Birth and Re-Death
Chapter 48: I Only Flirt with Women Who Scare Me
The rest of us stand in stunned silence as Cordelia coughs on the ground on her hands and knees. I glance over at Chrom. We briefly make eye contact. If I were asked to describe what the physical manifestation of 'confusion' is, I'd choose his expression right now without a doubt.
Chrom gestures with a nod at the red puddle on the ground. "Is she okay?"
"Yeah. That's wine," I reply.
Maribelle says, "So… I gather Cordelia has had a bit to imbibe."
I nod slowly. "Yeah, she's had a few glasses of wine."
"Well," Maribelle replies, "why don't we get her to bed?"
"I don't need to–hurrgh," Cordelia tries to say before another heave overtakes her. "Gods…"
By now Gaius and Sumia have caught up to us. "Wuss going on?" Sumia slurs urgently.
Gaius is already laughing. "Oh boy, what did you do, Mother?"
Cordelia, sitting in front of her puddle of red vomit, looks well and truly defeated. "I…" She's at a loss for words. "I… I'm such an idioooot!" She starts wailing.
"Okay," Maribelle sighs, leaving Chrom's side to help Cordelia stagger to her feet. "Come here, dear." As she reaches out to the poor girl, I notice a twinkle of light on her finger. I glance again at Chrom. He looks at me. I covertly point to my own left ring finger and raise an eyebrow. He smiles sheepishly.
Classic Chrom. I was wondering if that auto-marriage mechanic was actually a reflection of his character. Seems I was right. And the fact that she's wearing the ring suggests he was successful.
"Come along, Cordelia. Let's get you to bed," Maribelle says, supporting the limp girl as she tries to get her to go to the barracks.
"I'll heeelp!" Sumia declares, then falls over trying to catch up to them.
"Let's let Twinkles handle this one, Sumia," Gaius says kindly, helping her up again.
Cordelia looks initially resistant but eventually relents, allowing herself to be led away from the group.
"Man," I say when they've gone more or less out of earshot. "She really… spilled her guts, huh?"
Gaius laughs. Robin scowls at me. "That's gross."
Ignoring her jab, I ask Chrom, "You good?"
"Uh, yeah, I think so," he says, still sounding a bit out of sorts.
"So… you and Maribelle, huh?" I ask, unsure how to broach the subject tactfully.
He nods. "I, uh, panicked when I was comforting her about what happened today with Gangrel. I accidentally ended up proposing."
Gaius starts cackling madly. "You accidentally proposed? Gods, that is so you, Blue." He holds onto Sumia for support as he continues laughing, which worries me but not enough for me to do anything about it.
"It just sorta… came out of me. And I've been carrying that ring around for ages. I don't know, I just… sensed a moment, y'know? And the council has started pressuring me to find a wife. The last thing I want is for one of them to set me up with his 14-year-old granddaughter or something to improve his family's station."
"And you didn't think to, like, start with a date?" I ask.
"I have no idea how to take a girl on a date," Chrom replies impatiently. "I never had time to learn that stuff. I was too busy training to get stronger and working as part of the Shepherds."
"Yeah, that sounds like you," Robin says with a giggle.
He sighs. "There will be a lot to talk about with everyone. We were hoping to keep it under wraps until after Randall's trial."
"I have a feeling that idea has already gone out the window," I reply. "Well, hopefully Maribelle being newly engaged will put her in a better mood when it's time to judge me."
Chrom laughs stiffly. "I'm sorry that this is happening. You already know I believe you have done nothing against us. This is, in my mind, mostly about ensuring that Flavia can have that same confidence." He notices Litica standing there. He regards her a bit coldly. "I'm guessing you're Flavia's agent?"
Litica nods. "Correct."
Gaius steps into the conversation. "So, ready to go?" he asks me.
"Go? Go where?"
"Uhh, back to the tavern? Just because Mother is tapped out, doesn't mean the night ain't young," he replies, as if I should find that obvious.
"You don't think that was a sign that we should call it in?" I ask, eyebrow cocked.
"No way!" Sumia shouts too loudly. "Cordelia can't hang, but I can!"
"Yeah, baby!" Gaius cheers her on as she—amazingly—turns a twirl on the spot and sticks the landing.
"See? Totally coordinaterated," Sumia declares with a confident smile.
Gaius looks at me, gesturing proudly to his girlfriend. "Ya can't argue with that."
I'm surprised when Robin says, "Actually, I think I agree. We haven't done this in too long. I'm… having fun. But I don't wanna go back to the tavern. Can we go… watch stars or something?" I look closer at her. She's definitely red in the face. Looks like she's had more than I thought.
"What about the training field between the barracks and the palace? Perfect place for that!" Gaius says. "C'mon Beeear~ Please~?"
"Alright, fine. That sounds harmless enough." I turn to Chrom. "You coming with?"
He shakes his head. "No, I'll go catch up with Maribelle and make sure Cordelia gets to bed okay. Have fun." My drunk brain catches up with the situation and remembers that Chrom would probably prefer to be with his fiancée anyway.
We stumble over to the training field. I can't remember the last time I was here. I think I remember talking to Lissa out here just before Emm's assassination attempt. That was more than half a year ago. That's weird.
We pick a nice spot, and the four of us sit down. Litica elects to sit some ten feet away, watching us.
"Say, Feroxi lady," Gaius says as we get settled. "You a narc?"
"I don't know what that means," she replies flatly.
"I mean are you a tattle-tale? A killjoy? Do you hate fun?"
Litica shrugs.
Gaius smiles. "Cool." He produces a bottle of liquor from his cape. "Left the tavern with a little souvenir. That was why we took a minute to catch up."
"Gaius!" Robin exclaims. "You can't steal from local businesses! They'll know it was you, and we'll all be in trouble!"
"Don't worry, Robin," Sumia says with a lopsided smile. "When Gaius wasn't looking, I told the bartender we were keeping the bottle and I paid for it."
Gaius whirls on her, betrayed. "Sumia! How could you?"
"Stealing from good people is wrong, Gaius," Sumia says, like a mother scolding a child. "You should only steal from bad guys."
Gaius grumbles his dissent, but it seems he's letting the matter go. In the meantime, I grab the bottle from his hand.
"If it's not stolen after all, I don't feel guilty about having some," I say, taking a pull. This definitely isn't as high quality as what Robin and I were drinking, but it'll do. I remember wistfully the bottle of fancy Plegian whiskey Octavia and I shared at Themis. That night might have gotten very weird, but damn that was good stuff.
I hold the bottle out to Litica. "Wanna join the party? It's a damn tragedy you have to babysit."
She grunts. "Pass."
"You know I didn't actually do anything to any Feroxi, right? I tried to help them. I'm not a criminal."
"It's not my job to have an opinion about you. It's my job to watch you. And I won't be having alcohol with the suspect I'm supposed to be watching," she says sternly.
"Fine, fine." I hand the bottle to Robin and lie on my back. "Remember the last time we did this, Robin?"
"Got drunk?"
