Chapter 18) Noble Lineage

And so, after picking up my nephew and niece, we continue our journey to the Mila Tree, past the 'Grand Gate' to the Shrine Ruins. Most call it Mila's Shrine, but honestly, no one actually remembers if it's hers or not. They just know Mila did once have a shrine, because it played such a huge part in the Founding of Valentia and those records managed to survive the Schism, and Grima's first rise.

A shrine to gods, though… I can't decide if it's appropriate or inappropriate that Robin and I go there. Or if it doesn't even matter. I don't know. I'm tired.

There was something just 'different' about the area around the ruins. Like someone had taken the time to insure it would remain pristine. Or maybe like, if you were quiet enough, you could see the ghosts of the former gods walking through. I didn't like it. It reminded me a lot of the catacombs where I'd lived before Mother saved Robin and me. It also gave an air of 'silence', that you had to be quiet, so the normally lively Shepherds talked in hushed voices. To not 'disturb' things. But it disturbed me. They were raucous and loud and I loved them for it.

"Kestrel?" Robin's voice drew me out of my thoughts, and it took a couple of blinks to realize I'd stopped walking. I hadn't noticed. "Hey, is everything okay?" he asked me worriedly. I looked around and saw the others walking ahead. "Do you need a break? I'll carry you."

"You're not strong enough for that," I replied. Still, I smiled. "But yes, I'm fine. Just a bit lost in thought."

"If you're sure." He still studied me worriedly, but eventually smiled back. "Well, this is as good of a time as any. I've been wanting to apologize."

"...For…?"

"For any accidental dismissal I did of your feelings." He looked so serious. I almost wanted to joke to try and lighten the mood. "I thought I understood. I thought I understood the stress of having a child from the future appear out of nowhere, because uncle and imagination. But it's so much worse than I thought. I didn't understand at all."

"Ah." Well, that wasn't what I expected. And, I couldn't deny how vindicated I felt. Thought that was the word, anyway. "So?"

"And I've thought, after everyone has gone to sleep, about how my future self failed. He failed to protect these most precious people. And knowing, knowing, that I played some part, that if destiny has its way, I will play some part in their lives being utterly destroyed…" He paused, groping for the words he wanted. "I thought I understood. And I didn't. So, I wanted to apologize. I wanted to apologize for assuming I knew something, and speaking as if I did."

"I see." I did have to laugh, terribly smug now. It had been entertaining seeing him interact with Inigo and Morgan, but now I just… it was probably really mean, but misery loved company. "Well, I know it wasn't on purpose."

"Doesn't matter." He scowled a little, like he could tell I wasn't quite taking this fully seriously. I mean; I was, but I wasn't. "That all said, I wanted to revisit a conversation we had. About 'taking ourselves off the path'."

"Ah. That." I sighed and leaned against the wall. The stone was worn smooth by time, so it wasn't uncomfortable. "What about it?"

"Well, while I can admit it's a viable tactic, now, I'm not sure it'll change things, especially the way you think it will." He paused. "But I do want to reiterate that I finally understand why it's an option and why it's something you considered. And not just because… I'm sure it's the stress. The problems. All these things I wish I could take from you, but know I can't. And I'm sure it's also because of the past I can't remember that makes you think that's a potential option. But, maybe because I don't have that past, I can think from… mmm…" He growled a bit in frustration. "Ugh… words. Words. Words, why do you fail me?"

"Because you're talking around things?" I was curious about his point, though. "So, why not try to simply be simple instead of constantly explaining and trying to be reassuring."

"Right, right." He sighed. "Okay. So, our mother only had two children, yes? You and me?"

"Yes, I told you this."

"But she wasn't the one with…" He held up his Branded hand. "Our father was. Not her."

"Yes?"

"And you also mentioned we could have half-siblings. From our father."

"Yes?" It took a moment longer, but I did, finally, catch his meaning. "Oh." I had… I had been thinking that we were the only two, even as I told Chrom the Hierophant, Hawk, might have been another 'sacrifice' to Grima. But there was nothing that said that another imperfect vessel hadn't been born. There was nothing that said another imperfect vessel hadn't been kept, in reserve, in case they couldn't birth a perfect vessel. "I'm an idiot."

"You're traumatized. You're used to certain paths in your thoughts, and when stressed, run down them because even if they're painful, you at least 'know' the way. But that's what we're actually able to help with." He smiled, proud of himself. "We can't stop you from having the paths, but we can help you find the others!"

"...You've been talking to someone about this." I gave him a droll look and he sulked. "Seriously, you did. You had to have. You're bad at stuff like this."

"So, I might've asked Flavia and Libra for some help. I didn't mention our lineage and all, but you know…" He shrugged. "And Inigo and Morgan appearing… that's what got me really understanding. I thought I did, but with my amnesia, I do come up short on a lot of emotional things. Thank everything that Olivia is willing to put up with it. But I could finally understand your point of view, and from there… perhaps because we went through the same things, I have the same paths in my thoughts. But because I no longer have context for so much of it, I can see the others more clearly. Or maybe it never affected me as much." He paused suddenly. "Hey, was what I like?"

"That's a random subject change." Though, I was a bit grateful for it. I was kicking myself for not considering the obvious. "Well, what you were around me was different than how you were around others. You and I always understood each other far too well. Still, I let myself remember. "Quieter. Sadder. More like me. Quite willing to die, but wanting to at last see our father dead first. Not wanting to leave me alone with the burden."

"And then I did leave you alone. Because I somehow lost my memories." And for a moment, he looked so guilty about it, even though it wasn't his fault at all. But he soon brightened again. "You know; that didn't happen in their timeline. Me losing my memories, I mean. Inigo notes I'm much happier, bolder. More willing to actually talk about what I'm feeling." He grinned. "Different!"

