Corrin did everything in her power to physically resist her enemy as she was dragged across the floor. Kicking and screaming, she tried to encumber her physical restraints as much as possible with her erratic movements. Despite her best efforts, however, the tentacles were still able to overpower her easily and slip under the door, bringing her captured arm along with them.
With her shoulder and cheek now pressed painfully up against the door, Corrin wondered if her enemy possessed enough strength to rip her arm out of its socket. Entertaining this horrid thought filled her with a dreadful sort of panic, and she began to cry out as a last resort. "Leo! Can you hear me?! I need you! I need you, Leo! I'm going to die!"
At the very moment when the pain in her shoulder became too much to bear, her surroundings harmlessly dissolved away. Corrin's eyes snapped open, and Leo's alarmed complexion came into focus, just a few breaths away from hers. She realized with a start that she was lying in his bed - cradled in his sheets, supported by his pillows - and immediately scrambled to a sitting position. Leo abruptly leaned back as she did so, narrowly avoiding a collision of their heads. He eyed her warily, sensing that she was about to speak.
"I…" Corrin lifted a hand to her chest in an attempt to quell her racing heart. "Was I dreaming? Is this… is what I'm experiencing right now real?" After what she had just witnessed, she had natural justification for being skeptical of her surroundings.
"Yes, you were," Leo slowly spoke. In his voice, Corrin could detect a multitude of emotions; worry and confusion were the ones that stood out the most to her.
She took a moment to breathe, inhaling slowly through her nose and exhaling through her mouth. Okay, so she had fallen asleep at some point. But when? She allowed herself a furtive glance toward the table in the center of the room. It was still littered with books, and among them she could pick out the one that she had previously been preoccupied with. So it was sometime after they began reading… she returned her gaze to her lap and raised her fingers to her hair. She felt a smooth, neat braid beneath her fingertips, eliciting within her a guilty sort of happiness. Already, the distressing events of her nightmare seemed less real.
"Corrin." Leo broke the silence, his tone a bit more urgent than before. "Will you tell me what happened? In your dream?"
She looked up and met his earnest brown eyes. How could she ever deny him? "Of course… but you might think I'm insane." As she concluded her sentence, a thought suddenly occurred to her. "Wait - what time is it?"
"It's just past noon," he replied, moving closer and sitting at the edge of the bed. "And surely you must know by now that I'll take all of your words at face value, should you ask me to do so."
Corrin immediately became self-conscious, having never spent the night in another person's bed before (let alone that of a man). "I'll relate my dream to you in a short moment," she assured him, offering up a sheepish smile, "But first tell me… when did I fall asleep? And more importantly, where did you sleep?"
His expression relaxed, a hint of a smirk grazing his lips. "I had barely started braiding your hair when you decided that then would be the perfect time to doze off. I didn't want to wake you, so I took my time finishing the braid. After that, well… I moved you over here. As for where I slept… the table was sufficient."
Corrin's jaw dropped as she processed the reality of his statements. He carried me? "You… you slept at the table? Oh, Gods, if this happens again, promise me you'll wake me up."
He chuckled and cocked his head slightly to the side. "Depends on how comfortable you look."
She rolled her eyes, trying to casually play off the fact that his current expression threatened to steal the breath from her lungs. "Then I suppose sleeping is no longer an option when you're around."
"You say that now, but you should have witnessed yourself fall asleep. You were practically dead to the world."
Corrin laughed briefly in response, but her smile quickly faded away as her thoughts returned to the topic of death.. "About that… I thought I really was going to die. In my nightmare, I mean. This horrible, terrible thing was hunting me down, and it called itself Anankos just when I thought it couldn't get any worse…" Spurred by the strength of her raw emotions, she proceeded to relate everything she remembered to Leo, albeit in a slightly disjointed way. He listened intently, exuding none of his playful demeanor from before. Even when she took the time to pause and regroup her thoughts, he remained silent, waiting patiently for her next account. When she had finally finished, he turned away from her and rested his chin in his palm, elbow on his knee. He closed his eyes, appearing lost in thought.
After a long moment, he softly spoke, eyelids still closed. "You've been having these sorts of dreams for how long now?"
Corrin's voice was no louder than his. "Ever since I returned to Nohr."
Leo didn't respond immediately, instead pinching his eyebrows together. "...Corrin, this is distressing. Because… I believe in the validity of everything you've been witnessing. And I believe that you're truly the daughter of Anankos."
Corrin's stomach dropped. "They definitely feel more like visions rather than dreams, but… why are you so certain?"