"No, stargazed. That feels like forever ago."
Robin laughs as she takes a sip out of the bottle. She lies back next to me, with Gaius and Sumia lying on the other side of her. "As I recall, last time we did this, you had tried to ask Maribelle on a date and chickened out. And I was your backup date."
Gaius laughs aloud. "Now that I didn't know. You got any other embarrassing stories about Randy you wanna share with us, Robin?"
Robin contemplates for a moment. "You know, not really? Most of the time when Randall is making a fool of himself, he's doing it on purpose."
"That means the ruse is holding up," I say with a laugh.
"Well, speaking of Maribelle, I haven't forgotten when you had that ill-fated date in Ferox after we'd saved that town from bandits," Gaius says. "She got mad at you about something and stormed off. Classic Twinkles."
"Oh yeah! We got drunk then too," Sumia says lazily. Out of the corner of my eye I see her squirm and snuggle up to Gaius's side. "That was the first time I thought I might like you," she says. "Lots of folks were still worried you might be a bad fit for the Shepherds, but you were always sweet to me. I didn't know at the time it was because you liiiked me."
"You two are just as bad as Stahl and Panne," Robin sighs. "I'd forgotten about that. Looking back on it, that was kind of my fault, wasn't it?"
"What was?" I ask.
"That you and Maribelle broke up. She was angry with you because you were telling me all about, you know… the stuff you were worrying about after the battle. I basically pestered you into telling me what was on your mind, and Maribelle took it as a sign that you didn't trust her."
"God, that feels like so long ago now," I sigh. "But no. That wasn't why we broke up. That was going to happen one way or another, I think. The whole relationship was based on little more than mutual desire to protect the other from being killed and a fair amount of projection on my part."
"Projection? How do you mean?" Robin asks.
"And stop using so many big wooords," Sumia moans.
I'd rather not talk about Mindy right now. "Some other time. Anyway, if you've been worrying that you're responsible for that, don't. I'm better off, and obviously so is the future Mrs. Exalt."
"Besides, if you'd kept up the relationship with her, Chrom might've eventually killed you," Gaius says with a laugh.
"That too. He was pissed enough at me just for breaking up with her," I say, recalling the beating to end all beatings he gave me in Plegia. "You'd think he would've been thrilled she was single again."
"I just think that's proof he wasn't thinking about himself," Sumia says thoughtfully. "If all he cared about was himself, he'd have probably thanked you for breaking up, if anything."
"By the way, how did things go with Cordelia the other day after I dragged away the princesses?" Gaius asks.
"She wanted me to tell her whether Phila and the royal guard were Patriots," I reply.
"Oh," Gaius says flatly, clearly disappointed. "All business, huh?"
"She also told me she thought all the shit I went through in the war seemed like it was 'rolling off my shoulders.' She was wondering how I stay so strong. She's going through more than just embarrassing herself in front of Chrom. She lost so many important people in the war, it's unreal. She was hoping I'd have an answer for how to deal with that."
"So… not all business," Gaius says. "What did you say?"
I laugh. "I told her the truth. I don't have some special way to deal with all this. I just sort of, you know, cram it all down, keep going, and wait for a chance to sort through it all later."
"Fair enough," Gaius replies, taking a swig out of the bottle.
I notice Robin lies on her side, looking at me. Her expression is focused and serious. "Y'alright?" I ask.
"Just trying to figure you out," she replies.
"Well let me know what you find out. I wouldn't mind an explanation myself." I turn to see Litica still sitting on the grass, watching us. "You bored yet, Litica?"
"It's not my job to get bored."
"Yeah? You could always take part in this fascinating discussion if you want. Better than just sitting there."
She sighs exasperatedly. "So you turned in the royal guard to the Ylissean royal family?" she asks.
"Yeah, I did. They're Patriots. It had to be done."
"That doesn't sound like something a Patriot spy would do," she says.
"I agree! I'm glad you recognize that. Wanna pass that on to your khan, maybe? It would really help expedite this whole process," I say with a laugh.
"Of course, it's also possible you would throw your conspirators on the blade to save yourself," she says. "Or you lied to your friend."
"Which do you think is true?" I ask.
"It's not my job to have an opinion."
"You're no fun," I grumble.
We're silent for a bit, aside from the ambience of the night, the breeze in the air, and the occasional sound of sloshing liquid.
"You ever notice how many of the Shepherds ended up dating each other?" Gaius asks, staring up at the sky.
"What about it?" Robin replies.
"I mean, isn't that a little weird? Military corps don't usually have this much romance within the unit, right?"
"I guess?" Robin says.
"Of course, you know why that is," I say with a growing smile. "There's someone pulling the strings, subtly pushing all the couples she likes together."
Robin scowls. "I do not 'pull strings,' Randy. I merely note what I expect to happen," she replies grumpily. "And as for why so many of the Shepherds have ended up together, I think it's a simple case of a mixed-gender unit spending so much time around each other and not really anyone else for a long time," she tells Gaius.
"Did you pull any strings to get us together?" Sumia asks curiously.
"No!" Robin protests. "I didn't even pair you two in battle that often or anything. You just happened to be a great fit for each other and found that out on your own."
"Aww, Robin~!" Sumia happy-whines. "Didja hear that, Gaius? I'm a great fit for you."
"Yeah, yeah, you're the white to my snow, the wet to my water," he says pretend-sarcastically, but plants a kiss on top of her head to punctuate his thought. Sumia giggles. "Hold on." He looks back over at Robin. "The way you said that, it sounds like you actually do put couples together in battle in the hopes that they'll get together."
Robin freezes, caught in her own words. "Um… Okay, but I haven't actually done it that often. I almost always put people together for entirely tactical reasons. Sometimes, though… you just need some time together on the battlefield to see how important that person is to you, y'know?"
"How many people have you gotten together this way?" Gaius asks. I can hear the superior smile in his tone.
Robin sighs. "Vaike and Sully, for one. It was obvious that they're perfect for each other, so I made sure they would always be responsible for backing each other up. And they seem happy together, don't they?"
"When they're not pounding the stuffing out of each other," Gaius replies.
"They keep each other reined in. They're a good influence on each other. I call that a win."
"Anyone else you've done this with?"
"Not nearly to the same extent. Most of the time it sort of happens without my direct influence. Like Stahl and Panne always fighting together whether I tell them to or not. Or Kellam and Miriel. Some pairs just fight so naturally together I don't even have to instruct it."
"I dunnooo, sounds like you might be the mastermind behind every relationship in the Shepherds," Gaius taunts. "Say, who do you normally send yourself into battle with?"
"Nobody," Robin says irritably. "I'm usually by myself, overseeing the battle as a whole if I can."
"Well who would you pair yourself with on the battlefield, then?" Sumia chimes in. "Who do you think you fight best with?"
"Huh. That's a good question, actually," Robin says. She sounds a little sleepy as she ponders. "I usually act as a kind of multitool. Like I can fit into whatever role needs to be filled in battle."
"I dunno Robin, I've seen you on a pegasus before. I don't think a flier role would suit you," Sumia says with a teasing laugh.
