Chapter 1: New Life, New Start

All things considered, today feels like a good day.

Chrom, Prince of Ylisse, stretched his arms as he gazed out across the fields of his kingdom. He was on a routine patrol with his younger sister Lissa and guardian Frederick, who was surveying the area atop his armored horse. They were passing through the southern regions of the halidom and were on their way to a nearby village to restock and head to the capital. After several days of travel with only one minor dispute with some farmers, it was time for them to return home.

"Man, I wish something exciting would happen. All I've seen is some grumpy farmers and wildlife."

Lissa was whining again, as she usually did when she was bored. She fiddled with the hem of her dress and gave her brother a sulky look.

"It is not wise to go seeking for trouble, milady," Frederick responded, giving his ward a stern look. Despite being only a handful of years older than Chrom, he had an air of maturity and command that would not allow any arguments. "As a member of the royal family, you should exercise more restraint and caution."

"Yeah, wouldn't want anything to happen to my sweet, delicate sister," Chrom teased, giving Lissa a small smile.

"I am not delicate!" Lissa cried, her temper flaring as it always did at her brother's jabs. "You'll see, once we get back home, I'm gonna-wait, what's that?"

Without another word, Lissa jumped off the paved path, darting into the grasslands at a breakneck pace.

"What the-Lissa, wait!" Chrom yelped, running after his sister.

"This is no time for your silly pranks, Princess," Frederick called, steering his horse to follow his charges.

"This isn't a prank!" Lissa yelled back, speeding through the grass in front of her. "I saw someone in the field-see?"

She stopped and pointed, panting slightly as her brother and Frederick came up behind her. Chrom frowned as he stepped up and saw there was indeed a person lying in the field. She appeared to be a young woman around his age, wearing a large robe that covered most of her body with a hood that partially covered her face. She appeared unharmed and in a deep sleep.

"Chrom, we have to do something," Lissa said earnestly, giving her brother a concerned look.

"What do you suggest we do?" Chrom asked, glancing sideways at Lissa.

"I don't know," Lissa shrugged, but then they both turned as the woman on the ground groaned softly.

As she opened her eyes, Chrom was instantly mesmerized. Her irises were a deep shade of violet, and as she lifted her head, her hood fell back to reveal she had snowy hair that was a light shade of lavender which was braided back to show her face which was strikingly beautiful.

"Ah, you're awake. Here, take my hand," Chrom offered, blinking and smiling as he extended his arm to the enchanting stranger in front of him. As her gaze went from the arm to his face, her eyes flashed with several emotions in quick succession, and as she reached out and had him gently pull her up, Chrom was struck at how despite his initial guess, she actually matched him in height and looked him straight in the eyes. "You alright?"

After a slight hesitation, she gave him a smile which made his heart skip a beat. "Yes…thank you, Chrom."

He frowned, puzzled at the familiarity which she said his name. "You know who I am then?"

Her smile faltered as a look of confusion crossed her face. "No…I mean, I'm not sure why, but your name just came to me…"

Chrom was perplexed; the woman in front of him seemed to lose her confidence from one moment to the next. "Well, that's curious. Tell me, what's your name? What brings you here?"

The woman tilted her head to the side as she looked at Chrom. "My name? Well, it's…" After a small pause, she frowned as she looked lost in thought. "It's…huh?"

This only served to confuse Chrom more. "…You don't even know your own name?"

A brief look of fear crossed her face as she glanced at her surroundings. "No, I…I'm sorry, but where are am I, exactly?"

"Hey, I know what this is! It's called amnesia!" Lissa chimed in, looking at the woman curiously.

"It's called a load of Pegasus dung," Frederick said coldly, giving the stranger a dismissive look. "Do you expect us to believe that you know milord's name, but not your own?"

The woman in question turned her gaze to Frederick and fixed him with an offended look.

"But it's the truth!" She matched his glare with her own, not backing down in the slightest.

"What if it is true, Frederick? We can't just leave her here, alone and confused," Chrom said, determination in his eyes and confidence in his voice. "What sort of Shepherds would we be then? At the very least, we can bring her into town and sort things out there."

"As you say, milord," Frederick replied, inclining his head even as he continued to watch the woman closely. "Although I'd advice to exercise caution; it would be unwise to invite a wolf into our midst."

"Wait, do I get a say in the matter?" The woman in question looked to Chrom with a small frown on her face.

"Peace friend, I promise we'll hear everything you have to say once we get back to town."

After a brief moment, the woman nodded as she followed her companions back towards the main road.

"Once we establish you're no enemy of Ylisse, you'll be free to go," Chrom explained, having engaged the woman in small conversations over the past few minutes.

"Is that where we are-Ylisse?" She was looking at him keenly, as though trying to memorize is appearance down to his boots.

"You haven't heard of the halidom?" Frederick was bringing up the rear, surveying the area and the mystery woman from atop his armored horse. "Ha! Someone should pay this actress, she plays quite the fool!"

Having heard this, she turned and glowered at the mounted knight. "I am no one's fool. Is he always like this?"