"Xander, Camilla, Elise and I… we've always known that you were adopted, for lack of a better term. So when you began to awaken your dragon powers, we were puzzled and awed by their potency. How could it be that your connection with the Dusk Dragon was stronger than ours, when we were his direct descendants? It all makes sense to me now… there can be only one answer."
Her mouth suddenly felt dry. "So everything he said to me, and that message from the book… it was all true." A realization dawned on her at that moment. "The book!" She threw the covers off her legs, startling Leo for the second time that afternoon. Ignoring the mess of wrinkles on her shirt, she dashed over to the table and snatched the book from yesterday. She opened it up to the back, not entirely surprised to see blocks of text layering the pages. Releasing a small sigh, she closed the book and set it back down on the table.
"It's no longer there," she concluded, turning toward him. "But I remember it clearly, as if I had just read it. I think it'll provide us with a clue."
Leo nodded, slowly rising to his feet. "Allow me to dwell on that. It would probably be for the best if we skipped out on the library for today."
A pang of disappointment shot through Corrin, which was quickly replaced by shame. She had just indulged herself in his company for… what? Ten to twelve hours? And she wanted even more time with him? She was fully aware that her love for him made her selfish, but even admitting it to herself didn't erase her yearning for his proximity.
He eyed her quizzically, sensing her change in mood. "...Unless you believe we can accomplish something today."
"No, no! It's completely alright," she quickly spoke, doing her best to plaster a reassuring smile on her face. "I was just… thinking." For a brief moment, she seriously entertained the idea of confessing everything to him - right here, right now. How would he react upon hearing her express the full extent of her emotions? Would he think her a liar?
"I…" Before she could help herself, the one word left her lips. Suddenly overwhelmed with embarrassment, she averted her gaze to the side. I can't do it! "Thank you… for your hospitality. I'm sorry I made you sleep at the table."
She couldn't bring herself to look at him, as she was positive he would glean her secret from merely meeting her gaze. As she fixed her eyes on his window, she heard him say nothing in response. Her anxiety now rocketing, she fidgeted in place.
He finally sighed, crossing the room and stopping only a few feet from her. She forced herself to look up at him now, warily meeting his soft, brown eyes. He looked like he wanted to say something too - urgently, in fact. And although only a few seconds had to have passed between them, it felt like an eternity before he spoke.
"Corrin."
She struggled to pinpoint his tone. "Yes?"
"That formality… I don't understand it. There's no need for you to construct a barrier between us, and yet sometimes, you do. Is there something about me… that irks you?"
Her eyes widened as she processed his implications. "Oh, Leo… Of course not! You're wonderful. You always have been. There isn't anything I don't like about you." Or love, she added in her mind.
He appeared hesitant to accept her answer. "Truly?"
She nodded, her embarrassment from before slowly dissipating away. "Truly. Sometimes I'm just horrible at expressing my gratitude in a normal way. But when I say you're wonderful… I really do mean it."
Impulsively, she reached forward and took his hand in both of hers. A small voice in the back of her head began to scream, protesting against her forwardness. She aggressively shooed it away, focusing on the warmth of his hand and the softness of his skin. Something about this physical contact just felt so… right. Like they were destined to touch, as silly as she knew that sounded. Thinking back on it… had she even held his hand before?
As she was revelling in their shared warmth, Leo had completely frozen. A brief moment had passed before she realized that he hadn't moved. Tuning back into reality, she focused on his expression and noticed a stormy turbulence swirling in his eyes. For the first time, she wondered if she was making him uncomfortable.
"Ah! I'm sorry," she apologized, dropping his hand from hers. She mentally slapped herself for being too rash. She couldn't go around grabbing him whenever she wanted! How would that make him feel?
"No," he murmured, almost too soft for her to hear. He reached for her again, his fingertips making gentle contact with her palm. Corrin could barely believe her eyes - or rather, her senses - when he delicately laced his fingers through hers. She returned the gesture, closing her fingers around his warm, strong hand. In that moment, she believed that she couldn't possibly experience any more happiness.
But of course, the universe found a way to prove her wrong. As she gaped at him, completely at a loss for words, he lifted his other free hand to her cheek and tucked her stray bangs behind her ear. His line of touch left a burning trail of fire across her skin, which served mainly to raise the temperature in her face. And even though she knew that she was blushing - blushing horribly - her current state of ecstasy left no room for shame.
His fingers lingered near her face before slowly lowering to his side. "I very much prefer this," he began, his expression soft and earnest, "to distant behavior. What say you, Sister?"
Corrin swallowed and nodded quickly, desiring nothing more than to close the remaining distance between their bodies. Would he accept that, too? she wondered. I suppose I won't know until I attempt it...