"Ugh, that's definitely true. I don't know how you can stand it."
"I don't know how everyone else has such an easy time walking on the ground!" Sumia replies, throwing her hands in the air in exasperation. "Gaius, will you teach me how to walk?"
Gaius chuckles. "Yes, dear. We'll get there."
"But to answer the original question, I guess I'd say I work well with anyone on the battlefield," Robin says.
Gaius makes a nasally 'eeengh' sound, like a 'you're wrong' buzzer. Even gently sloshed as I am, I still wonder why on earth he would do that when there are no buzzers in Fire Emblem. "Thass a cop-out answer and you know it." He points accusingly at her.
"It's the truth!"
"You don't get off that easy. You have to pick one Shepherd to have your back in battle. Who is it?"
"Why do I have to pick one person?" Robin protests.
"Cause it's fun to watch you get frustrated about it," Gaius replies simply.
"Don' be so mean, Gaius," Sumia says, lightly slapping his chest.
I decide to come to her rescue. "Don't worry Robin, I'll back you up in battle whenever," I say, clapping a clumsy hand on her shoulder. Probably too hard, considering it makes her flinch. Oops. I retract my hand quickly. "You and I work together pretty well, though it's been a while since we've had the chance."
"There," Robin says, gesturing to me over her shoulder as she speaks to Gaius. "You see? Randy's got my back."
"I certainly do," Gaius says, chuckling smugly. "Careful there, Bear."
"Whass that supposed to mean?" Robin asks indignantly.
"Nothing, nothing at all," Gaius replies.
We stay there for a while longer, drinking and laughing and watching the winking stars above us. Occasionally Litica will say something, reminding me that I'm not out of the woods yet, and my own trial is coming soon enough. But for tonight, we can put that aside and, like Gaius said, remember why it's worth it to go through all this.
Some time later, Gaius stretches and groans. "I think we should go to bed. Don't wanna end up spending all night out here.
"Okaaay," Sumia moans. "But ya gotta carry me to bed."
"Fine. C'mere." Gaius gets up and hoists Sumia up, bridal style. She wraps her arms around his neck and smiles drowsily.
A tug at my sleeve. I look down and see Robin looking intently at me.
"Sup?" I slur.
"Carry me," she says.
"Huh?"
"I wanna get carried too." She busts out her rarely used but highly effective puppy-dog eyes. "Please?"
I'm not about to say no to that face. "Uh, alright." I get up and squat next to her. "Hop aboard," I instruct.
"Okay!" She drapes herself across my back, curling her arms around my neck. She jumps up, her legs hugging at my hips, briefly strangling me before I can get my arms behind her knees to keep her lifted up. It's hardly the most comfortable piggyback ride I've ever given, but her pleased giggling in my ear gives me a cozy, warm feeling.
Gaius smirks at us. "Let's get these lushes to bed, shall we?"
"We shall," I reply. With that, we begin our stumbly, unstable journey to the barracks. Robin's not a very sturdy passenger, constantly slipping down and requiring me to do that jump-hike-up thing to keep her up. Not that it especially bothers me.
As we approach the door, she tightens her arms around me and giggles. "Has anyone ever told you that you're warm?" she asks in my ear, sending a shiver down my spine.
"As a matter of fact, yes," I reply, my face hot. "I get that all the time."
She 'hmph's and says, "Well now you've heard it from me too. So there."
The four of us manage to make it inside, albeit with a lot more noise than intended thanks to an uncommonly bubbly Sumia yapping about nothing in particular in Gaius's ear. Before Litica closes the door behind us, she tells me, "See you in the morning, stud."
"You're leaving?" I ask.
"You might not believe it, but even I need my beauty sleep. You have a night watcher too."
Sure enough, I hear someone clear their throat behind me. I turn around to see a thin, grim-looking man in Feroxi mercenary garb. His pale skin and sunken, dark eyes suggest he's not Feroxi by birth. If I had to guess, I'd say he looks Plegian.
"I have been waiting for you," he says, his voice thin and sandy. "I am Serge. I am your night watcher." He looks past us at Litica. "I trust all is well?"
"He's mostly kept out of trouble. Drunk but manageable," Litica says.
"You think it wise to allow him to traipse about town like that, drinking long into the night?" he asks severely. Well this guy looks like a bundle of laughs.
"Our job is to make sure he doesn't make contact with the Patriots or impede the prosecution. Not to babysit him," Litica replies with a shrug.
Serge grunts. "Fine."
Gaius chuckles. "Well, if the prisoner exchange is over, I'll be taking this one to bed."
Robin waves while I nod in his direction. "Take it easy, you two. No babies." It wouldn't do for the Cynthia of this world to end up older than Lucina.
"We'll see what we can do," Gaius says with a wink as the pair retire upstairs.
"Until tomorrow, Randall," Litica says, not waiting for a response before shutting the barracks door behind her.
I sigh. "Alright, ya goof. Let's get you to bed too," I say over my shoulder.
"Mmkay," Robin says sleepily.
I carry her to her room (I'm grateful the women's rooms are only on the second floor) and open the door. I'd almost forgotten what a cluttered mess it is in here. Books and maps and weapons and all manner of other stuff, piled in a disaster that only Robin herself could ever hope to navigate. For my part, it's enough that I eventually stagger over to her bed and set her down on it. Serge is at least courteous enough to stand just outside the door.
I turn around to see Robin struggling to get her coat off while sitting on the tail of it. It takes some doing, but eventually she succeeds in freeing herself from its clutches. She sits contended for a moment, then looks up at me and raises one of her legs at me.
"Can ya help?" She wiggles her foot to indicate what she wants.
I stoop down to grab the heel of her boot and, with some effort, manage to pull it off, then the other. As soon as they're off, she lies back in her bed with a satisfied sigh.
"Thanks, Randall," she says, her eyes closed.
"No problem," I say, preparing to turn and leave.
"Hey," she says.
I pause. "What?"
"Lissa and Maribelle and Nowi call you Randy all the time, right?" she asks.
"Uh, yeah. Why do you ask?"
"Can I call you Randy too?" she asks as she grabs a pillow from the head of her bed and curls her arms around it.
"Of course," I say with a chuckle. "You can call me whatever you like."
"Even 'dummy'?" she asks, laughing at her own joke.
"If you must," I reply with a sigh.
"Good," she says with a drowsy smile. She looks at me, her eyes unfocused but happy. "Gaius was right. This was a good idea."
"We'll see if you feel the same way in the morning," I say with a laugh. "Make sure you drink some water before you sleep."
"Mmkay," she moans, nestling deeper into her little pile of pillows she's pulled over to herself.
"Sleep tight, Robin," I half-whisper as I head for her door.
"Night, Randy," she sighs.
Outside Robin's room, Serge is waiting for me. I wait a second to see if he'll say anything. He doesn't. At least Litica has a bit of a sense of humor about all this. This guy seems like he's all business. I guess I don't mind that either. We head to my room in silence.