"We'll see if it continues, I suppose."

"Aw, I was hoping that would make you a little more cheerful." He frowned, clearly thinking. "Let's see… okay, definitely missed something. There's something else bothering you. What is it?"

"You're going to badger me until I spill everything, aren't you?" I rolled my eyes when he went right back to grinning. "Fine, fine. Yes, there is something else. Apparently, in that future, you disappeared the same day Chrom died." I smiled sadly at him. "And also, my future self was one of the last, if not the last…" I sighed. "So, I'll admit that scares me. Losing all of this… I'd honestly rather die than lose everything, Robin. Not when…"

"...Oh." He pulled me into a hug then. "I am the worst big brother. I didn't even think about how that would mess you up."

"Well, I didn't talk." Like Chrom said, I was inclined to hide. I was still… I was still used to running away. "So…"

"We'll do better. Slowly. We'll talk more. We'll rely on the people here more." He rested his cheek against my head, and I gently hugged him back. "And I will find a way. Just watch."

"Okay." And the words were more comforting than they had been before. Maybe it was because Robin understood more. Maybe it was just the reminder that it wasn't all on us two. "I'll keep having faith in you and the Shepherds." Because if anyone could, I knew it was these crazy people. I still wasn't quite convinced, but… but I did feel a little better. I did feel a little more hopeful. Just a little. "Prove me wrong."

"What brothers do best." He laughed. "We'll be fine."

"I hope so." And that was the best he was going to get. But he knew that, especially now. "I hope so."

Robin and I had to jog to catch up, and really only did because Frederick and Sumia rode back to make sure we were okay. Meaning I got to fly with Sumia for the first time in a while, and honestly, get to spend time with her, just her, for the first time since the ships. And it was glorious and I realized just how much I missed things like this. It also made me consider just why it had been so long, and turn… well, it helped me actually parse out one of the things that had been so, so overwhelming.

Children ate up a lot of your time. That was why you had to be prepared for such a commitment. And I was, with my baby girls. Having our older children appear out of nowhere… it was difficult. It was difficult, because of the time you had to invest in them. It was difficult, because you had to learn, on the fly, how to even be a parent. To top it off, our children were all traumatized in different ways. That meant trying to adapt to their 'quirks', the things they developed in an effort to protect themselves in an absolute hellscape of a world, on top of everything else. It was stressful. I loved them, and I wanted to protect them, but it was incredibly stressful. A few months ago, my biggest concern parenting wise had been making sure my girls didn't eat something they shouldn't, like a ring, and that their diapers were changed. Now, though… even ignoring the whole 'must save the world thing', I had to deal with my very traumatized daughter. I had to support her, listen to her. Things I was willing to do, of course, but also things I had always assumed I'd have more time to figure out.

"Ah, this is exactly what I needed!" Sumia laughed. Even as I'd been woolgathering, she and I had been gossiping about books, focusing on the Ribald tales simply because that made us laugh the most. "I've been so overwhelmed recently."

"You too?" I asked, resting my chin on her shoulder. This really was nice. "I'm guessing Cynthia?"

"Yeah, much as I hate to say. But I have no idea how to actually be a mother, and Frederick and I hadn't even talked about children before all of this. We were just enjoying being together, married." Sumia sighed heavily, and I made some sort of sympathetic noise. "Plus there's the stories Cynthia has apparently heard…"

"Such as?"

"Smashing through enemy lines to save a stricken Chrom!"

"Well, I'm not sure it was quite 'smashing through enemy lines', but you did save him on the Feroxi border."

"Oh. Right." There was a noticeable moment of silence. "Argued with Chrom and slapped him in the face?"

"You didn't really argue, but you did that weird fist-slap thing with your gauntlet after we had to leave Emmeryn."

"...Right, I did do that…" Now she whimpered. "W-well, went into a bloody frenzy and downed friend and foe alike?"

"Okay, now that one hasn't happen. Yet."

"Hey!" Sumia twisted to scowl at me and I laughed. "Oh, whatever. Point is…"

"They do have a bit of hero-worship, don't they?" That was another thing that… well, 'bothered' wasn't the right word, but it was the closest I had. Lucina thought the world of Chrom and me, and I was keenly aware of my flaws. Of my own selfishness. "I feel like I'm a step away from slipping and ruining…"

"Ruining their perception. I want to be the mother Cynthia looks up to, but at the same time, I know I can't. For one thing, I'm so much younger. For another, I still can't take two steps without faceplanting in the mud."

"Hey now, you've gotten better!" I looked down, noticing that we were ahead of the army. I didn't let Sumia know, though. Dangerous as it might be, it did add to the sense of relaxation. "But I get what you mean. I have to hide how scared I am, how worried…"

"Because you're the parent, so you have to be the strong one. You have to reassure them. Doesn't matter that they're technically the same age as us." She sighed. "It's just… it's not something I expected. I don't blame them in the slightest, but…" But they did bring complications to our lives. Things we were desperately trying to adapt to, while being in the middle of a war. And dealing with the knowledge that if we weren't careful, then everything was going to be destroyed. "Frederick is handling it so much better than me."

"Frederick babysat and more or less raised Chrom and Lissa." Frederick did have to adapt to being a parent to his own child, and was probably still reeling a bit from having this new life and happiness after Emmeryn died. But he had some parenting experience, at least. "Plus, you've seen how he mothers all of us Shepherds."

"That's true." She laughed a little. "That is very true."

"Hey, mind if I join?" Cordelia suddenly swooped near, apparently back from her patrol. "It looks like both of you could use some fun gossip?" she teased, laughing. Both of us laughed too because she was right. "Like, say, how Lissa kissed Henry last night?"