Just as she had gathered up the courage to act, a quick succession of raps sounded at the door, followed immediately by Felicia's frantic voice. "Lord Leo!" she called. "Have you seen Lady Corrin recently? I can't find her anywhere! Ohh, I'm going to be in so much trouble…"
The two siblings immediately pulled apart, neither of them having realized just how close they had been. As Corrin took this moment to catch her breath and gather her thoughts, Leo gave her a small, reassuring smile. Turning away from her, he walked over to the door and opened it wide.
Felicia stood just beyond the doorway, nervously fidgeting and wringing her hands. She opened her mouth to address Leo, but whatever she had been planning to say flew out the window once she saw Corrin standing behind him. Her jaw continued to remain open as her eyes widened to the size of saucers.
"M-Milady! Of all… of all the places! You've been here this entire time?"
Corrin smiled sheepishly at her maid, which seemed only to fluster her further. "What do you mean, 'this entire time'? I've only been here since last night, haven't I?"
Felicia appeared as if she had just seen a ghost. "That's exactly it! I couldn't find you anywhere this morning, but when I tried to ask Jakob for help, he seemed completely indifferent! It's almost as if he knew something and was hiding it from me… Wait. You spent the night in here?!"
Corrin immediately regretted having admitted such a thing to Felicia, who was notoriously known around the castle as a gossip-loving blatherer. Biting her lip, she desperately tried to come up with an excuse. "Well, ah… You see, I…"
Leo came to her rescue in a heartbeat. "My dear Sister has developed a horrible case of the flu," he swiftly lied. After motioning for Corrin to come near, he placed the back of his hand to her forehead. "It is most unfortunate that her fever is still running high. I found her in the kitchen last night and insisted that I take care of her. She would do the same for me, after all."
By the time he had finished elaborating on his lie, Corrin's face felt burning hot. Even if Felicia didn't believe in the validity of Leo's words, Corrin was certain that she soon would - and all because of the simple touch of his hand.
Thankfully, Felicia seemed to completely buy into his story, her eyes already shining with tears. "Milord, how compassionate you are! You did a most honorable thing by looking after her in my absence… How can I ever repay you?"
"Hah… Repaying me is unnecessary. I only ask that you exercise utmost diligence in caring for your Mistress from now on."
Corrin had a sneaking suspicion that her brother was enjoying this exchange, allowing herself a surreptitious glance at him from the corner of her eye. Of course he is, she confirmed. He's smirking! As Felicia bowed deeply and swore to work even harder, Corrin cleared her throat. "I do think that Leo is exaggerating about the severity of my fever. It was much worse yesterday, and I feel nearly fine today. I don't believe I require further care."
An intense fire had ignited in Felicia's eyes. "Pardon the frankness, but that's where you're wrong, Milady! I've already neglected you enough. Please - allow me to take care of you today."
"Uh…" Corrin briefly considered arguing with her, but soon sagged in defeat. Felicia was nearly always inconsolable when she got like this. "Well… alright. That's very kind of you."
"By tomorrow morning, you'll feel as fit as a wyvern! I guarantee it!"
Corrin wasn't given much more of a chance to interact with her brother, as Felicia snagged her wrist and resolutely tugged her away. Up the tower staircase they went, and in her private quarters they remained for the rest of the day. Corrin received from her maid all of the pampering she could ever desire in that one day, leaving her more drained and exhausted than anything else. When the sun had dipped fully below the horizon, cloaking the world outside her window in a shroud of darkness, Felicia finally relented. After tucking Corrin into bed and applying a wet towel to her forehead, she said her goodbyes and reluctantly retreated from the room. The towel left a cold, damp feeling on her forehead that wasn't in the least bit comfortable, but Corrin resisted the urge to yank it off lest Felicia check on her later. Instead, she closed her eyes and allowed her thoughts to return to her brother. While she had been confined to her quarters, he had the whole castle at his disposal. What had he been doing this entire time? Did he uncover any useful leads? As these questions and more swirled around in her mind, the blanket of sleep claimed her in its strong embrace.
After waking up the next morning, Corrin lingered in her room for not a moment longer than necessary. Mentally thanking the gods for her dreamless sleep, she scurried down the staircase and made her way to Leo's room. She knocked once, twice, three times - but received no reply, much to her disappointment. She racked her brain for anything pertaining to his usual schedule, but couldn't remember anything useful. If only she had inquired about it even once! At a loss for how to proceed, she descended one more flight of stairs to the first floor in the hope of running into him. As her luck would have it, she encountered no one.
That is… until she passed by the parlor.
A familiar voice drifted out from the room as soon as she walked past the doorway. "Looking for someone, my dear?"