When we're inside, I say, "I hope you're prepared to be bored. I'm not actually a traitor, so you're not gonna be intercepting any suspect communications or anything. I'll mostly just be snoring."
"We will see," he says coldly.
I decide that's about where I want to stop the conversation. I'm not gonna have this argument with every Feroxi soldier I meet. Instead I just dress for bed and get in. It's not the coziest feeling in the world having this specter looming over me as I try to fall asleep, but after the night I've had, it doesn't take long for me to get over that.
No, I've got plenty on my mind without thinking about Serge. My brain is still covered with booze fuzz, so my mind can't focus on any one idea for that long, and it drifts from one to the next.
Maribelle is engaged. I knew this was coming. I guess I thought I'd have more time to get used to her and Chrom being together before a ring found her finger. Not that I have any right to feel any sort of way about it anyway. Ugh.
Poor Cordelia. She's gonna be in a rough way tomorrow, and probably for a while afterward. And the worst part is it's not even done yet. Chrom didn't even get a chance to properly turn her down. She has to do it all again, except this time weighed down with the shame of the first attempt. I hope this will be good for her in the end.
Robin was acting funny. Childish, even. But I liked it. It's a side of her I don't normally get to see. And I liked her holding onto me. It felt… right, somehow.
I'm tired.
I should have done as he said and drunk some water before falling asleep, I think as I gingerly hold the back of my throbbing head. Or perhaps my headache isn't a hangover at all, but just residual embarrassment about what I remember from last night.
I made him carry me. On his back. I told him he was warm. I even made him help me undress! Well, just my boots, but still, I was a giggling, mortifying mess. Even Sumia looked downright composed by comparison. Cordelia might have me beat for the most shameful display, but not by much. I am absolutely dreading seeing him today. The only mercy is that as far as I recall, I waited until after he left to pull off my pants and stockings to get comfy in bed.
And yet, part of me can't help but admire my drunk self's daring. I've wanted for I don't know how long to just leap into his arms on a whim the way Nowi can. That lucky, carefree little gremlin.
He went along with it, I remind myself. He was smiling too. He even looked a little bashful at some moments. It makes me want to see that side of him again. He's normally so good at keeping up this devil-may-care cavalier personality, but I certainly know better. He has more than his share of doubts and worries, and while I appreciate that he's given me unique access to that side of him, I also want to be able to get under that surface persona to make him happy. And… I like teasing him, when the rare opportunity arises. He's cute when he's flustered. I quietly thank drunk me, idiot that she is, for at least getting a couple moments like that out of him for our trouble.
If there's one thing that, in a dark, messed up way, is kind of a comfort to me, it's Cordelia's mishap from last night. I know Randall still has some feelings for her, but it's always seemed complicated. It's like he's ashamed to admit he likes her for some reason. Is it because she's so into Chrom? He doesn't want to admit he likes someone that he knows is into someone else? If so, last night probably put a final nail in that coffin. I wish Cordelia the best, but being honest with myself, I see her as something of a rival, even if she doesn't mean to be.
I'm in the middle of these evil thoughts when there's a knock at my bedroom door. I'm a little surprised when it's Lissa's voice I hear through the door.
"Hey Robin? I was hoping to talk to you a bit, if you have time. I know you're busy with trial prep and all, but I won't be long," she says.
I guess if it's just Lissa, I won't take the time to find wherever I flung my pants. I settle for pulling on a pair of black shorts I've never worn before. Good gods these are short. When did I even buy these? "Sure, come in," I say in a dry voice, dragging myself into a sitting up position and trying to straighten some of my bedhead out. The door opens.
Lissa smiles sympathetically as she enters. "Rough night?" she asks.
I chuckle. "Actually it was really wasn't so bad, I guess. What can I do for you?"
"Well, I just… wanted to talk with you a bit. It feels like there's always something going on, especially ever since Emm got hurt." She moves a few tomes off a wooden chair so she can have a place to sit. "I feel like I've never had a chance to talk to you unless it was about battle and stuff."
"I see. What would you like to talk about?" I ask. It's rare to see Lissa so calm and serene like this.
"Well, I know Chrom has thanked you before, and I've heard about the new job he gave you. If Emm were in her old state of mind today, I honestly don't know how she'd react if she saw what Chrom was planning. Building the Ylissean army back up and all. Maybe she'd understand. Maybe she'd be mad. But even if I'm not the Exalt, I can still have my own perspective."
"And what's that?"
She looks in my eyes. Her gaze is kind but serious. "If it were anybody else, I would have opposed Chrom's decision to rebuild the army. There are so many that would be corrupted by that power, or use it for evil motives. But he chose you to lead the army. And because he did, I don't need to oppose him. I know we haven't known each other all that long, but Chrom was right to trust you. I thought you should know that I think that."
I wasn't expecting this. I don't really know what to say. "Lissa, that's very kind of you, but I feel like I have to ask. Why tell me this now?"
Lissa takes a slow breath. "Because I've been thinking a lot lately. It's been hard for me to get used to this… new Emm. All this time, I've been taking care of her, thinking that someday some place, or person, or whatever, will bring back her memories and turn her back to how she was. But the more time that passes, and the more settled in she gets here, the more I start to think that the old Emm isn't coming back. The woman asleep right now in the palace is someone new, living in my older sister's body. I'm working on being okay with that. But that means I have to step up. Not just for Emm, but for Chrom too.
"I expect Chrom is going to officially take the title of Exalt pretty soon, probably when he publicly announces that the army is being reformed, if not before then. He'll be a good Exalt; I know that. But I also know he can't do it alone. Emm trying to do it alone left her leadership with gaps that cost her almost everything. So Chrom needs allies he can trust to back him up. I know that you're in that circle of trust, maybe even at the head of it. And as his little sister and princess of the halidom, it's my job to make sure that only the trustworthy can get that close to him."
"So this is you confirming for me that I have your approval as princess?" I ask.
"I guess you could say that," she says, her serious demeanor cracking with a nervous laugh. "I'm trying to get used to sounding like a princess. The council still freaks me out. But I felt like you deserve to know, even though we haven't had many chances to talk, I really value you as an ally and, more importantly, as a friend. You've saved my family, my home, and my country with your talents on the battlefield. Maybe you've heard it from Chrom, but you deserve to hear it from me too: I'm so grateful, Robin."
I smile. "Well, I'll tell you what I told Chrom, then. The Shepherds gave me a home, a purpose, and a people worth fighting for. That's all the thanks I could ever need."
I hear a voice outside the bedroom door. "Oh, Lon'qu! Didn't expect to find you here. Let me guess: Lissa is paying our dear tactician a visit?" Randall says.
If Lon'qu responds, he does so quietly enough that I don't hear him. Seconds later, the door opens. I instantly become aware again of how messy my hair is.
He looks infuriatingly normal. Like all that whiskey just passed through without stopping to beat him over the head or anything. Even his hair looks great.
"My two favorite pains in the neck in the same room, what a treat," he says with a smile as he crosses the room and leans on Lissa, his elbow resting atop her head for support. "What are we talking about in here?" he asks.
