Tango in the Moonlit Subconscious

In her dream Lucina awoke, it was about an hour before sunrise but even under a thin blanket she felt like she was roasting. Groaning, she got up, and went to grab one of her tunics to begin her daily training regimen. When she went to her closet, none of her tunics were hanging in the front. Her pants, greaves, capes, and chest wraps were also missing. Even her headbands which prevented her hair from flopping in her face while sparring were gone.

"Laundry is today, but who on Earth would come into my room while I was asle-Cynthia…ugh"

Lucina rolled her eyes. This was not the first time her sister had absconded with some of her wardrobe, she remembered the time when Cynthia had dressed as her complete with mask and tried to wield Falchion. Still in her nightclothes, grateful it was still too early for the castle to be bustling she ascended the one floor to her sister's room and knocked until she saw the handle of the door move.

"Whoozat…" Cynthia yawned.

"It's Lucina."

"Come in Lulu.."

Lucina did so and Cynthia shut the door behind her.

"Wha-what's upppp?"

Cynthia was wearing nothing except a baggy t-shirt.

"You should've told me you weren't decent!"

"Oh relax Lucina, you're my sister you know what I look like naked. What's buggin ya at this hour of the morning other than my thighs being exposed?"

"Where did you put my clothes?"

"Your-?"

"My clothes, my tunics, pants, wraps, and boots."

"It's laundry day."

"I need my clothes to train. Surely you don't expect me to swordfight in a nightgown do you?"

"Mom asked me to gather them for the maid staff, so I did."

"You didn't leave me a spare anything."

Before Cynthia could make another groggy response, Lucina was pacing like a madwoman.

"I need to train, but the laundry staff has probably already started. But laundry takes several hours and by then it'll be too warm to train effectively, ugh this is no good."

"Take a day off!"

"I can't, it's my responsibility as a Princess to be prepared for all dangers that could befall the Halidom at all times. What happens if a sniper attacks father and mother?"

Cynthia hugged Lucina tight, interrupting her apocalyptic ramblings.

"The war is over Lucina. You need to loosen up okay…"

"Perhaps…perhaps you're right." Lucina murmured, enjoying that Cynthia was rubbing the tensions in her shoulders and upper back.

"Of course I am, I know you work hard to be a good Princess, but sometimes you need to let loose!"

Cynthia punctuated her pronouncement by ripping the chest wrap Lucina had been wearing.

"EEP! Cynthia! I don't have any more of those!" Lucina remonstrated.

She pushed her sister away and cupped her breasts, even though her nightgown was still doing covering them.

"Lucina, it's gonna be a thousand degrees. Wear a normal bra instead of squishing your tits all the time."

"Ugh! I can't believe you sometimes! You steal all my clothes."

"I did not, I took them for laundry!"

"You steal all my clothes and expect me to walk around in a nightgown all day!"

"I have something for you to wear, you dork!"

Cynthia strode over to her closet and pulled out a magenta dress with white polka dots.

"How on earth did you know, you don't know my size?!"

"I guessed based on the last time I grabbed your laundry, should fit fine."

Flustered, Lucina glowered at the floor, did Cynthia just expect her to sword fight with the risk of wind upturning her garments.

"It's pretty but there's no way I can train in it."

"Yeah, you aren't training today. It's a hot muggy day and you need to chill out and relax. I also bought a matching set of smallclothes. Brand new of course."

Lucina blushed.

"How…how long have you been planning to wear this outfit Cynthia...I don't want you giving your clothes away…"

"I never did, I saw it and thought you'd look cute in it. Now come on. Stop stalling, I am way better at it than you Miss Prim and Proper."

Cynthia closed her eyes and turned away.

"You never gave me the smallclothes..." Lucina sighed, defeated and still too tired to formulate a more complex argument.

"Oh, oops. Sorry Lu!"

Cynthia rummaged in her closet before handing Lucina an impossibly small pair of panties, and matching bra. Both were the same shade of magenta as the main fabric of the dress.

"I can't wear these! They're immodest."

"Oh come on Lucy! Not like you're showing them off to anybody."

"But what if father calls me to court!"

"How does that relate to your undergarments?"

Lucina spluttered for a minute or two. This was not fair!

"If I wear all this, promise you'll give me back my normal things for tomorrow?"

"Knight's honor." Cynthia giggled.

Lucina changed, feeling very exposed without her chest wrap which was not helped by the cut of the dress Cynthia had picked for her.

"It's so open and so short…"

Cynthia turned to face Lucina and beamed.

"You're absolutely sexy Lucina! Look in the mirror."