"Oh, how scandalous!" I gasped, purposely making my tone as dramatic as possible. It got more laughs. "Now, should I confront her or pretend I don't know?"

"That is a good question." Cordelia hummed a bit in thought. "Maybe wait. For now."

"A few days?"

"Yes, just to see if, you know, it leads to an actual couple or…"

"Ah, yes, a very fine point."

"That does remind me, though," Sumia mused, giggling a bit. Yes, this was exactly what we needed. "Speaking of couples, and ones that we're not sure on…"

"Cherche and Virion," Cordelia instantly deadpanned. And we were all right back to laughter. "Those two…"

"Gods above, they're definitely close, but like… I can't figure out if it's romantic or not!" Sumia rolled her eyes. "I mean; they look like they'd be a lovely couple, but Cherche just smiles when I ask."

"You asked?"

"I wanted to know!" She sulked and I actually nearly fell off the damn pegasus because I was laughing so much. "Ack! Careful!"

"Well, I hope that if they are one, they don't find out through the children arriving..." Cordelia sighed. "Gods, such anxiety… I'm honestly terrified of how mine turned out."

"Oh?"

"I know that if there was a war, I would've fought in it. It's my duty, and I would want to keep things safe." Cordelia looked down. "But that would mean I died in battle, likely. Gods know how that might've hurt my child, and that's just… it's just the worst feeling."

"It is." Sumia also drooped, saddened. "I know my future self would've wanted to spend so much more time. But the way Cynthia acts, I probably died when she was little. We probably all did."

"Not me apparently," I whispered. It hurt to say, especially when we had been so cheerful just seconds ago. "According to Laurent, my future self raised…"

"Oh no," Cordelia whispered, knowing well just what that meant. And knowing how I felt. She still felt guilt for abandoning her unit. "That's…" She urged her pegasus near Sumia's so that she could hug me. "That… you know, he's normally tactful. I wonder why he thought it was a good idea to say that."

"To be fair, I took him off-guard." I sighed, feeling strangely lighter at having admitted to that. Maybe my hiding tactic… maybe it had just been making things worse. "But enough of such subjects."

"Yes, let's find something…" Cordelia paused and leaned down, frowning. "Why is Maribelle waving at us?"

"Why is she even this far ahead of the main army?" That seemed a more important question, or at least it did until I heard the sounds of battle on the wind. Sumia tensed in front of me, hearing the same. "Ah. Well then."

"We'll go ahead. I'll let Maribelle know."

"Thank you."

Sumia and I flew ahead, though Cordelia caught up to us very quickly, and soon, the three of us came across a dense collection of ruins, and the battle within. I dropped down onto one of the pillars left behind and climbed down so that Sumia and Cordelia could fight without having to worry about me. Those two decided to make a dramatic entrance, pulling a double hit and run to take out a couple of archers and scatter the enemy. I was a little more subtle, more focused on helping the civilians into the largest intact ruin, where there was actually cover. Inside, I noticed someone had already set up an infirmary here, a young boy with black hair and rough appearance who clearly knew what he was doing.

"Stop with the fussing before you get it infected and make it rot," the boy snapped at a young girl who was digging into the bandages on her leg. Despite the harsh tone, his actually mannerisms was gentle. "Then it'll really hurt. But keep it covered like this, and you'll heal. Won't even scar." He waited until she nodded and then he nudged her towards someone. "No you go and get a hug. Healer's orders." He smiled when she left and then turned, no doubt looking for the next patient. And then looked right at me. "Uh… hi?" He awkwardly waved at me. "The name's Brady. I'm guessing you're here to… you know… actually help?"

"Well, we can deal with the bandits," I replied. I looked around at the civilians, and saw how adoringly they looked at him. He must've been working on them for a while. "Seems like you're already helping them, though."

"Nah, just patching them up." He shrugged and actually walked over towards me. "Can't do anything to protect them. Not really."

"And yet you're probably the strongest person here." I smiled gently at him. He simply stared back, like I'd really startled him. "All I can do is kill, really. Sure, I protect people, but I do it by hurting others. Killing others. A warrior is only useful when there's fighting. A warrior can only keep people safe if there's danger. But a healer? A healer saves people. A healer keeps people safe by tending to their wounds. It's easy to kill. It's not that easy to patch something back together. Gods know I'm terrible at it."

"Uh… er…" He coughed and looked down, as if that would hide his sudden blush or the tears in his eyes. "Damn it. Don't say… I'm sentimental!"

"Not sure that's the word you want." Still, I had to laugh a little. "So…" His sudden yelp alerted me to danger, and I barely had enough time to block the axe aimed for my head, and even then, I did it poorly, so it slid off my gauntlet instead to scrape up my upper arm. "Well, that's rude."

"Here!" Brady, however, had the injury fixed quickly. "That's… uh…"

"See?" I smiled at him and turned towards the enemies coming towards us. "Anyway, Brady, you do what you need to do. I'll keep you safe. We all will."

Been a while since we fought bandits. It was honestly a little… I didn't know. But it was nice, to not fight zealots. Bandits would eventually run away.

The others arrived before long, and I could tell I wasn't the only one 'happy' to just be fighting bandits again. Everyone fought with a sense of purpose, secure and sincere that we were doing the right thing. Or something. It could just be me, because fighting bandits was just so… 'normal'. It was 'normal'. It wasn't a war. It wasn't zealots. It was just people. And maybe it was bad to be glad about it, but… well… it was nice to pretend things were simple. Even I couldn't overthink this. ...Mostly.

