The halls of Themis Castle were every bit as lavish as Lucina remembered. She could barely take five steps before passing a or a painting. A few of the landscapes were out of place, and she didn't recognize some of the portraits, but the marble walls were still cast in that same sun-kissed glow. Dragons carved out of the stone still glowered down at her exactly where she remembered them to be.

The Duke of Themis waved his hands, and with one final nod, the two guards at their sides departed, disappearing through a door. As their metallic footsteps faded, the Duke turned back to them.

"Well, I'm sure the two of you would like to return your quarters," he said, clapping his hands together. "You must be exhausted, having traveled so far."

"It was nothing," the nobleman, Reginald, said. "I'm sure you've traveled much farther and–" He cut himself off with a hiss, and his hand flew to his shoulder.

Lucina frowned. Her eyes wandered to the heal staff, or the half that remained intact, in her hands. Maybe she had made a mistake, using it like that.

"No need to sell yourself so low." The Duke waved a hand over his shoulder. "You've collected so many new tales to tell your son, I'm sure."

"Our son." The noblewoman, Regina, put herself in the Duke's path, a pleading look in her eyes. "Please. How is he?"

"Your son? Oh, I'm sure he'll be fine, once we have the medicine with us."

Lucina saw Regina and Reginald exchange nervous looks. Her own gaze fell on Anna, who returned it with a sheepish smile.

Noticing their silence, the Duke turned to face them. "What's that?"

Regina turned to look at her feet. "Well, you see... the thing is..."

"We don't have it. I'm sorry."

The Duke scowled. "Dammit. I knew I shouldn't have trusted that man! Always running low on wares whenever we need them the most."

"No, nothing like that!" Reginald said. "The herbalist you sent us to was more than happy to sell us a concoction."

"Well, why don't you have it then? It didn't get carried off by a wandering flock of wyverns, did it?"

"Of course not. There were just some... accidents along the way, and in the confusion, the concoction was spilled."

"I see." The Duke gave a loud sigh, and he turned away. "Our best clerics are tending to your son right now, but unless you can find a supply of what we need within the castle's gardens, I'm afraid there is nothing we can do."

Regina gasped. Beside her, Reginald looked away and put a hand to her back. Lucina watched, and she felt a small pang, seeing their despair.

"Wait."

All eyes fell on her. Lucina bit her lip and shuffled her feet, not quite sure what to follow with.

"Lucina, was it?" the Duke said. "What do you have to say? Feel free to speak your mind."

"I'm sure I could recreate the medicine for you."

"You?" The Duke raised an eyebrow. "I find it hard to believe a mercenary, even one as well mannered as yourself, could create a substitute for what we need. If you did, surely you would have found a better occupation. An herbalist, perhaps, but nothing quite as low as a sellsword."

"I am no herbalist," Lucina said, "but my mother was."

The Duke huffed. "Your mother was an herbalist? And what might her name be?"

"You wouldn't know her."

"I know every herbalist in Ylisse."

"Well, my mother was from..." Lucina paused, before she said, "Regina Ferox."

"Regina Ferox?" The Duke's chest heaved as he laughed. "I mean no offense to you, but the only thing that comes from those frozen woodlands are big, brutish warriors."

"Surely you can't mean that," Regina said, her voice so soft Lucina almost missed it.

"I mean everything I say. You can't trust a thing that comes out of anyone else's mouth if you don't speak your truths. There's a time and place for brute strength, but I'm afraid our delicate operations require something a bit more refined," the Duke said. With a wave over his shoulder, he turned around and walked away. "Now, I'm sure you'd like to spend some time with your son as you can to catch up and the like, so I'll leave you be."

As soon as he disappeared around the corner, Regina snapped her attention onto Lucina. "You said you knew a little of medicine?"

A little taken aback, Lucina hesitated."I... I did."

"Then could you please help our son?"

"Regina," Reginald said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You heard what the Duke said. She might not be able to help us."

Regina looked over her shoulder and gave him a pleading look. "What other choice do we have?"

"The Duke has his best healers working to keep him alive. Surely they'll come up with something to save his life."

"A little help couldn't hurt. Could it?" She looked back at Lucina, her expression hopeful.

"We barely have enough money to pay her for getting us here." Reginald shook Regina's shoulder. "She's already done enough for us, we can't ask for more–"

"I'll do it."

Lucina's voice cut through their conversation. Both nobles fell quiet, and they looked back at her. A moment passed in stunned silence, the only sound echoing in the softly glowing halls the hiss and crackle of the candles resting on the table beside them.

Reginald regained his composure first. "We don't have anything to pay you with," he said, his eyes falling to the floor. "It is unacceptable that you should have to help us without expecting anything in return."

"We'll be fine," Lucina said before the Anna could have a chance to interrupt. "We'll find a way to survive. Your son might not have the same opportunity."

"Thank you," Regina said. She grabbed Lucina's hand, and when Lucina looked her in the eye, she noticed they were brimming with moisture. "Your word means so much. May Naga bless you for your kindness."

"But won't your daughter be upset?" Reginald said.

"She'll learn to live with it. Isn't that right–" Lucina looked over her shoulder, but, to her surprise, the Anna was gone.

She swept her eyes over the walls, but she couldn't find a trace of the Anna. The second she'd left her to her own devices, the Anna had run off. Probably to go steal something, if Lucina's instinct served her right.

"Where did she run off to?" Regina asked. "The Duke won't be pleased if she causes trouble."

"She'll behave herself," Lucina said.

"Are you sure?"

