another 'snooty lord meets kindhearted girl with dreams of being a Pegasus Knight' story, by the way. The lord was, of course, ridiculously handsome; the girl was a gentle brown-haired beauty.

Sound familiar? It rung a bell when I was reading it, in the way old business transactions do- I'd seen it, but for the life of me I couldn't remember the details.

It really hit me the next day, when I found myself in the Canteen at the crack of dawn. I would've figured it out earlier, but I was distracted by kicking an orange-haired pickpocket between the legs. "For candy" my arse. There is absolutely no reason to bother me before I've had breakfast.

Great, now Andrew's got me rambling. Skipping to the point, Prince Chrom and Sumia (I think that's her name?) were making moon eyes at each other over breakfast. She even had a romance novel I recognized sticking out of her bag- Wings of Love. Her taste was just as awful as mine! You know, in a good way.

I'd have to ask her if she'd read the equally terrible sequels; they were hard to get a hold of and I was willing to part with my own for a reasonable price.

"You should introduce yourself properly, M- er, Anna," someone familiar said, tearing me out of my plans for profit, "Sumia's probably one of the nicest people here, and you'd get along great. Um, I think." Of course Andrew was out and about, and of course he'd found me. By the time I turned around to scowl at him, he'd taken a seat next to me.

For a moment, I regretted telling him my name. What if he messed up, sharing it with people I didn't trust?

I hid my thoughts behind a mouthful of oatmeal and a growl. "Careful there, Andrew," I hummed, elbowing him in the side, "Why, if I didn't know you better, I'd think you were calling me nice by association."

He put a hand to his heart, clenching his fingers in the fabric of his tan tunic. "Gads, woman!" he declared, barely restraining a grin, "I made no such implication! Being nice is my job-"

"And I'm not going to edge in on a friend's market, hm?" I smiled back, putting a finger to my chin. Sharpening my expression, I raised an eyebrow at him. "So what's got you up this early? I would've bet on you sleeping in 'till noon, like the partiers."

Andrew's smile flickered, and he moved to get up again. "Weird dreams and an appointment with Maribelle, actually. She was too tired to tell me off last night, and she figured her morning would be open. What with the party and all," he finished, gesturing to the largely empty Canteen.

His hand paused on Sumia and Prince Chrom, "Plus, the camp is nice and quiet right now- only the non-drinkers are up and about."

"And the Khans," I added, "I don't think they can get hangovers." Pausing to think, I frowned. "Maribelle's the short blonde woman with the crazy curls, right?"

Andrew actually stopped at that, and for whatever reason started to blush. He placed a hand on my shoulder, nodding to himself. "She prefers to call her hair coiffed, but yes. She's a good friend, who I met..." he looked away completely. "Well, that's not important. I'll have to introduce you to everyone at some point."

Someone else coughed politely.

"Um, sorry to interrupt, but- I'm a bit curious too!" Their voice was soft and motherly, and almost certainly belonged to Sumia. I'd heard Prince Chrom speak, so it wasn't a hard guess to make. "After all the drinking last night, I thought Maribelle would be swamped."

I turned around to look at the speaker, confirming it as Sumia. Behind her, the Prince offered an awkward half-wave, smiling with way too much warmth for a guy I hadn't properly met. "I'd like to know as well. We didn't mean to eavesdrop, I swear- you're just..." he gestured at Andrew.

"Loud, possibly obnoxious?" I suggested, getting a giggle from Sumia.

"The words you're looking for are charismatic and obnoxious, Anna," Andrew replied swiftly, stepping to my side. He ran a hand through his hair, looking off into the distance dramatically.

Sumia's giggle turned into a snort. I couldn't help but smile, either.

The moment dragged on a bit longer than was needed. Andrew coughed into his fist, raising his voice. "Anyways! Asked her last night. Didn't fully understand the answer because there was a drunk Manakete riding on my shoulders, but apparently the thing they use to cure hangovers is actually pretty expensive."

I ran through the options in my head. Expensive healing implements, so probably Church-associated, and expensive enough that the Shepherds wouldn't overstock on them. "Wait, Cure can be used on hangovers?"

"Alcohols are poison, even the ethanols," Andrew agreed, nodding to himself, "Yeah. That makes sense by me."

"Ethanol?" Chrom scratched his chin. "Should I know what that is?"

Andrew opened his mouth to comment, but snapped it shut again. "Something from where I come from. It's a fancy term for grain alcohol. Also, I need to go, because Maribelle is glaring at me."

We all looked towards the tent entrance, and I was able to catch Maribelle rolling her eyes. "Pardon me for hoping he would be on time. With no disrespect to you, dears."

"Coming, coming," Andrew grumbled, shuffling out of the tent.

Well, at least I'd be able to enjoy my food in silence now, right? And then introduce myself to Sumia later, see if she had anything interesting to say about Wings of Love. There was a good chance she'd read books I hadn't, and there was an even better chance I could sell her books she hadn't read.

Why wait?

"You're Sumia, right?" I smiled, putting a finger to my chin, "I noticed a novel sticking out of your satchel, there, and I was wondering..."

Oh, she turned an excellent shade of red.

[][Andrew][]

The medical tent was serene at this early hour- the patients were asleep, and the handful of healers moved with silent purpose. A fantastic place to have tea with Maribelle, free of distractions. It was, honestly, exactly what I needed.

Seeing Tiki all bandaged up like that had rattled me. Her arms and torso were near-completely wrapped in bandages, protecting her wounds as much as it did her modesty.