"For your information, Randy, we were having a serious and mature conversation until you barged in," Lissa play-grumbles. "You sapped all the gravity from the moment."
He looks at me. More specifically, my legs. "You know, I don't think I've ever seen you in shorts before, Robin," he says. Instinctively I pull my knees together, my bare toes curling nervously. I feel exposed.
The next second feels like an hour. What the hell am I supposed to say to that? Was it a compliment? I don't even know! "Uh, yeah. I haven't worn them before," I say with my best attempt at a casual tone. "I've been thinking of changing up my wardrobe a bit." Well that's just an outright lie.
"Huh. Wonders abound. Well, I can dig it," he says with a smile. "So what was this 'mature conversation' about?" he asks Lissa.
She shakes his elbow off her head. "We were talking about how even though I have my doubts about rebuilding the army, because I know Emm would have been hesitant about it, I'm okay with it because I trust Robin to lead the army in the right way."
"Wow. That actually is quite mature." Lissa looks proud. "Oh yeah, that reminds me," he says, taking a few steps over and sitting at the foot end of my bed. I pull my knees close to my chest to make room. "Robin and I have been Shepherds for the same amount of time, but she gets fancy custom armor and a shiny new position? What gives?"
"Take that up with Chrom," she says dismissively. "He's the Exalt, not me. And besides, you're on trial. We can't promote you while you're still under suspicion."
"Ugh." He flops back, lying sideways across the bed, his head hanging off the other side. "I'll tell ya, I give and give."
"You're not actually worried Maribelle will find you guilty, are you?" Lissa asks.
"She promised she would if she truly believes I am," he replies. "I have to believe that she'll keep her word. If she doesn't, there's no point to any of this. Hey Robin, are you missing a tome? Looks like dark magic probably." He points at my dresser. From his upside-down vantage point, I guess he can see under the dresser legs.
"Actually, yes." I stand up and reach under the dresser to collect the tome. "It's not for a while yet, but I got it for Tharja's birthday. I got it at a cheap rate when we stopped for supplies once." I pull the tome out and inspect the cover. Ruin. Of course, it wasn't for Tharja at all. I have no idea when Tharja's birthday is. I got it for Randall. I was going to give it to him after the trial.
"That's a Ruin tome, right?" Randall asks. "I've seen them used but never had the chance myself."
I look at him, upside down, his face reddening from collected blood. "Would you like to?" I ask.
"Kind of a risky weapon to practice with, but yeah, I'd use it," he says with a shrug. It's strange to hear him speak so casually about dark magic. I remember how much it used to freak him out to even talk about it, let alone use it.
"I'm surprised you're so okay with the idea," I say.
"Why wouldn't I be? I've got the safe method to use dark magic down, and I practice almost every day. As long as I'm responsible, there's no reason to be afraid," he replies.
"Well… want to take it, then?" I ask.
"I thought it was for Tharja," he says, eyebrow raised.
"I can get her another one." I hold the tome out to him.
He maintains his skeptical look but takes the tome anyway. "Alrighty."
"How are you gonna find another Ruin tome so fast?" Lissa asks. "Tharja's birthday is like, less than two weeks from now."
Huh. Well that answers that I guess. "I'll manage," I say, taking my seat on the bed again.
"By the way, Lissa. That reminds me of a question I had. You know birthdays, right?" Randall asks.
She sits up a little straighter. "You know I do," she says with a superior smile.
"When is Robin's birthday?"
Lissa falters. She looks at me as if she's never seen me before. "Whoa… Robin, when is your birthday? Why do I not know this?"
I shrug. "Beats me. I don't know either." I pretend to knock on the side of my head. "Nothing in here before June of last year."
"But that means… there's like almost a ten out of twelve chance it's already passed! And if it has, we missed it!" Lissa exclaims. She stands up suddenly. "I have to consult my sources."
"Your sources?" Randall and I ask together.
"I'll see you guys later." She heads for the door. When she opens it, I see Lon'qu and Serge briefly look into the room. Lon'qu leaves with Lissa; Serge doesn't. Instead, he just stands in the open doorway. Now I feel exposed in a new, unwelcome way. I shift positions, tucking my feet under me in a kneeling position.
"So, what are we going to do today, Randall?" I ask, trying not to look at the gaunt man standing at the door.
Randall chuckles. "So I'm already Randall again?" he asks, groaning with the effort to sit up again.
"What do you mean?"
"Last night. You were pretty insistent that you be allowed to call me Randy from now on." He glances back at Serge. "Right?"
Serge grunts irritably.
I could swear my face is on fire. "I did?" I almost whisper. How could I have forgotten that? How could I have even done that in the first place?
"Yeah. Like I said then, I'm cool with whatever you want to call me. If I'm Randall to you, that's cool, and if I'm Randy, great." Gods, that smile.
"W-well, um, in that case, from now on, you're Randy. Okay?"
He laughs. "Noted. So, ready to start the day for real?"
"I think I might want to find my hairbrush first," I mutter.
"It's not that simple, Vasto!" Aventine shouts, slamming his hand on the table.
"Yes, it is!" Vasto spits back. "The khan is after Randall's head because of what we did to him! That's all there is to it. He's not at fault; we are."
Octavia had not expected this to be the argument that would be taking place right now. From everything Randall's friend had said, she had expected Vasto to be stubbornly advocating for leaving Randall to his fate.
She had stormed into his room, her feathers ruffled, ready for a fight. Instead, before she could get two words out, he interrupted her. "The brat in blue sent you in after me, didn't she? Don't bother."
"And why shouldn't I bother?" Octavia said, her hands planted on her hips.
"I'm not leaving Randall to die at the hands of the khans. I'm not that much of a coward. I just wanted that self-righteous girl to get out of my face." His expression was stony, but etched with irritation in his brow and clenched jaw.
Octavia couldn't help but laugh. He scowled at her. "I'm sorry, Vasto. That's just so… you. Mustafa told me a lot about you before we met, you know. A diligent young man, with his head in the right place and a great deal of promise—yet no patience, he said. It seems he hit the nail precisely on the head."
"I'm glad I can be such a fine source of entertainment then, Octavia. Did you need anything else?"
"What will you do now?"
"In the morning, I'm going to talk to the old man. I'm sure by now he's started to realize which way the wind is blowing, even without this news about Randall. There's a lot to discuss."
"I'll go with you," Octavia said, folding her arms over her chest.
"You'll… Ugh. I'm not going to bother even trying to stop you," he sighed.
Octavia chuckled politely. "Good."
Aventine's sharp voice returns Octavia's focus to the present. "If the khan is too stupid to tell friend from foe, that's on her head, not ours," Aventine says. "Let them have their squabble. You really think the Exalt will execute one of their own?"
"And what do you suppose happens when the trial is finished, hm? If they kill him, that's one thing. But I agree, they probably won't. But don't you see that would be even more dangerous? Say they decide, rightly, that he's innocent. What will he do next? What will Ylisse do next? Plegia is beaten. Gangrel is defeated. The only enemy left for them is us. And if the khan is convinced Randall isn't their culprit, they'll be coming for us next with the full strength of the Feroxi army."