Taking a break from the fighting, I rolled my shoulders, grimacing as I felt the lack of stamina hit me, again. I'd need to talk to Frederick to get my strength back up because this was ridiculous. I had to at least pull my own weight, and I simply wasn't used to tiring so quickly. I mean; I was still better at fighting than the bandits. Barely. But it was still irritating to not be at my best. We were in a war, and I was less than useful. Not helping my self-esteem issues.

Sighing, I fixed my ponytail and looked around in an effort to keeping myself from diving headfirst into self-pity. However, there wasn't much to look at really. Just battle, battle, battle. Blood, blood, blood. Corpse, corpse, corpse. Only exception was inside the biggest ruin, where the civilians were being protected and tended to. Now, inside, I did see I wasn't the only Shepherd taking a break. Maribelle apparently was as well, and she was talking-arguing with Brady about something. I wasn't quite sure over what, too far away to hear, but I did notice something that confused me. They actually held themselves very similarly, though I saw Brady adjust his posture in the like, as if he was purposely mimicking Maribelle. It was a little odd, because Brady hadn't done that with anyone else.

That said; the oddness left my head when I realized neither was paying attention to the nearby 'door', and an enemy just appeared there, rushing inside. "Maribelle!" I yelled, about to run for them. But it turned out to be unneeded because Lon'qu decapitated the attacker literally a split-second later. "Never mind." I should've known he'd be near. Lon'qu was rarely far from Maribelle during a battle.

"Glad to see someone in here was paying attention," Lon'qu grumbled, nodding politely at me before focusing on Maribelle. And looking very done, more so than usual. "Do you mind holding off the squabbling until after things are calm? Gods, I swear you've given me ten heart attacks already."

"I'm sorry, darling," Maribelle replied with a sweet and sympathetic smile. She then leaned up to kiss his cheek and Lon'qu immediately went cherry-red. "Shall we return to the main battle then?"

"...Yes." Lon'qu smiled fondly at her and bowed slightly to Brady before leaving, Maribelle close behind him.

Brady watched them leave with a small, fond smile before turning back to the injured. "Right, back to the grind," he murmured, rolling his shoulders. It sounded like he was thinking aloud. "And, thank everything, they're not turning into Risen while I work." And that was when I put all the pieces together.

"Say, Brady," I began, heading towards him. He looked up at me curiously. "You're like Lucina, aren't you? One of her friends?"

"Oh, you do know about that." He smiled faintly, bitterly. "Yeah, I am. Bit pathetic, right? Child of-"

"As I said, you are probably the strongest one here." I hesitantly ruffled his hair. His nostalgic smile hinted my future-self had done this too. "Now, if you're worried about, say, stamina and health, we can address that. But strength? The strength to heal people, even while knowing you could never save everyone, even in a hellscape like where you lived… I couldn't do it." I could barely take what I had now. "Maribelle and Lon'qu?"

"Yep, I'm their only son."

"I see." I studied him closely and did note the resemblances. More Lon'qu than Maribelle. "Well then…" Knowing that Lucina would want to know about this sooner than later, I looked around to try and find someone to be a messenger. By sheer coincidence, Cynthia flew over then. "Cynthia!" I waved to catch her attention, and pointed to Brady when I had it. "Can you-?"

"Brady!" Cynthia, however, immediately flew down, hopped off her pegasus, and tackle-hugged Brady. "Yay! You're okay!" Cynthia cheered, laughing. Brady flailed about, desperate to not fall. "Was a bit worried. You always get to into the healing thing and forget to watch your own safety."

"Don't need to year that from you, miss hero," Brady immediately grumbled. Still, he smiled fondly at her. "So, you're here. Lucina is here. Who else?"

"Well, there's Laurent. Laurent. He and I actually met in a desert and then trailed the group." She bounced on her toes, excited. "Ah, and Inigo and Morgan are here!"

"Morgan is?" Brady smiled. "Good, she did make it. Wasn't sure…"

"I know, right?" Her smile faltered though. "Oh, but Morgan has amnesia, so be careful when talking to her, okay?"

"Really?"

"Yeah, she doesn't even remember losing her pegasus, and you know how devastated she was about that."

"Yeah, that's…" Brady nodded, wincing in sympathy. "Part of me is jealous, because gods there are some bad memories, but most of me is glad. She was really breaking, those days before she disappeared. I mean; we all were, but…"

"She couldn't even smile anymore." Cynthia looked down sadly. "We would try everything we could think of, but she couldn't smile." Then she shook her head roughly and bounced on her toes, regaining her energy. "But regardless, I'll get the others, okay? Be prepared for hugs! We're going to squish you!"

"Please don't. I like my insides where they are."

From there, I decided to simply be a dedicated guard for the infirmary and, before long, the last of the bandits actually fell, with their leader captured. Brady immediately went to properly introduce himself to Maribelle, and I lingered near because I knew how tactless Maribelle could be. However, I decided to leave them to their privacy when Maribelle started crying and hugged Brady tightly. So, instead, I walked over to where Chrom was standing a distance away. Flavia and Basilio were taking a group to secure the perimeter, Say'ri was talking to the saved civilians, and Robin… well, for some reason, someone decided he was best suited to question the leader.

"There you are, my love," Chrom murmured, catching my hand to kiss it. I blushed and looked everywhere but him, noting that Lucina was watching us with a grin not far away, before laughing at something Morgan rambled at her. "I was wondering where you were."

"I stayed near the infirmary," I explained, shrugging. I smiled shyly at him, though a bit bitter. "I need extra training from Frederick, it seems. I'm really not recovering my former strength easily."

"He'd be delighted to help. Though you should clarify that you're not looking for the fanatical fitness… whatever." He smiled gently when I laughed. "You looked lighter, though."

"Ah, have I lost some of the leftover baby weight then?"

"I… er…" Chrom coughed and I Iaughed again. "Not what I meant."