Lucina did, and immediately crossed her arms over her chest again. The dress fit her form snugly, accentuated her bust in a way none of her normal attire did, and when she stood erect the edge of the material only came to her thumbs with her arms at her sides.

"Cynthia, are you sure there's nothing I can do to persuade you this is unnecessary? I'll pay you double what you paid for the dress if you give me back one of my normal outfits."

"Nope!"

"Triple?"

"Not happening. Today you don't get to be Heroic Badass Warrior Princess Lucina. You're just Lucy today. A pretty girl, enjoying a warm day free of cares about the world."

"I don't think I am a hero any day."

Cynthia frowned.

"Lucina. Think about what you've done for Ylisse. You travelled back in time, saved our father's life."

"That was Robin's strategies and you know it!"

"I'm not saying Robin isn't a hero, but you were the one who led our ragtag resistance to a fighting chance, you were the one who found the time portal, you stopped one of father's near assassinations, saved Emmeryn."

"I had help, I'm not!"

"Yes you are! More important than all of that you are my sister and I LOVE YOU DUMMY!"

Cynthia rushed to hug Lucina again, nearly toppling her over.

"You're always serious, just for one day put it all down. All the swords, the burdens, the masks. Don't worry about your usual responsibilities. Mom agrees you need a day off too."

This, more than the declaration of love made Lucina recover her voice.

"Mother helped you by this scandalous outfit?!"

"Oh no, the dress is my idea. Sevvy picked the color though."

Lucina made a mental note to pummel Severa when they next sparred.

"Just one day? Then back to normal?"

"Yes…your highness."

The sun was peaking over the horizon now.

"I unlike you take regular off days so I need to get a ride in before it gets too hot."

Lucina took this as dismissal and departed, looking both ways before running to the library. Despite its enormity, the Castle Library was most often completely deserted. Lucina reasoned that if she camped here for most of the day, she could avoid embarrassing scenarios. She had found a corner in the country studies section to hide in when to her distress she found herself in one anyway.

"Let's see, Hoshidan food, Hoshidan foreign relations, Hoshidan geography…there we go! Hoshidan horticulture!"

Robin knew the other Shepherds made gentle fun of him for his reading habits, but in the baking heat, the prospect of spending the day in the cool library was infinitely more appealing than sunburn. He walked to the nearest poofy armchair which to his surprise was occupied.

"Lucina?"

The elder Princess dropped the sword-smithing book she was perusing.

"R-robin. G-good morning."

Out of all the people to see her in such a risqué outfit Robin mortified her the most, even more than the idea of her father seeing her dressed this way. Unconsciously she began to tug at the hemline of her dress.

"Are you okay Lucina?"

Deciding against lying, Lucina nodded no.

"My sister took all my normal clothes and gave me this for the day."

"I don't see a problem, it looks nice."

Lucina wished the sun would concentrate all its power to melt her through the floor.

"It's very short when I stand up, I'm planning on hiding out here for the day so nobody can see me so underdressed."

"I think you're overreacting Lucina, the color suits you. Besides, you need to eat at some point today."

Lucina had planned on fasting today like she had in the war to avoid the kitchen staff's muttering, but before she could lie to Robin about eating her stomach rumbled.

"I'll…I'll go without."

"Bullshit. Come with me. I have food in my office. If we walk quickly nobody will see you."

"But."

"I insist Lucina."

"Oh…okay…"

Lucina got up and pulled the dress down, so focused on maintaining her control on decorum that she missed Robin's sharp intake of breath.

"Ladies first" he murmured as they exited the library. Lucina scurrying, again missing Robin's newfound husky tone. They reached his office a short time later, and Robin again let her enter first.

"What do you want for breakfast?"

"I…I have choices?"

"Certainly, your majesty." Robin chuckled, tapping on the second shelf from the bottom of his personal bookcase. There was rumbling sound and the bookcase descended into the floor. Robin motioned with his hand for Lucina to follow him through the newly formed passage, shooting the candles in the room with fire magic through his fingers.

"I didn't know this room existed…"

"Where do you think I sleep? I've turned down your father's offer of an estate."

Lucina looked around. There was a bed on one side and a firepit on the other, with an apparatus from which to hang a stewpot or a cast iron pan.

"This is very humble, where do you store food?"

"I don't, there's a staircase to the kitchens. I'll fetch what you want, you can sit on the bed. Now what do you want to eat? Eggs? Fruit? Pastry?"

"Err…some eggs and if there is any left some of the blueberry pie from last night. Cynthia said I can't train today so I might as well indulge a little."