Aventine is unable to answer immediately. Instead he throws his hands up and says, "And what the hell was it that happened at these peace negotiations? 'Thomas Paine' appears and assassinates Phila of all people? If he had truly been a Patriot-aligned radical, he would have had the good sense to take out Gangrel and the remaining Exalted family. It doesn't make any sense! We agree the timeline doesn't suggest it's possible Randall could have been the man behind that mask, but clearly someone was. And we have no idea who it could have been."
"Aventine," Octavia speaks up, "you're dodging the issue."
"I'm not! It's a relevant consideration! If there's yet another operative in the field, powerful enough to assassinate both Phila and General Campari and then get away from the most influential leaders on the continent without any trouble, that's very relevant. That person could come after us as well. We know he's willing to kill Patriots, after all." Aventine looks terrified. He looks so pitiful Vasto wants to throttle him.
"That may be true too, but it doesn't change the facts regarding Randall. We have to help him," Vasto says.
"And how do you propose we do that, anyway?" Aventine asks contemptuously. "What can we do for the man? Turn ourselves in?"
"It would be better than leaving the situation alone," Vasto retorts.
"If your conscience cannot handle one casualty in the course of our revolution, then you do not have the stomach for it. That's all there is to that," Aventine says.
"I'd be fine with one casualty," Vasto replies, his fist clenching tightly. "Just not him."
"It's not just about that, Aventine," Octavia says, placing a calming hand on Vasto's. "Like Vasto said, if they spare him, they'll be coming for us. But even if they don't, I expect they'll still declare war on us. Whoever that man was that attacked the negotiations put the Exalt and the khans' sights on us. Perhaps that was his intention. We need to think of how to deal with this if we want to avoid open war with the Exalt and the khans."
"Which we would lose," Vasto adds. "The only reason we've gotten away with as much as we have is because the public loved us chasing out the Plegians. We never had time to really work on swaying the people to our side against the Exalted family. If Prince Chrom comes riding in, with the Shepherds at his side and the khans at his back, the people are going to turn on us."
"You don't know that for sure," Aventine says, sounding unsure even of himself.
"Think about it. Chrom just defeated King Gangrel. He sent the rest of the Plegians packing, and he did it without a mass execution of prisoners of war. Everyone, Plegian and Ylissean alike, got to go home. The prince comes out of this war looking like a savior bathed in golden light. How on earth could we ever hope to convince people that Chrom is a villain too?" Vasto asks. "This new Exalt is beyond popular. If he decides to wipe us out, the people will help him. And we're spread so thin now, we wouldn't have a chance of holding out anywhere except here and maybe the Farfort. And that's before the Feroxi army goes to work on us."
"What are you saying, Vasto?" Aventine asks, already knowing the dreadful answer.
"I'm saying we played our hand too early. Now the people know we exist, and an imposter has made us look like a bunch of anarchist assassins. Even if word of the assassinations somehow hasn't already gotten out, Chrom has leverage over us because he could get that information out in no time." Vasto sighs. "We were beaten before the Ylisseans even raised a blade to us."
"Well, that doesn't make this the end! Suppose we pull out of the occupied towns. Suppose we regroup, retreat to the shadows again, and make our play when all of this has blown over. Perhaps the Grimleal would have a place we could–"
"Aventine," Octavia says kindly, but firmly. "Randall will have told them who we are. He has no reason to keep his promise to tell the Shepherds to leave us alone. And even if he tries, they'll get that information somehow and come for us regardless of what Randall says. Chrom has the clout to not only disseminate our identities, but also to spin our goals in the eyes of the public. The Patriots and possibly their loved ones will be placed at risk. At the very least, the Ylissean ones will."
Aventine is silent for a long moment. He won't look at either of the others in the room. He paces for a while, staring at the floor.
"So, what, you Plegians can go home to a country too disorganized to make the effort to arrest you, while I have to go to the chopping block, is that it?" Aventine explodes in anger. "Is that the reward for everything I've done for this movement? The decades of looking over my shoulder? Is this what your husband fought for?" he shouts at Octavia.
"My husband would not allow the unjust execution of a man who had done nothing wrong if he had the power to stop it. He would not have kidnapped Randall in the first place, or forced him to work for the cause when he did not believe in it. Do not try to wield Mustafa's memory against me, Aventine." Octavia's eyes burn like a forge.
"Well it's not fair! None of it! To have a moment of kindness be the reason our cause fails! We were going to save this continent! But now? Gangrel has claimed Mustafa's head, and I am asked to allow Prince Chrom to claim mine? After doing nothing but freeing Ylissean civilians from Gangrel's occupation for the last several months?"
"You're wrong, Aventine," Vasto replies calmly. "It's exactly fair. I told you before. The Patriots aren't villains. Mustafa wasn't either. But you and I are. This is the end we deserve. And the rest of the Patriots don't deserve to go down with us."
Aventine is silent for a moment. "Disbandment? Is that what you're suggesting?"
"It's that or open war. Or worse yet, a manhunt. What's it going to be, Aventine?"
The old man's eyes flit back and forth between the man and woman before him, hoping one of them will tell him there's a way out of this. That help will come. But their eyes say it all. No help is coming, not for them. Not anymore.
I'm not allowed to meet my prosecutor, by the way. It's a rule that the defendant and their counsel can't actually meet the prosecutor before the trial begins. I guess it's a means of making sure they can't threaten the prosecutor into throwing the case. But as a result, I have no idea who the prosecutor has been talking to or what they've found. I mean, at least it goes both ways; the prosecutor doesn't know what we're bringing to trial either. It's just frustrating for a guy who grew up with a legal system where extensive discovery is the norm.
I haven't heard from Lucina. That's worrying. Even if she couldn't convince Vasto or Henry to come testify, I just want to hear from her so I know she's safe. I don't think Vasto would allow her to be harmed, but God knows there's plenty of shit out there that could hurt someone without the Patriots' involvement.
Though it would be difficult for her to make contact with me right now regardless. She certainly couldn't do the usual break-in-through-his-third-story-window strategy with Serge looming over me all hours of the night. My best bet is to meet her in broad daylight somewhere. Not that we have much time for that anyway. The trial begins the day after tomorrow.
There's been no word about Regulus either. Flavia's guys have been scouring the countryside ever since he went missing, but they've turned up nothing.
Apart from that, most of what Robin and I have been doing since Gangrel's conviction is witness prep. There hasn't been much we can do because all of the Shepherds have been deemed witnesses "at the judge's pleasure," meaning both sides indicated a desire to call them to the stand. When a witness is called at the judge's pleasure, the judge first conducts their own questioning, and both parties are only allowed to question the witness when the judge is finished. Since both sides are relying on a lot of testimony from the Shepherds and the khans, Maribelle has preemptively declared them at her pleasure.