"I know." But it was rather amusing to see him squirm. "And I know I have anyway. But continue?"

"I lost my trail of thought completely." He grimaced, and I continued to giggle. "Ah, now I remember. You just… you seem like you're doing better again. Like the world isn't so heavy on you."

"We'll see." But I did have to admit that I felt better for the moment. "Could go right back to how I was. But I did have some fun prior to the battle."

"Gaius brought up recently how the children have been taking up a lot of our free time. Makes it harder to actually talk with our friends." He kissed my cheek. "We should do better in splitting our time. I can't imagine that's helped."

"Probably not." I did feel overwhelmed still. But managing my time might help with that, just a little. "We'll muddle along. That is, if…"

"Next words better not be 'if you're willing', because there's no 'if' about it." Chrom kissed me sweetly. "I swore my devotion to you, in sickness and in health. I know things like this will be a lifelong struggle, but hey, you have to deal with my issues as well. That's part of being married. We're partners."

"That we are." I giggled, amused and touched. "Now then, fun as it is to flirt and banter with you, who's idea was it for Robin to-?"

A flicker of movement. It was just the barest flicker of movement. But I saw it just in time, and dragged Chrom down as three knives flew over our heads. One knife hit the bandit leader in the throat, and he died with a gurgle. The second missed Chrom's head by a hair's breadth, and only because I dragged him down. The third thudded into Robin's shoulder, making him gasp in pain, falling to a knee even. Everyone was instantly on alert, wondering just who had done this. Who had we missed? Who…?

"Well, this is disappointing. I truly expected your defenses to be so much better." The slow, low voice, with the barest hit of a Rosannean accent, drawled from the top of one of the ruined pillars. "Rare that I overestimate a person." The woman speaking was difficult to place. She wore a form fitting outfit, of various shades of black to make it harder to spot her in the dark, along with a long jacket, complete with a hood that covered all of her hair, and knee-high boots. "A passing grade for the queen." She also wore a belt with various knives and vials, each one looking decidedly lethal, even when secured. "And a fail for the exalt and the tactician." The strangest thing about her was the black and silver mask she wore, one that covered her upper face to the point of hiding her eye color. "Truly disappointing. I expected a little more of a challenge."

"Sorry to disappoint," Chrom retorted dryly, almost snarling with anger. I saw Vaike duck into the infirmary to snag a healer, Frederick and Sumia rush the civilians back inside, and Say'ri running over to us. "Now, who are you?"

"I seem to have a different name for each person who speaks to me," she murmured, completely nonchalant. Even though so many of us were glaring and had weapons trained on her. "If you must have a name, we can go with 'Bellona'. The Chon'sin princess knows of me."

"Aye, I do," Say'ri whispered. Her eyes were narrowed, and she held herself stiffly. "If not for a lucky step to the left, you would have had my life that day, before I even knew of the danger."

"I still could've, Princess Say'ri. I simply chose not to." She smiled slowly, a distinctly vicious smile. "I am skilled enough to get away with such things. Just as I am skilled enough to get away with refusing jobs that I find distasteful."

"Are there any?"

"I am not Excellus. Children aren't exactly sporting targets." It took a second for her implication to process, and I went cold. Given what she just did… "A good thing for you, Exalt. You would not have living daughters otherwise. They are still safe, though. You've very good guards." The implications of that nearly made me collapse. "Very good ones. I barely got inside myself. I can assure you that no others will make it."

"That's quite the fast trip then," Chrom growled. I shakily grabbed his arm, to make sure he didn't charge. "That's a distance."

"You talk as if you're the only one with boats, or access to fliers," she scoffed, with a slight smirk. "Besides, I was in Ylisse prior to the attack in Ferox. I was curious how close the others would get, and prepared to interfere if need be."

"Interfere?"

"As I said, I find killing children distasteful. I was just curious in how well your defenses were. I was so impressed there that it carried over to here." She shrugged and crouched down on the top of that broken pillar, looking over us. "Though, I'm not here for any of you. This was just a little greeting while I dealt with the deserter turned bandit." She nodded to the dead bandit leader. "I apologize for not arriving sooner to deal with him. I understand civilians lost their lives to his greed. Quite the tragedy. Civilians shouldn't be caught up in things like this."

"If you truly feel guilty, then why are you fighting with Walhart?" Chrom tried to pull from my grip, but I held on tightly. I was too scared to look anywhere besides Bellona. Just in case. "With his conquests and all…"

"Because, Exalt, working with Walhart helps me further my own goals. Perhaps we might be allies once he is no longer useful. Or perhaps I will cut you down myself. Would be easy, as I just proved." She chuckled, but it was a hollow sound. "You should be more wary of your surroundings, Exalt. Belief and bonds are not all powerful forces. It would be a shame to leave your wife a widow, and your children, fatherless."

"You're giving a lot of advice, for an assassin."

"I'm simply buying time to better show the consequences of charging forward recklessly." Her smirk grew. "Exalt."

"What are you…?"

Feeling uneasy, I glanced over at Robin and froze when I saw that Robin… Robin seemed to be in excruciating pain, and the blood seeping from the wound didn't look right. It didn't look red. Instead… instead it looked black…

Basilio, bless him, was at his side the instance he saw the black, removing the dagger and pulling back Robin's coat and shirt to look at the injury. The veins around the injury were slowly blackening, screaming just what was going on. Poison. It was poison. But what confused me more was that… because we were Vessels, Robin and I had some resistance… immunity… whatever… to poisons. Robin was a 'perfect' Vessel, so it was more pronounced with him. It was nothing I'd gamble with in particular, but Robin had in the past, and survived. So, I was startled not just by 'my twin is poisoned', but also by 'there is a poison that worked?'.