"Ha! Don't take it personally, he just takes his job very seriously," Chrom said amicably, not minding the scrutiny he was receiving. "I suppose introductions are in order. I'm Chrom-though you already knew that, of course. The delicate one over here is my younger sister Lissa."

"I am NOT delicate!" Lissa stomped her foot in frustration, her blonde pigtails swinging as she fumed in annoyance, which drew the puzzled gaze of the older woman in the group.

"This solemn fellow is Frederick," Chrom finished, giving his retainer a small smile. "Many refer to him as Frederick the Wary, so you're not alone in your viewpoints."

"A title I embrace proudly," Frederick said seriously, not raising to the bait his ward offered. "Someone needs to keep a level head, otherwise who knows what sort of trouble you'd find yourself in."

"I see…I'm Robin." The woman stopped in her tracks, a look of wonder on her face as everyone looked her way. "Huh. I don't know why…my name just came to me; I guess that's one mystery solved."

"Robin huh," Chrom wondered, giving her an appraising look. "Well, we're almost at the town. Once there we-"

"Brother, look!" Lissa pointed at the road ahead of them, where smoke could be seen rising behind the next hill. After a brief dash, everyone saw the town in question with flames coming from several buildings, with screams faintly heard from their position.

"Curses, the town is blaze! Must be the brigands we heard about the other day." Chrom looked grimly across the river that weaved through the town. "Frederick, Lissa, we need to go now!"

"What about her?" Frederick indicated Robin.

"Unless she's on fire too, leave her be!" Chrom charged ahead, his sister right behind him.

"Aptly put, milord," Frederick said, spurring his mount to follow his liege.

"Wait, what about-" Robin trailed off, watching as the trio crossed the bridge leading into the town. After a moment of thought, she nodded to herself and set off after them.

Once inside the town, Frederick rode ahead, telling Chrom and Lissa to meet up with him in the town square once all the side streets were clear. Proceeding with caution, Chrom was about to turn a corner when Robin called out to him, causing him to look her way in surprise.

"Robin! You followed us! Why?" Chrom lowered his sword, an ornate broadsword with an open circle in the hilt.

"I'm…not sure," Robin said, looking between him and Lissa who was carrying a healing staff. "But I'm armed, and I can handle myself in a fight, if you'll have me."

"Of course, strength in numbers," Chrom replied, glancing at the bronze sword she carried in her right hand. "I trust you can-wait, is that a tome? You can perform magic?" His eyes were drawn to the book she carried in her other hand.

"I…think so," Robin said, frowning slightly as she perused the grimoire after sheathing her sword. "Let me check."

"Maybe I should stay a few feet behind you," Chrom said nervously as a few sparks started flying from Robin's fingertips.

"Ha, scared you might get shocked?" Lissa laughed, enjoying watching her brother squirm. "Now who's being delicate! In case you two get any injuries, I can heal you right up."

"No need, I can control it," Robin said confidently, closing her book with a snap. "Let's go. The sooner we deal with this problem the better."

"Agreed, follow me," Chrom responded, smiling at Robin's determination as he led the way deeper into town, Lissa and Robin hot on his heels.

Hearing footsteps from behind, Frederick wheeled his horse around, and raised his eyebrows at seeing the trio of Chrom, Lissa and Robin approaching him from an alley. Apart from a few scratches on Frederick's armor, everyone appeared to be in good shape.

"Well, this is a surprise," Frederick commented, lowering his silver lance as he gave Robin an appraising look. "I thank you for assisting us, and trust you understand the situation you're in. The enemy will not show mercy; it's kill or be killed."

"I'm well aware of that," Robin replied grimly, wiping blood off her sword. "As things stand, there shouldn't be many more brigands left; the rest should be at the mayor's house. I suggest we head there now while they're still confused."

"Sounds reasonable to me," Chrom said, smiling despite the circumstances. "She has more than proved her worth to me. I'm willing to follow her advice, unless you have any objections."

Frederick shook his head, deferring to his lord's wish. "As you say. The mayor's house is across the canal up ahead. Let's go."

As they moved forward, a fireball arched through the air, which was barely dodged by Chrom. Spotting the enemy mage, Robin launched a lightning bolt of her own, stunning him long enough for Frederick to charge forward and impale the mage through the chest. Nodding in approval, Robin ran ahead to join Chrom who was engaged in combat with a hulking man wielding an iron axe. He appeared to be the ringleader of the bandits and was holding his own until Chrom checked him with a punch to his face. While he was disorientated, Robin darted forward and performed a cross slash with Chrom which ended his life instantly.

"Well done, Robin," Chrom said, panting as he wiped some sweat from his brow. "You were quite the impressive fighter out there. You must be quite the mercenary with skills like that."

"I don't know about that," Robin replied as they both sheathed their weapons. "It's all still a big blank for me. Things seemed to happen more on instinct for me than anything else."

"Even so, there's no denying your talent," Chrom said amiably, turning his gaze toward his new companion. "Would you care to join us on our way to the capital? It's not a long journey, and I would enjoy the company."

"I suppose I will, seeing as I have no where else I need to be presently," Robin replied, smiling as she joined Chrom as he walked towards Frederick and Lissa at the edge of town.