I've got two witnesses right now that aren't at Maribelle's pleasure, and they are both for proving the same point. The guards who were on duty at the south and west gates the day Lucina and I first got back to Ylisstol have agreed to testify about that day. It's a risk to have the west gate guy testify, because Lucina showed him her Brand, but I've asked him not to bring that up. We just have to hope that's enough.
The only other witnesses I want to call that aren't at Maribelle's pleasure are Patriots. Obviously, for several reasons it's proven challenging to secure their testimony. After all the work we put into learning the rules of the Ylissean court system and all the time we spent preparing lines of questioning for the witnesses, we have almost no defense-only witnesses to show for it. And the rest of our evidence is frankly flimsy because it's negative evidence; as in, I don't have Thomas Paine's mask, and no one has been able to recover it. The prosecution can't prove beyond doubt that I ever had it the day the sabotage happened. As for the attack on Southtown, I have no idea how either side intends to obtain testimony about that day without Regulus. Will they just have my word alone to go on? How will that satisfy anyone?
"I just don't know," I mutter aloud.
"Is it really that big a deal?" Robin asks. "It's just choosing a suit."
"Oh, right, sorry. My head is elsewhere." I forgot that we're picking the suit I'm going to wear to trial. I own a brown, a black, and a blue now. I think I'm ruling blue out because of its possible association with the Thomas Paine coat. Black does look the most professional, but it also looks the most evil. "Let's just go with the brown. I'd rather look boring than sinister."
"If you say so." She scoops up the other suits and puts them back in my wardrobe. "What was on your mind?"
"Witnesses."
"Ugh," she says. "Witnesses."
"At the judge's pleasure."
"At her gods-damned pleasure."
We share a look and a bitter laugh. "Well, much as I hate to admit it, there's nothing else we can do," I say.
"We still have two days to wait…" Robin says. "What do we do until then?"
"You know, I haven't had a chance to meditate in a bit. Wanna do that with me?" I ask.
"Oh! Uh, okay. I have no idea how," she stammers. "What do I do?"
"I'll show you some stuff. There's no one way to do it, per se, but Libra's method always worked for me." I direct her to sit on the rug on my bedroom floor. I look up at Litica, standing in the corner. "You wanna join?" I ask.
"Pass," she replies emotionlessly.
"Whatever. More zen for us I guess." I sit down across from Robin.
"So, what do I actually do?" Robin asks.
"Well, first, make sure you're sitting comfortably. You'll be in the same position for a while, so don't make it too hard to maintain." She sits cross-legged, trying to mirror me. "The main thing at the beginning is awareness of your body."
"Awareness?"
"Yeah." I try and remember how Libra said it. "Think about all the separate parts of your body. Arms, legs, fingers, toes, eyes, tongue, all of it. Everything you can think of at once while keeping it all still separate. Your body is made of a shitload of different parts, all working together to keep you alive and moving. To be aware of your body is to be aware of how its parts behave."
"That sounds impossible."
"Start simple. Start with your hands. How are they positioned? Are they relaxed? Are your fingers tensed? Which ones? Don't move them on purpose, just think of how they are. Become actually aware of them. Try relaxing any points where you feel tension." She closes her eyes to focus on the feeling more deeply. "Then think about your arms the same way. How are they positioned? Are they fully relaxed? If not, where are they working? And so on in your shoulders, your neck. Down to your legs and feet. Take a mental catalogue of how each part feels. You'll find you aren't fully relaxed, but that's not a problem. The body is never fully relaxed. It is always working, just at different rates in different places."
"I have a neckache," she says. "I just noticed it."
"You're in better tune with your body. This part isn't as comfortable. Think about your breathing. How often do you breathe? How deeply? Are you filling your lungs all the way, or only partially? Does one side of your nose breathe better than the other?"
Robin breathes manually for a few seconds. "Wow, this is strange," she says.
"Yeah, it's kinda like that when you start," I say. "This technique was developed to take what normally happens automatically and make it actively under your control. That's how I've learned to handle dark magic without having to worry about having another Lake Medeus moment. You're learning how to control your body so you can use dark magic without letting it into your mind."
"And that's why you weren't worried about taking the Ruin tome?" she asks.
"Yeah. You know, I strongly suspect you're a dark mage too. If you get this technique down, it would expand your list of options on the battlefield."
She laughs quietly. "You know me so well, Randy."
We meditate for a while. It's a little hard to tell how Robin feels about it. I know it goes against her nature to do anything resembling clearing her mind. I hope she sees why that's all the more reason to do it. In any case, she at least follows my instructions and plays along. She's making an earnest effort, and that's enough for her first time.
After some time, I get up and help Robin to her feet.
"How was I?" she asks.
"It's a start. It's a work in progress," I reply with an encouraging smile.
"It was more tiring than it looked," she says.
"Looked to me like the pair of you were just sitting there," Litica says from the corner.
Robin scowls at her, but I laugh. "That's part of the point, I guess. Don't visibly be a threat, but cultivate inner power anyway. The meditation does make a dark mage stronger, even if they don't look it. It's better for an enemy to underestimate you, or sometimes to overestimate you, but it's never advantageous for an enemy to know exactly what you're capable of," I say.
Litica shrugs. "Fair enough."
"Oh, the end of a war is such a drag." Grima sits down, leaning back against a tree.
"Unfortunately, people can't keep war up forever. It was clear everyone was looking for an excuse to give up the fight by the end," I sigh.
"We have the war between the Shepherds and the Patriots to look forward to," Regulus says. "There's no way Khan Flavia will let something like that go. As soon as they've dealt with Randall, the next thing is exterminating the Patriots."
"My lord, that is something I'm puzzled about. Why put Randall in the middle of this?" I ask.
"Because if there's one thing I know, it's that woman," Grima snarls, and instantly from his tone I know he means the vessel. "She won't let him go. She'd go to war with all of Ferox for him. And I think that would not only be very interesting, but perhaps a suitable punishment for her as well."
So that's why he had Regulus 'disappear.' Sow the seeds of distrust between Robin and the khans. Force the prince to choose a side, but either choice would be incorrect. Either go to war with Ferox, or go to war against potentially the most powerful woman in the world.
"As for that other thing?" I ask.
"That? Oh yes, proceed as planned. Should be a good bit of fun." Grima smiles, his mind taken off the vessel for the moment. He stands up and stretches. "I wonder what they'd think if they knew where we are," he says, looking over the city walls at the palace atop the hill.
"I imagine they wouldn't sleep so soundly in their beds at night," Regulus suggests.
"No, I rather think not," Grima replies. A nearby deer looks curiously at us from deeper in the woods. Grima turns and points his finger at the animal, and instantly seven or eight spikes of Expiration burst from the ground, impaling the deer at various points and lifting it a foot off the ground. It screams for a second, before a multitude of smaller spikes shoot out from the existing larger spikes, shredding the creature. After a couple seconds, the spikes dissipate, and the corpse drops to the forest floor, a pile of meat, blood, bones, and fur.
Grima smirks at me. "Gotta keep the beast fed," he says, patting his stomach. "Regulus, do us all a favor and get something edible out of that, won't you?"