"See what I mean?" Bellona mocked. Libra burst out of the infirmary to run for Robin, immediately tending to the injury. "Healing magic won't purge the poison. You'll need the antidote." She hopped down from the pillar and rather casually walked over to retrieve her knives. Her path was immediately blocked, though, by Flavia and Gaius, weapons in hand. "I don't carry the antidote on me, though I do know it. Killing me is rather counterproductive."

"...Let her walk through," Chrom ordered quietly. He glanced at Libra, and I saw Tharja and Henry also near, frowning at the wound while Libra tended to it. "Unless one of you knows it?" Sadly, all three shook their heads. Panne and Nowi joined the group, likely to see if they could smell something, but they, too, shook their heads. "Then in exchange for knowing the antidote, let her walk through."

"My, how sweet."

"Save it." Chrom bit out the words. "One false move…"

"If I wanted you dead, you'd be in the afterlife already, and your wife would be crying bitterly over your remains." She retrieved all three knives without a fuss, pausing only to look at Robin's wound herself. "Now then, for that, you'll want to make a mixture from water and the crushed leaves from Mila's tree." She climbed up to the top of another pillar, out of reach for most of us. I saw Virion tracking her closely, one arrow at the ready. Tharja and Henry both had their spells prepared. So did Ricken, Miriel, and Laurent. And up above, I saw Cherche, Cordelia, and Cynthia ready. "But you'll want to hurry."

"Because, poison."

"And because Cervantes has arrived at the Mila Tree, intending on breaking through the last defenses of Naga's Voice and setting the tree aflame." She chuckled again, amused. Say'ri, however, froze from shock. Apparently, she hadn't considered this possibility. "Really, they should've already fallen, but their defenses were bolstered not long ago by a strange pair. A member of the thought-to-be-extinct rabbit taguels and a manakete dragon." All of us glanced at Panne and Nowi at that, and then at the children we could see. Their wide eyes said everything. "Both doing quite the good job reminding everyone why both were feared. But they are only two, and Walhart does want the tree burned."

"Why?"

"Because this is an age of man, and thus, there is no need for relics such as gods. Or so he claims." She scoffed, and I got the impression she was rolling her eyes, though the mask hid that. "A god might be nothing to a nonbeliever, but that doesn't mean the nonbeliever is correct. Or capable of surviving that god's wrath."

"You…" Chrom growled in frustration. I heard quite a few others echo his sentiment with their own curses. "You're not making sense! Why are you…?"

"It's a cult. His followers worship him out of fear or because they believe him greater than any god. I think them fools. Hence my advice to you. I'm only with him because he makes it easier to advance my own goals. I'm sure, in time, he will be useless to my purpose. I might even help you kill him. Maybe." She shrugged. "Regardless, you'll want to hurry. The tree is large and will take time to burn, but it seems you know the two newcomers as well. They will not survive long. Neither will your tactician. The poison does seem to be moving slower than typical, but I wouldn't want to gamble on that continuing."

She left then, jumping from the pillar and darting around one of the ruins. Gaius, Lon'qu, and me immediately chased after her, coming across a staircase and running down them. Only to find a sprawling mess of caves and catacombs, and not a trail to be seen of Bellona. So, wincing, we climbed right back out. If you didn't know the path, only a miracle would keep you from getting lost. So, instead, we informed the others that she had successfully escaped, and we all decided to push forward towards the tree. We fretted over Robin, but Chrom then just carried Robin on his back, after Libra did everything he could.

Well, there went that good mood.

Even while sleeping, Robin was in incredible pain. He flinched, whimpered, and groaned, and we had to actually bandage his hands to keep him from clawing into the wound. Olivia was beside herself with worry, sobbing even as she did her best to make him as comfortable as possible. Everyone took turns helping her, adding it to our camp chores easily.

"What this poison is baffles both Henry and myself," Tharja murmured, fingers digging into her arms from sheer frustration. She and Henry had an extensive knowledge of herbs for their curses, but whatever poison this was, it was something they couldn't identify. "It eludes healing magic, based on what Libra says. Nowi thought about trying dragon's blood, because of old stories about healing properties, but…"

"Putting another person's blood in the wound seems a little counterproductive," I whispered. She and I were by Robin's tent, peering inside worriedly. Morgan was fast asleep by Robin's bed, and Inigo was quietly trying to get Olivia to sleep as well. "Ah, what a mess…"

"We'll keep looking." She sighed, and ran a hand through her hair. "Annoying. This is annoying. I hate being out of my depth."

"Better hope you don't meet your child soon, then." I said it jokingly, but it felt flat. Her slight smile told me she appreciated it anyway. "I'm rather scared by what this poison is."

"You should be, since we don't know anything about it. We're lucky the girl swung by to play and only to play." Tharja's eyes narrowed. "That said, if she comes to 'play' again, I think I'll play along. With a withering curse."

"Tharja!" That did make me relax, for some reason. "Make sure you get some sleep."

"I will. Gaius watches for my health quite well." She looked at Robin again and then back at me with a surprisingly kind smile. "He will be fine. We will cure him."

"I know. Thank you." I smiled back, and kept it up even as she left. However, when she was out of sight, I let it fall to look at Robin again. At Olivia, who was sobbing. At Inigo, who was doing his best to keep on smiling. It was painful to watch. It really was.

"Mother?" Lucina tentatively crept closer, eyeing the tent warily. "How… How is Uncle Robin?" she asked quietly. In response, I just nodded to the tent and she looked in herself to see all of it. "Oh."

"He'll be fine," I whispered. I truly did believe that. After all that agonizing, surely… surely, death wouldn't take him. "But it'll be painful for a while."