"Tiki will make a full recovery," Maribelle said softly, setting down her teacup with a clink, "You should expect no less under our expert care."

Bringing the teacup to my lips, I breathed in the fragrant steam. In, and out. Earthy and sweet, with a tang of apple and a hint of something I couldn't place. Chamomile and lavender, for sure, but I couldn't place the third scent. "Ahh," I sighed, easing the tension from my shoulders, "I don't doubt it, Maribelle."

Maribelle hid her expression behind a sip of tea, eyes sparkling. "But enough about other patients, dear," she sniffed, moving her teacup away from her mouth, "I believe I owe you a browbeating for yesterday's recklessness, hm?"

I winced at that, and winced again when a little too much tea scalded my throat. "Whuf," I hissed, collecting myself, "Strong tea, bit hotter than expected, sorry. And, uh, yeah. At least I didn't break anything this time?" I finished hopefully, taking a careful sip of tea. Maribelle has fantastic taste in teas, by the way.

This time, I actually got to taste the tea, too. Like earthy apples and honey, with a silky feeling wrapping the whole thing up. I still couldn't place third ingredient here, but it matched the lavender perfectly. Anise, maybe?

"It is an old favorite of mine," Maribelle hummed, closing her eyes and loosening her stiff posture, "It takes a dunce to go wrong with a chamomile base, as I'm sure you are aware," she paused, arching a perfectly-trimmed eyebrow, "And lavender is an obvious compliment. I add a touch of fennel myself to round it out; the servants always mess up the ratios."

I snapped my fingers. Of course! "Fennel!" I said, lowering my voice as Maribelle glared, "My money was on anise, but fennel makes much more sense."

She took an impressively smug sip of tea. I'd have to work out how she pulled that one of

I took my own sip, letting it sit in my mouth for a moment before swallowing. "Yeah. Now that I know the fennel is there, it's pretty obvious. Bit too woody for it to be anise."

"Mm," she nodded along, "I don't think I will browbeat you for yesterday's performance, dear. Your first experience with mana burn no doubt warned you off more than I ever could."

Setting my teacup down, I flexed the fingers on my left hand experimentally. Not even a whisper of pain, at least until I tried to push mana through it.

I nudged a dreg of mana through, much the same way you'd prod at a sunburn. And, just like a sunburn, it stung. Gritting my teeth against a hiss of pain, I pulled the mana back out. "How long do these last, exactly?"

"In your case, roughly a week and a half," Maribelle nodded, eyes focused on my left forearm, "You retain full control over your arm and there is no physical evidence of injury. With time to spare before the- ah, never mind that."

She shook her head gently, waving off the inevitable question.

I refused to be waved off, in part because it felt like Maribelle wanted me to. Call it a hunch. "I'll bite," I said, drumming my fingers on the table, "What's in a week or two?"

"Sixteen days, to be precise," Maribelle corrected me, quirking her lips into a thin smile, "And tell me, dear, can you dance?"

Can I dance, she asks. I may be a mediocre fighter and a questionable athlete, but I was a thespian, darn it! "I've danced in six or seven musicals and done a few classes on waltzes. Yeah, I can dance," I said with a tinge of pride, pausing to take a sip of tea.

Her smile widened, showing a glint of teeth. "Excellent. You see, dear, I am in need of a plus one for an upcoming ball. One that won't make me look bad, and isn't already caught up in Ylissean politics."

My heart sank. I should not have taken the bait. Mary would no doubt find this whole thing hilarious when it was over. "You need a plus one?" I queried, another question bubbling up before I could properly think it over, "Not a date or something, I'm assuming. Because- um, you're pretty and all, but, you know. I'm going to shut my mouth now."

Maribelle hid her mouth behind her hand, laughing softly. "Ah, thank you, dear. I forget that not everyone understands the subtleties of Ylissean balls. A woman does not arrive alone to a ball, Andrew, unless they are seeking courtship from a man. If they bring a man and do not dance with them, they are bound to draw the attention of suitors." Her expression turned sour. "I care little for either outcome."

"And," I mused, equally sour, "I take it a man coming alone is perfectly acceptable. Sounds, uh, sucky."

I caught a flicker of amusement in Maribelle's eyes as her frown deepened. "If you are unwilling to go along with this, Duke Reynard would gladly walk me in. He is a fine gentleman, if nearly thrice my age."

Sticking out my tongue, I shook my head. "Nah. I'm in, Maribelle. I owe you, right?"

Her frown changed into a tight smile. "You owe me nothing, but- ah. Thank you, dear. Genuinely. But before I can even consider taking you, we must first discuss your taste in fashion."

A seed of dread planted itself in my heart. "Please don't tell me cravats are in fashion," I sighed, "I do not rock a cravat."

"Oh, but they are," Maribelle grinned toothily, rising from her chair, "Come, Andrew. Virion abstained from last night's festivities, and we have much work to do."

The dread blossomed into a full-blown venus flytrap of fear. "Right now?" I squeaked, a bit higher pitched than intended.

"Right now," she affirmed, grasping me firmly by my right wrist. "Thank you so much for this, dear. Why, I will confirm you as my plus one when the messenger leaves at lunch!"

Oh no.

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END OF INTERMISSION

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Author's Note:

And with that, we move on to Act 2, which will release in two weeks.

I'm moving chapter releases to Monday from here on out. It's a lot easier for me to run it that way, believe me, though I'm aware it might be a touch inconvenient. In any case, thank you for reading! Let me know what you think, in whichever manner is most convenient.

Cheers,

Narwhal Lord