Robin smiled and went down to fetch the food, his hair flipping boyishly as he turned to go down the stair. Lucina huffed when the door had shut. Robin had said she looked nice. It was a compliment, but it left Lucina yearning for something more...fitting her state of dress.

"Robin doesn't look at you like that."

A voice, speaking with her sister's voice inside her head pipped up at that moment.

"If he did Lucy you would throw yourself at him. Isn't that right?"

"No…I'd maintain…decorum…" she lied to herself. This was going to be a long day if she was going to think like this. While Lucina was arguing with her conscious, Robin came back with two plates.

"Lissa and Maribelle think I am compensating for skipping meals so often. I didn't tell them you are here.

"Thank you."

"You really do look nice today. Are you sure you aren't hiding just to prevent the wait staff from tripping over their own feet in awe of your beauty?"

Breaking into another blush Lucina nearly choked on her bite of egg.

"You have a wild imagination Robin."

"Do I or am I just speaking their thoughts?"

Lucina shrugged in response grateful that although Robin could read minds he chose not to do so. She wondered if this was what he thought, and the idea of Robin fawning over her made her feel a spurt of gaiety she was careful to conceal. Again she told herself this was for decorum, but even mouthing this between bites felt less convincing with every chew. They ate silent but for the clinking of their forks and knives. Robin collected the dishes.

"I'll be back in the main office in a minute. You can go ahead."

Lucina did so settling on the couch, still too interested in her own musings to notice Robin was appreciating how her dress fit over her rear. She tried to read more of the sword-smithing book, but she could not pretend it was interesting. In war or peace, she didn't give a damn how her bronze practice swords were alloyed so long as they helped refine her slicing, stabbing, or slashing techniques. When Robin came into the office, she had stumbled over the same dull section about malachite mining five separate times without taking in a word. Looking up, she saw Robin was seated at his desk flipping open a book and that he had changed clothes.

"Why've you changed Robin?"

"Your mother spilled a jug of juice on me in the kitchen."

"Oh…I'm sorry."

"It's fine, it's too hot to be bothered with normal attire at this hour anyway."

Robin stood up to stretch showing that he was now in a pair of grey shorts, to go with a white undershirt. Lucina only managed to stop staring when Robin sat back down and peeled open his dusty book. What she wouldn't give for Robin to be holding her in his hands rather than that dusty book. Caressing her sides, rather than the parchment pages. It was only a moment before Robin stood back up again, frowning.

"This isn't the horticulture book that I thought I picked up."

"R-really?"

"Yeah, instead it's a story called A Harlot's Hedonisms Handling Hoshido's Hero-Prince"

"S-sounds licentious…"

"It is but it's not useless reading."

Lucina knew Robin's brain had far greater creative capacity than most, but she couldn't help a puzzled expression.

"How in the world is something like that useful?"

"It's good for strategy ideas, should an enemy agent decide she want to seduce me."

"That sounds like a lucky woman…"

"Excuse Me!"

Robin was standing up his face reddening, and it clicked to Lucina what she had said.

"I…I should go!"

"Stay where you are."

Lucina froze and barely noticed the give in the neighboring couch cushion as Robin sat next to her.

"Lucina, what do you mean when you say that."

"I…I mean…that…oh tent flaps! I…can you keep a secret Robin?"

"Is it really a secret if I think I know what you're going to say?"

"Y-you could confirm it by mind-reading…" Lucina squeaked.

"I want to hear you say it in case I am wrong."

"I am enamored with you Robin! And I want nothing and nobody more! If you seduced another woman I would suf-"

Lips, lips as warm as Lucina's blistering hot cheeks were brushing her own.

"I want you Lucina. Now would you like to tango with me?"

…

Lucina woke with a start. That dream, it had been so real. She looked to her left and right to see if she hadn't just fainted upon being kissed. Reality tided in. Lucina had not admitted her feelings for Robin, the real Robin was not likely to proposition her much less to kiss her in his office. Furthermore, the real Robin was sleeping with another woman. The highs of the dream drained away as she changed into her day clothes. She sighed, she had enjoyed the dream immensely and even though it had been a dream, the version of her sister that had told her to be more relaxed had a compelling case. As she put on her scabbard with Falchion Lucina decided she had to talk to Robin, figure out her parents views, and she had to find that magenta dress. Almost as important in Lucina's turbulent state of mind, she had to deal with the fact that her rival for Robin's affections was only the Voice of Naga.

"Who knew War actually was easier than loving someone?"

SORRY FOR THE LONG WAIT. I decided that the direction I was going with this was poor and had to set it down for a while.