"You always reassured me that you and Uncle Robin were hard to kill." She laughed, but it was tearful. "That had been some of your last words to me, actually. I was being stubborn and refusing to leave."

"Well, it is true." I wondered just what happened to my future self. If she went out to fight Grima… had she become some sort of 'general', like what the Grimleal wanted of me? Had she become a Risen? Had she been obliterated? I was almost morbidly curious. "Though, I'll be certain to not charge ahead and leave you behind, if I can."

"Thank you." She smiled so warmly, so sweet, that my heart broke for her. "You know; I never knew Walhart threatened the Mila Tree."

"Really?" That was curious. It also made me curious about what else she knew about this war with Valm. "So, it's fine in your world?"

"Oh, no. Flowers and greenery have been mostly wiped out in my time. Healing can only be done with healing staves. I'm sure Brady is going to jump on the chance to learn medicinal herbs." She laughed like it was a joke. I felt my heart break further. "No, the Milla Tree was burned in my time too, but it was the Grimleal and a few years after Grima's return."

"Now why would they do that?"

"Some of the Valmese refugees said that it was because Mila's presence made it difficult for Grima's forces to move. Her divine protection still lingered and made it hard for Risen." She became thoughtful. "Supposedly, there was a clutch of survivors still in Valm, near the Ingle, because it too had protection. But we could never confirm that, and…" She sighed. "Well, it doesn't matter. We could perform the Awakening."

"Right, because of…" I paused when I realized something odd she said. "What did you mean by 'gemstones'?"

"Huh? Oh, you don't know." Lucina sighed and tugged at the hair by her face. "There's gems that go into the Fire Emblem or something, and without all of them, the Awakening Ritual won't work. There's one in there now, but the others are scattered."

"I see." That was interesting, and not something I ever knew. "Which one could you not get?"

"Sable. It's in Plegia." She smiled bitterly. "The one in Plegia's vault was a fake, sadly. A beautiful and well made fake, but a fake nonetheless. You can't do the Awakening Ritual properly without all the gemstones. Just a partial that gives a mere fraction of the power." She looked down at the Falchion on her belt. "Four was enough to summon Naga, though, and go back in time." She shook her head roughly. "Ah, that's enough sad talk, though. We will change things." She looked so determined, and I could only smile sadly at her. I still wasn't sure. "And I'm glad we have Brady again, but now I'm worried even more for Victoria. Though, knowing my luck, she's back in Ylisse, wondering where in the world I am."

"Or fretting because she knows you're fussing too much, Lucina." Inigo stepped out of the tent, smiling tiredly. "Mother is finally asleep, so I'm leaving to do the same," he explained at our curious looks. "But seriously, Lucina, Victoria is no stranger to working alone."

"Never this long, though," Lucina pointed out. She bit her lip and fidgeted with her hands. "And that was still against Risen primarily."

"True, but her specialization in our group was sneaking behind enemy lines to gather supplies or rescue people." Inigo laughed, and it was surprisingly warm. "Knowing her, and given how bad things are, she's probably doing exactly that for the civilians here."

"That's true." Lucina smile warmly, grateful for the words, but the worry remained. "But she's bad at straight combat, and she never wears armor, so if she can't get out of the way in time…"

"Which is why she hides. Probably another reason we can't find her. Being out and about would expose her to a lot of danger, and there's no convenient Brady near to help when she can't dodge."

"Exactly. I really had hoped she'd be with him. She's always getting hurt."

"All right, all right, you're just going back and forth and we really shouldn't disturb Olivia and Morgan," I chided, nuding them away from the tent. We passed Libra on the way, heading in for another shift with Robin. "Worrying so much isn't going to change things." Of course, I never took my own advice for that, but it still felt appropriate to say. Even if it was hypocritical. "We've some hard marches ahead of us. So, to bed, both of you. You'll need your rest, same as the rest of us."

I ended up walking both to their tents and afterwards, I made a point of checking in on everyone to make sure they were okay. It took longer than I anticipated because they all wanted to make sure I was okay. I'd been rather gloomy and reticent lately, and now, Robin was poisoned. They were worried, and honestly, I almost cried because it was just so nice to be loved and reassured. I told them that I was fine, simply overwhelmed by everything, and got hugs in response. Virion even made sure I had some relaxing chamomile tea before leaving to retire for the night.

Chrom, however, was perfectly silent when I entered the tent and changed into my nightclothes. He sat on the bedroll and stared at some spot on the ground, not looking at me at all. "I'm sorry," he whispered after a long moment. "Robin… it's my fault he…"

"Funny. Gaius thinks it's his fault," I replied, folding up my dirty clothes and tucking them in the corner. Gaius had actually apologized twice when I'd done my rounds. "Same with Basilio, Flavia, Say'ri, Frederick…"

"Yes, but…"

"We all made a big mistake, Chrom. We knew Walhart had assassins, yet we hadn't prepared defenses for them." I turned to smile at him, but he still wouldn't look at me. "She was odd. If she wanted to kill us, she could've. She very specifically chose not to, for whatever reason."

"Yeah…" Chrom sighed. "I wonder if it was a mistake to charge into Valm as we did. If we should've turned back once we had destroyed their navy."

"It's not like we had a lot of options." We were attacked, twice over. "We were…"

"Played perfectly?" He finally looked at me, smiling wryly. "You think we fell for a trap."

"I think Walhart has, and is dragging us into it."

"You think it's the Grimleal. Because of the Grima thing."

"I do." I braided my hair back, knowing I wouldn't have much time to brush it in the days to come. "I think the Grimleal want Walhart dead to prevent us from making an alliance."

"Walhart doesn't exactly seem the type to make alliances."