Corrin immediately halted her footsteps, pivoting around and peering into the parlor. Lounging on one of the sofas was her elder sister, holding a steaming cup of tea daintily in one hand. Upon meeting Corrin's eyes, she offered up a warm, inviting smile.
"Camilla!" Corrin exclaimed, having not seen her in weeks. "It's so nice to see you. And I mean… yes, but it can wait. Do you mind if I join you?"
"Why would I? I'd kill for some more time with you, sweetie. We're not alone, though. I hope you don't mind." With her free hand, she motioned to the sofa directly across from her. Only then did Corrin notice her retainer, Selena, who was completely sprawled out on said sofa.
Selena dismissively waved her hand in Corrin's general direction, eyes trained on the ceiling. "It's not like we were talking about anything important anyways."
"Oh! Uh… yeah, don't mind if I do." Corrin inched through the doorway and situated herself next to her sister on the couch. She glanced warily at Selena, never completely sure how to handle herself around the retainer. Selena continued to appear uninterested in her surroundings, stretching out her legs and stifling a yawn.
"Ah, don't mind her," Camilla said with a giggle. "We're both a bit exhausted at the moment, aren't we? We did just return from our trip, after all."
A pang of regret immediately shot through Corrin. How could she have forgotten? Two weeks ago, she was among the people to personally see off Camilla and her retainers! Giving Camilla a sheepish smile, she nervously reached for an empty tea cup. "That's right! How did it go? You were gone for quite a while."
"Oh, you know. The usual, I'm afraid. We paid visits to a few villages on the outskirts of the kingdom. Demanded that they swear complete loyalty to King Garon or face the consequences."
Corrin shifted her gaze to her cup, mentally cursing herself for being so familiar with the narrative of violence implicit in Camilla's words. "And… did they?" she quietly prodded.
"Heavens, no. They were resolute in their defiance until the very end. They fought with everything they had, those poor things. Admirable, really."
Corrin's heart sank as images of bloodied, battered villagers surfaced in her mind. "Camilla… I know we don't have much of a choice, but don't you think it's horrible? How we're the ones to bend them to Garon's rule?"
"I wouldn't go down that path if I were you," Selena spoke up, her tone uncharacteristically guarded. Corrin looked back up and met her eyes, seeing in them an alertness that had hitherto been absent. "Considering how we're right smack in the middle of his domain."
Corrin bit her lip as she hesitated, fully aware of the risk of expressing her unfiltered opinion. Yes, anyone could be listening at any time… she knew that. Iago was known to do such a thing. But hearing about these atrocities, one after the other, kindled her hatred toward Garon and transformed it into something darker each and every time. Her past self would have been baffled at her capacity for enmity. Nevertheless, Corrin rarely thought of such things when her anger peaked. Even now, she struggled to hold back her words.
"It's quite all right, Selena," Camilla reassured her. "Our dearest Beruka is taking care of any unwanted ears, just like she usually does. And to answer your question, little sister…" She paused briefly to sip her tea. "...Of course I think it's horrible. Who wants to murder perfectly innocent civilians under the name of a tyrant? I certainly don't. But our father… He has leverage."
Corrin immediately understood. "Us."
"Right you are, my dear. If any of us siblings refused to carry out his orders, he could easily have the others killed. And so we're bound to him."
Selena scoffed and closed her eyes, resuming her reclined position on the other couch. "Hmph. This is why siblings are a pain."
Corrin barely registered Selena's comment, her anger spiking once more. "How can any of this be okay? How is it acceptable in any way to treat other human beings - including his own children - as mere pawns for personal gain? I don't get it!"
After seeing the alarmed look on Camilla's face, Corrin realized that she had raised her voice. I need to calm down, she thought to herself. Think logically, Corrin. Garon is not human anymore. He's inhabited by a beast gone mad. Human morals don't apply to him.
"I'm sorry," she apologized, lifting her tea to her mouth in the hopes that the herbal scent might assuage her anger. "I know that mulling over it like this won't do anything."
Camilla offered up a comforting smile, reaching over and placing her hand on Corrin's knee. "You have a kind heart, Corrin. I hope that will never change. Why don't we lighten up the subject, hmm? What brought your lovely self down here today?"
Corrin's animosity was quickly replaced by embarrassment. What's wrong with looking for your own brother? her mind scolded her emotions. Get a hold of yourself! "Well…" She lifted the tea cup to her lips once more as she gathered up the courage to say his name. "I was looking for Leo. He's been tutoring me, you see… and I was wondering if he was free today…"
Camilla blinked. "Leo? Father called him in this morning, you know."