July: Protectors of All

Dorothea rushed forward to make sure Sophie wouldn't topple over. "It's okay, sweetie! It's not your fault!"

Sophie burst into tears. "I let down the people of my kingdom! And my future kingdom! I'm a disgrace!"

Ferdinand disagreed, "You undertook the duty of the Divines. You had to take on a holy crusade and put aside your royal duties in order to carry out a higher purpose: protecting that of all the worlds. You did nothing wrong."

Sophie countered, "I could've suggested that we attend to here first! I neglected my own home!"

Ferdinand shook his head. "We did our best to protect each realm. Since the portals never took us here; we had to make one here of our own accord, it makes sense this happened."

Dorothea pointed out, "Besides, for all we know, the Twilighters did something to stop portals leading here for a while. Don't be so quick to shoulder all the blame."

Sophie considered that. "Now that you mention it . . . I suppose that's possible. I still feel like a big ol' dummy."

Ferdinand patted her shoulder. "That is understandable. I am sorry you feel that way, but it is a perfectly understandable emotional response."

They trekked back to the Vallite Castle to plan their next move. Sophie slipped into the infirmary where Siegbert still lay. "Hi there."

Siegbert's eyes lit up. "Sophie! I'm so glad you're here! How are you?"

Sophie sat on the edge of his bed. "To be honest, I'm a failure. I don't deserve to be Queen of Nohr in the future."

"What do you mean?"

Sophie retold the note's contents. Siegbert leaned back and closed his eyes. "If you're not fit to rule, neither am I. I was also on that expedition before I took too many injuries. If you abandoned this world, so did I."

Sophie dismissed, "No you didn't!"

Siegbert challenged, "Then how did you?"

"Ugh. I feel like it should've occurred to me to come sooner."

"You're fighting here now. That's what matters. Thankfully, it seems that the damage they did to overall nations is minimal. They want to slither in the dark to silently manipulate things unnoticed."

"Did you say 'slither in the dark' because one of the groups that predate the Twilighters was called Those Who Slither in the Dark?"

"I'm glad you noticed!"

Sophie groaned. "That's so cheesy!"

Siegbert changed the subject, a bit hurt that she didn't like the joke. "I can walk again. Small distances, but still walking. I can get farther every day."

She threw her arms around him in pure elation. "Oh my gosh; that's incredible! You'll recover in no time!"

Siegbert chuckled. "I have to; we have a wedding to plan once this is all over."

Sophie blushed. "Aw! You're so sweet!"

Corrin poked her head in. "I hate to interrupt you, but the council meeting is starting. You're a part of it, Sophie."

Sophie's smile fell off her face. "Oh no! I totally forgot about that! I'm such an airhead! See you soon, Siegbert!" She rushed after her mother.

Corrin kissed her cheek. "I'm so relieved to see you and Silas unscathed from the mission. Caeldori told me how you handled yourself. You beat the enemy commander on your own?"

Sophie reddened again. "Uh, yeah. I did. So, uh, I missed you and Kana too."

Corrin sighed. "It's so hard being separated from you two. I love our family more than anything in all the worlds."

Sophie hugged her. "Mother! I love you all too! It hasn't been easy being away from you all so long. The only reason I've made it this far is because I have Daddy, Caeldori, and a bunch of new friends with me this time."

Corrin patted her head. "You've come a long way. I trust that you'll make the right decisions when you become queen."

Sophie sincerely doubted that, but kept silent as they arrived at the meeting. Silas spoke, "Now that we're all here, let's decide this here and now. We know that there are bases in multiple countries in this world. Which nation shall we protect next?"

Sophie blurted out, "Nohr!"

Annette questioned, "Is there any reason as to why?"

Sophie bit her lip. "If I marry Siegbert, I'll be the queen! I can't let my people down! I must save them as soon as possible!"

Shiro cut in, "That's admirable and all, but you're forgetting something. I'm the High Prince of Hoshido. My people need me too."

Linhardt spoke, "The solution's easy. Which of the two has a weaker military? That one needs more defending."

Caeldori surmised, "Nohr is stronger. Had Corrin not intervened, the Hoshidans would've been crushed. Even the four royals, with all their draconic power, struggled against the commoner generals. That's not bringing in the four Nohrian royals or King Garon."

Bernadetta assumed, "So, if the Twilighters attack, Nohr can hold out longer than Hoshido?"

Camilla estimated, "Caeldori's not wrong. Even I was surprised how powerless they were before Iago and Hans. Not a slight towards them, mind you, but I was still concerned about what would've happened had Corrin chosen a different path. I fear they would have all perished."

Shiro stammered, "A-Anyway! I think Hoshido's our best bet to continue. We're more vulnerable."

Sophie looked away from everyone. "This is what Ferdinand said earlier about how we've been called to a higher purpose than royals on this quest-protectors of all. I must put everyone's needs in perspective. Even if it feels like I'm failing Nohr, I must remember everyone's suffering."

Dorothea looked around to gain a sense of what everyone was thinking. "All in favor of freeing Hoshido next?" No one raised an objection. Dorothea praised, "I'm proud of you, Sophie! I know this is really difficult for you, but you made the right decision."

Caeldori smiled warmly. "Hoshido will be forever in your debt. We won't forget this sacrifice you've done for us."

Shiro added, "Yeah, we've got your back. We're already sending resources to help Nohr out of the drought and famine. And plus, we're pals! I'm not gonna let my buddy's kingdom die off! We're all going to get out of this mess somehow."