"Ah, that is true." Then in that case… "They wanted us out of Ylisse, then. Or they wanted us to deal with Walhart before he became a 'problem'." Or maybe it had something to do with those gemstones. If there were some in Valm, then maybe they were using the chaos to hunt them down.

"Great, so we're in a trap, can't get out really, and… and…" He sighed and pulled his knees into his chest. "What scares me the most is that she apparently knew where the Eastern Palace was. No one is supposed to know the exact location."

"The Grimleal probably told, because I doubt that traitor's information stopped with Gangrel." Which was another worry. The Grimleal… if they hurt my girls, I… gods, I knew I'd give myself up for them. Even knowing it would doom the world, I knew I couldn't sacrifice them for the world. "Worse, though, is that…"

"There's nothing we can do. Because we charged ahead." Chrom smiled wanly at me, visibly drained. "I should've…"

"You know; I fell in love with you, reckless loyalty and all." I smiled warmly at him. Maybe it was because he was the one depressed, but it felt so easy, so natural, to say these words. "I still believe in you. I'm not sure that destiny can be deterred. I'm uncertain whether we can change our fates. But I believe in you, even though I don't believe in myself. Which also means that even if we charged, and even if we're in a trap, I still believe that this path isn't wrong, and that if it is possible, you will find a way to that happy ending where both of us are back in Ylisse, with our girls, living a joyful life."

"You…" He regarded me finally for a second before effectively pinning me to the bedroll with a searing kiss. "Ah, how am I supposed to stay self-pitying when I have you near?"

"You don't." I laughed and tugged him into a hug, letting him rest against me. "Robin will be fine. It's hard to kill us. Grima likes his… sacrifices… durable. More me than him, but he's still hard to kill."

"It's like a role reversal." He laughed as well and shifted so that he wasn't quite crushing me. "So, you're feeling better?"

"Just a little." But even that little was wonderful. "Robin and I had a better talk, as I said. Though, I'm still not certain it is possible."

"But you'll continue to believe in me, believe in us, until we give up." He sighed and leaned up to kiss my neck. "I love you. Don't leave me."

"...I'm not planning on it." I wasn't. That was probably the best part. That little bit of knowledge that the weight of the world likely wasn't on just Robin and me… that made me feel a little lighter and a little less… it made me feel like I was a little less selfish, to want to continue to live. "I love you too."

"Thank you."

We talked about lighter things, like how Lissa did kiss Henry and Chrom's comical, half-asleep protests. We talked about how much we missed our little girls. We talked of how we hoped things were running smoothly. We talked of little pranks the Shepherds had pulled on each other. Little things, things that helped us relax and made it easier to nod off. We had to get our sleep. As Bellona proved, this would not be an easy campaign. We had known that. But it was going to be worse than we expected, and we had to keep our guard up.

We weren't surviving this otherwise. And then the Grimleal really would win.

Notes on Say'ri:

Class - Swordmaster; Reclass - Assassin, Falcon Knight, Dark Flier, Wyvern Lord, Griffon Rider

The Princess of Chon'sin, and one of the main leaders of the Resistance here in Valm. Though many distrust her because of her brother, Yen'fey, just as many respect her for her forthrightness and genuine sincerity.

A talented swordmaster, though surprisingly, she's not as fast as Lon'qu. That said, she's much better with defensive maneuvers, and in a pinch, she can dual wield. Though she prefers a single blade for ease, and to lessen the costs of repairing and replacing.

She used to be quite close to her brother, and it completely baffles her that he would sacrifice his honor, and the honor of Chon'sin, to serve a tyrant like Walhart. The only possible explanation she can think of is that, like Virion, Yen'fey chose to do so to protect his people, but Say'ri questions the wisdom of sacrificing one's neighbors to save one's self.

Author's notes: Before we get into fun stuff, once again, please don't pester me with 'update soon please' or 'update soon finally'. I've already stated, multiple times, why this story has to be written slowly. Please, stop sending me these sorts of messages and reviews. I will delete them. You are not entitled to have chapters at the cost of my mental health and comfort. Please and thank you. Now then, for the 95% of you who don't do this because you're polite and good people… sorry, that was probably mean and cranky, but you'd be surprised what I've still been getting. (I am hoping this is the last time I have to bring it up.) Regardless, time for proper notes.

This chapter is based solely on Paralogue 7, recruiting Brady in the process. Have a few introspections about things, and have a new character. Bellona has no counterpart in the game at all, but I made her specifically to have a 'proper' assassin enemy, especially since I did establish that Excellus, at least, utilizes assassins liberally and given certain threats the enemies use later. And because there are few things more terrifying than an assassin who has had time to prepare against you and poison is just so underutilized in Fire Emblem games, being a status condition cured by a restore staff (though, fun fact, Awakening doesn't have a Restore staff). If you want a better visual for her outfit, look to the Tellius games' assassin garb, but with a hood and mask instead of a scarf and ninja-mask thing that covers the nose/mouth.

The cave/catacomb thing Bellona used to escape is because, based on location, these shrine ruins are actually near Duma's Tower (not the Mila Shrine, which was much further south), and there was that passageway/cave-system thing that connected Duma Tower and Rigel's castle. Sumia complaining about stories Cynthia has heard comes from their supports. Morgan formerly having a pegasus is a nod to her Heroes incarnation. (And her Future Past version, where she had a wyvern)

Lucina doing a 'partial' Awakening is an explanation for why her Parallel Falchion is more powerful than Chrom's. It's confirmed through the Future Past DLC and the Drama CD that the kids secured only four of the five needed gemstones. I couldn't find 'which' gem they couldn't secure, but decided that for this story, Sable makes the most sense.

Next Chapter - Naga's Voice (back to the 'normal' chapters)