Regulus is clearly more shaken by this display than I am. "Uh, right. Yes, of course."
"I don't know about you, Diana, but I am starving," Grima says.
The next day passes without any word from Lucina. Ordinarily I'd ask Cordelia or Sumia to take Robin down to Southtown so we can look into this matter, but there's the Feroxi babysitters to consider. I think about asking Robin to do this and then respawning so she can know my thoughts without me having to tell her, but there are a couple reasons I don't do this. Firstly, there's no guarantee that Robin and I would both be able to kill ourselves without the Feroxi intervening and stopping one or both of us. Suicide respawns are hard enough to do just because of how much dying sucks, but trying that when we have a person specifically watching us while standing within earshot at all times seems just impossible. Secondly, there's also no guarantee Robin isn't being followed too, in which case it would be pointless anyway. Flavia knows full well that Robin is both my best friend and, in this matter, my counsel.
So we just sit. Wait. Worry. We don't even leave my room. We don't want to see anybody today. Stahl is nice enough to bring us food a few times throughout the day. A couple times Nowi comes knocking, asking if I want a hug or to play a game. I actually do want a hug, but for today I think it's better to just be left alone. I'd rather have a nice dragon hug when I'm free and clear.
Gaius understands. He's been on trial before, I think. Nothing this serious, obviously, but he's been closer mentally to where I am than anyone else. He stops by once, knocks on the door, and just says, "You'll do fine, Bear. We're pulling for ya," through the closed door.
Robin sits on the side of my bed, mouthing something silently to herself. I decide not to break her focus. Instead I just sit next to her and think about all the things I feel like I should think about.
The next morning, my stomach feels like a lead ball from the moment I wake up. I slept restlessly, and I already feel tired as soon as my eyes open. The sun isn't even up yet. I sit up, and as expected, there's Serge, sitting in the chair in the corner.
I groan as I get to my feet. "Howdy, Serge. Did I do anything interesting in my sleep?"
"You didn't sleep well," he says flatly.
"You got that fucking right," I mutter.
The good thing about being up this early is I can take my time washing up and getting dressed. I make sure my hair is extra tidy as I tie it back, the black strip tying back my hair matching the black shirt under my coat. I briefly consider asking Virion if I could borrow a cravat, then think better of it.
By the time I get down to the common room, Robin is there, pacing around. She's dressed in full Grandmaster garb today, unsurprisingly. She wants the weight of her authority as the grandmaster general out there today. She said it makes her feel powerful.
"There you are," she says when she notices me.
"Were you waiting long?" I ask.
"No, I just got down here a minute ago. But I'm so anxious I couldn't even sit for that long," she says a little breathlessly.
"Well, we may as well go ahead and get going. Maybe we'll feel better if we have more time to get used to the space."
She nods. "Yeah, okay. That sounds good."
I duck into the kitchen to grab us a couple day-old rolls to eat as we walk to the courthouse. They're a little firm, but maybe we just need something to gnaw on this morning anyway.
We exit the building and find Litica standing outside, waiting for her shift. "Did you miss me?" she asks.
"More and more every night, gorgeous," I reply. "Why couldn't it have been you tasked with the overnight shift?"
Serge scoffs behind me.
"Maybe the khan was worried you'd try to seduce me," Litica says with a chuckle.
"Would that have worked?" I ask.
"The last man who tried ended up buried in a snowfield outside Ný Von. By the time anyone found him, it was much too late to even determine what happened to the poor guy," she replies with an evil smile. Why are all the women in my life so scary?
"Charming," Robin says, an irritable edge to her tone. "Let's go."
"Well Serge, it's been a pleasure," I say as I wave farewell to the guy. "I expect I won't be needing a nighttime babysitter after today no matter what happens."
"Believe me, the pleasure was all yours," he says as he walks away.
The three of us walk in silence to the courthouse. My brief bantering with Litica did little to alleviate the tension I feel in my guts. I notice Robin is walking stiffly too.
The guard outside the courthouse recognizes us and lets us inside. Before we walk up the center aisle to the defendant's table, Litica pauses.
"I can watch from here," she says, leaning against the doorway to the courthouse.
Robin and I approach the table. Gangrel was sitting in that chair just the other day. This is where he stood when Maribelle condemned him to decades of solitude. I haven't forgotten the terrifying look on her face as she told Gangrel about the hex Tharja had placed on him. A shiver runs down my spine. I don't think I'm going to get hexed like that, but standing where he stood doesn't do wonders for my stress.
Robin sits down, and I sit next to her. The seconds pass interminably slowly. I don't know why I thought sitting here might make us feel better. The silence is making everything worse, but neither of us has a thing to say today.
Finally, mercifully, others start filing in. This trial doesn't have nearly the publicity of Gangrel's, so there aren't exactly crowds forming; mostly the Shepherds and some of their families show up. I can't bring myself to look at anyone for more than a few seconds, and for the most part I just face forward and listen to people file in.
A woman in probably her 40s or 50s passes through the gate separating the gallery from the parties' tables. She comes to stand in front of our table. She extends her hand to me.
I look up at her. She has a kind, round face, her wrinkles suggesting she has a habit of smiling widely and often. Her dark hair has begun to grey, but it is neatly tied back. She nods respectfully as I shake her hand.
"My name is Danica. I am your prosecutor," she says.
"Randall. Wish I could say it's a pleasure," I reply, my throat tight.
"Robin. Likewise," Robin says beside me.
Danica nods again. She opens her mouth as if to say something, but in the end says nothing and just goes to sit at her table.
Some time passes, with only the murmuring of the gallery to fill the space. Finally, the door to the judge's chamber opens, and Maribelle emerges in her judge robes, her hair pulled into a bun like last time.
"All rise," the bailiff says, and we all stand.
Maribelle sits down, then gestures to everyone. "You may be seated." We take our seats again. "The matter before the court today is the Halidom of Ylisse versus Randall Belmont. Will the parties make themselves known?"
Danica stands first. "Danica Miller, on behalf of the halidom."
"Very well. And defense?"
I stand up. "Randall Belmont, defendant."
Robin stands beside me. "Robin, counsel on behalf of defendant."
Maribelle looks up from the paper she is writing on. "Last name?"
"None, or else forgotten," Robin says, her voice shaking a bit.
"Ah, yes," Maribelle says, fighting the urge to cover her face with her hand in embarrassment. "My apologies, Robin. All parties are present, then. We may begin."
A/N: What's this? An actually timely turnaround for a new chapter? Wonders never cease. I was hit with a fit of inspiration that, God willing, will keep me chugging along through the next good chunk of the story. I hope you enjoyed this chapter of relative downtime. I think I'm pleased with the rhythm the story has been hitting lately, with things moving along without feeling too rushed. Hopefully you all feel the same! As always, Mixed Valence has my thanks for looking over the chapter and making sure it was ready to go. Your Mixed Valence out-of-context quote of the week is: "I would pee on everything."
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As always, comments and critiques are welcome. See you next time!