To most, they were Malin and his partner—to trusted employers, they were Malin and Marth, and to very trusted employers, they were two mercenary siblings waiting to come home. Suffice to say, though, their trusted employers were numbered; only the people of the village where Marth had her house were considered trusted employers, since some of them were even war veterans and were able to recognize Marth after she started traveling with Malin. The only very trusted employers was any Anna, since they could see through their disguises in an instant.
Four years since he took up the name, Malin was now past the point of confusion. He knew that, for now, he was Malin—a mercenary, and essentially Marth's voice. He also knew that, once they returned to their time, he would be Morgan again. Marth, meanwhile, was more conflicted—she occasionally expressed how she didn't feel like Marth nor Lucina, knowing that both names belonged to someone else. When she got too far down a dark rabbit hole, Malin was always there to pull her out; he didn't expect that to change. Malin often found jobs while Marth feigned a sulking manner somewhere close by. She very rarely took off her mask; Malin was surprised that anyone could recognize her when she wore it. Marth wasn't as attached to him as she originally was, but she still monitored his actions and insisted on knowing what he was doing and when he was doing it.
Currently they were in a village near Regna Ferox, and Malin was out and about searching for jobs. As he was about to return to Marth, one of the Annas approached him. "Hey! Malin! I have a job for you."
Malin turned around and nodded. "What is it?"
"There's a bit of thief problems up by Arena Ferox," Anna explained. "We're both getting paid good money to take care of them. You'll be paid upon arrival."
"All right," Malin said. "Who's the employer?"
"It's a secret!" Anna said mischievously. "You're free to decline or accept." She waved, saying "Bye! See ya when you come by to shop!" then left.
Malin found Marth training by herself with her lance. There was no one else around—she probably scared them off, either unintentionally or intentionally—and it generally showed. Anyone else might not notice, but he could see that she was more comfortable than she would be in a crowd of people.
"If I left you alone long enough, would you become a recluse?" Malin asked somewhat teasingly. Marth didn't flinch, as she might have for anyone else; she simply lowered her lance and looked at him, smiling.
"If you left me alone for more than a few hours, I'd be genuinely concerned about your well-being," she replied. "Nonetheless, did you find a job?"
"Anna came up to be and offered one," Malin said. "Near Arena Ferox, there's some bandit problems. We were asked to handle them."
"Arena Ferox? Bandit problems? It doesn't sound like a reliable job. And yet…" she toyed with the feather that adorned her lance when it wasn't used in battle, something that had fallen off of the blanket Cynthia gave her, "It's a job from Anna. They might be a bit greedy on occasion, but there's not a more reliable employer than them. Who will we be reporting to?"
"She didn't say," Malin replied simply.
Marth thought on it for a little bit longer, then nodded. "It seems dubious at best, but there aren't unlimited jobs. We can even head out now." Malin nodded, and they made sure they had all their things and started making their way to Arena Ferox.
…
They reached the determined area fairly quickly, with it just being the two of them with minimal things. But it was soon apparent that Marth's suspicion had been right; Malin had hoped that there weren't thieves, but he didn't expect for there to actually be none. There wasn't really anyone in the area at all; it was almost entirely silent.
"Do you think they left?" Malin asked.
"It's possible that they weren't here to begin with," Marth said. She was preparing for a battle, removing the feather from her lance and putting the former in her pocket. "I'm not so sure that we're alone, however."
As she said that, Malin heard a person move closer. Looking towards the sound, he felt Marth push him aside and heard the sound of two weapons clashing together. He expected to find a stray thief that had gotten too bold, instead finding the west-khan with his axe pushing into Marth's lance.
Marth's frown only got deeper as she used her lance to push him away. "I don't care who you are, do that again and your dead," she threatened.
Malin was about to give a "she didn't really mean it" when Basilio spoke instead. "Ha! Like you'd kill me. I know you're Lucina under all that talk; it took me this long, but I found you!" He lowered his axe, and Marth likewise lowered her lance. "Let's head into the arena, shall we? Flavia owes me a big glass of mead, and you two owe me a few sentences that aren't threats." Marth didn't look willing, but Malin cast her a look that made her sigh and follow the khan.
"So," Flavia began, "You two have been gone for a while. Everyone back at Ylisstol thought Lucina went back to her time; Morgan's whereabouts are still up for debate. Who would've thought they'd still be on the continent?"
Malin looked at Marth for approval, and she nodded. "Lucina tried to go back," Malin explained. "She couldn't, so she started working as a mercenary. Four years later I had the bright idea to leave, and we partnered up and starting working as Marth and Malin. That's enough explanation for now, right?"
Basilio nodded. "It's plenty. Now if you don't mind, I think Chr—"
Both Marth and Malin immediately said "No." Marth was the first to elaborate, "Please don't tell him. It's better for him to think I'm already gone; I've said my goodbyes, and I don't want to go back to the castle just so I could eventually say them again."
"I don't want to face Robin," Malin added. "It's been years… Like Lucina, I said my goodbyes. I'm not ready to go back and repeat them just yet."
Flavia looked at Basilio. "I told you they wouldn't want to talk to them." She turned back to Marth and Malin, saying, "This oaf might say otherwise, but we won't call Chrom or Robin unless you want us to. That being said, you're welcome here no matter what; we'll make sure no one else finds out who you are and give you plenty of jobs to keep you busy."
"What do you expect in return?" Marth asked hesitantly. "You're lying to the king and queen of Ylisse; there has to be a heavy cost."
"If I need you to do a job for me, I want you here as soon as possible," Flavia said. "And eventually, at least one of you has to talk to anyone from Ylisstol—don't care who it is as long as they're from this time."
Marth agreed, and the arrangement held for several years. Adjustments were made here and there to make it more convenient for either party. It was by this arrangement that they met the Mini Shepherds—careful planning on Basilio and Flavia's part that took seven years to come into fruition.
(A/N: I just want to point out how similarly Basilio got Marth and Malin to come compared to the Mini Shepherds. It's almost the same exact trick. Call it foreshadowing or something similar if you'd like; I didn't even entirely intend it. But this chapter starts crossing over with Mini Shepherds—you'll see what I mean in the next chapter. On another note, there's only two chapters left! I hope you've been enjoying the story so far.)