Lucina frowned, and she crossed her arms over her chest. "If she doesn't, I'll make sure she won't do it again. Now," she said, turning back to the couple, "What can you tell me about this disease?"


As Anna crept through the hall, she crouched low, making sure to stay silent. Not exactly the hardest thing, since the floor was carpeted. She didn't think she'd ever stepped in something so soft. But that wasn't important right now. At least, not as important as the table set just a little further down.

Before her, treasures sparkled and shone in the sunlight leaking in from the windows, perched high up on the table leaning against the wall. It was like they were teasing her, daring her to climb up and grab them.

With a light touch, she leaned up against the table's legs, reached over the edge, and grabbed a glittering crystal cup. She lifted it a little higher, careful not to scrape the table as she pulled it back, before she brought it down to her level.

Something red flickered in the corner of her eye. The fancy cup was behind her back in an instant, a smile fixed on her lips. She scanned the hall, but no one else was there. She sighed, and she relaxed.

Then she saw it again. Anna stiffened, and her gaze snapped onto it. To her relief, it was just a curtain, fluttering in the wind.

She silently scolded herself. She was sure she was better than thinking some dumb curtain was a guard. As she brought the fancy cup back around, a grin crept up her face.

That Lucina is so stubborn, she thought, as she gave the fancy cup a quick look. Working for free; who would be stupid enough to do that? She huffed and turned the cup upside down. It's a good thing she has me to help her, or she might get so hungry she'd die.

Anna wasn't dumb, at least not as dumb as Lucina. Her tale from that wagon ride had been so cool, sure, but there were more holes in it than a slice of holed cheese. She told a good story, but she wasn't very smart. She couldn't even remember the details of her own story right!

Anna chuckled at that. Lucina wouldn't like it, and neither would that fat duke. It was their fault for not paying attention to her, or leaving stuff out for her to take.

Anna glanced around one more time. When she was sure she was alone, she knelt down and slipped her backpack to the floor. She lifted the flap, and as she raised the cup into the backpack, something caught her eye.

At first, she thought a guard had spotted her. His armor flashed briefly in the torchlight, then he disappeared almost as soon as he appeared. When he didn't come back for her, Anna wondered why he had been in such a hurry.

Maybe he needs something? If he does, I'd be happy to sell it to him.

Stuffing the fancy cup into her backpack and slinging it back over her shoulder, Anna rose to her feet. She crept after him, her footsteps as quick as they were careful. As she rounded the corner, she watched him slip through a doorway leading into the courtyard. She followed him, stopping herself just before she left the safety of the halls.

She hid behind the doorway and peeked outside. As she kept her eyes on the first guard, she noticed a second guard standing by the gate. The second guard stiffened when he heard the first guard's approach, only to relax a second later.

"What seems to be the problem?" the second guard said.

"There's a girl outside the castle," the first guard said. "She's asking if we could let her stay the night. Do you think we should let her in?"

"I don't see why not," the second guard said. He put a hand up over his eyes and glanced at the sky. "It is getting rather late, and we wouldn't want anyone to be captured by bandits, would we?"

He motioned to someone Anna couldn't see. A low growl rattled her ears, and the gate behind the guards began to rise. Light seeped in from below, and as Anna watched, a slender shadow emerged from outside.

The girl standing behind the gate was very tall and graceful. Her clothes, although ratty and torn, flowed off her in such an elegant way Anna thought she might have been a princess, and her hair shimmered so brightly it looked like it was white.

Wait, she thought, and she squinted a little harder. Her hair is white!

"Hey!" the first guard said, waving his hand. "Come inside! Before it gets dark!"

The girl nodded, and she walked inside. No, that didn't sound right. Anna had been taught to notice the small things people did, anything to help her guess what her mother's customers wanted. This girl didn't walk, she stepped like a crane wading through water, her toes dropping every time she raised a foot off the ground.

She strolled like she was a princess, but she was dressed like a beggar. An interesting thing, since Lucina was the exact opposite.

As soon as she stepped through the gate, the girl breathed a sigh of relief. "I can't thank you enough," the girl said. "I thought I was going to have to find a cave to sleep in."

"Aren't you a little young to be out there by yourself?" the first guard said.

"I don't know. How young is too young?"

The second guard sighed. "That's not important right now." He looked away and made another signal. As the gate fell back into place, he turned back to the girl. "I'll have to ask the Duke if we have a spare room for you to stay in."

"Are you sure he will approve?" the girl asked, looking away.

"This is hardly the first time this has happened." The second guard waved off. "I'm sure he'll be happy to let you stay, miss..."

"Aversa."

"Miss Aversa." The second guard nodded. He spun around and as he walked away.

Right toward where Anna was hiding. Her eyes widened in panic. Thinking quickly, she pressed herself back behind the doorway.

The guard's footsteps grew louder. Anna held her breath. As the guard emerged from the doorway, she felt beads of sweat begin to form on her forehead. A breeze swept over her as he passed, his hands almost brushing her face. Any second he would notice something was off.

But he never did, and as he grew smaller in the distance, Anna slumped against the wall, a hand to her chest. She took in one deep breath after another, until she could no longer hear the blood pounding through her head.

"You're no spy, Anna," she muttered. "Stick to the things you know."


Picking up the pace a tiny bit, bringing together more characters and whatnot. And hey, we get our first look into the mind of Anna.

Aversa's been introduced into the story, and by extension, Validar. I figured I was taking too long to bring him into the plot, and, second only to Grima, he's the biggest antagonist in Awakening, so naturally, he is going to be a major antagonist, probably THE major antagonist of the story.

Next update will be on April 6th. Until then, I wish you all well.