Lucina was hungry. The sun was already moving away for the moon to take its place, and Lucina hadn't eaten since the day before. Back in Castle Ylisstol, at least she had food, even if it was the soggy and stale kind of food. As her stomach growled for what was probably the third time today, Lucina once again found herself regretting her choice to run away.
Then again, what had she expected from Anna, of all people? Of course she would cut corners wherever she could, even if it meant losing out on human decency.
If there was a bright side to it, at least it meant that Lucina could continue to work her knots loose in peace.
The wagon rolled over another bump, jostling the wares stacked around Lucina. It was hard to miss how the clanked and clattered, and a few tumbled into her lap as she fiddled away. Lucina didn't mind the tiny forks and vulnerary bottles, but when an axe head almost chopped off her leg, she decided that it would be a good idea to move somewhere else.
Shuffling away further back against the wagon with her hands and feet tied behind her back was hardly an easy task, but with some effort, she managed to wiggle herself into a safer spot against a bag of what felt like medicinal herbs. Not exactly the most comfortable position, but it was the only position she could take.
No one else seemed to notice, or even care that she'd moved. Anna had taken to counting the coins in her purse. Uncle Gregor, sat beside her with the reins in hand, was trying to strike up a conversation that Anna had no interest in answering. Lucina would have felt sorry for him, but if she were honest, she didn't think she would have been interested in hearing how to prepare bear stew either. The merchant's four daughters all seemed caught up playing some kind of game with each other. One of them even craned her head over her shoulder to ask their mother for a drink. No eyes strayed her way, like they didn't even remember she existed.
Surely no one would mind if she turned her body so that her hands would be hidden from view. Surely no one would complain if she pressed her thumb between the ropes and twisted them just a little looser.
It was a tedious process, and one that offered little in the way of letting her know how much closer she was to getting out. When one cord seemed to loosen, another would squeeze tighter in a different place. Undo one knot with her thumb, and the ropes around her pinky would find themselves tangled up. Lucina knew she had to get it undone eventually, but how much her efforts seemed to get her nowhere had her fingers twitching in frustration. Annoyed, she tried to crane her neck to get a better look. They weren't even that tight to begin with. Why were they so hard to unwind–
"Miss Marth?"
"Ah!" Lucina would have jumped, but with her legs tied together, all she could do was flop to the side. Not exactly the most dignified position to be in, she knew. If her mother could see her right now, sprawled out on the floor, she would have words to say.
Dragging her face over the bottom of the wagon, Lucina lifted her head to see who had snuck up on her. A pair of red eyes blinked back; not Anna, this time, but one of her daughters.
Though, now that Lucina thought about it, the girl's name was also probably Anna. The Anna family was a strange one, having a tendency to name every daughter in the family "Anna", and while Lucina could have taken the time to list out everything wrong with that, she had much more important things to focus on, like undoing these knots.
That didn't seem to be shared by the girl. She was staring straight at Lucina, as if she were somehow more interesting than anything else around them. It wasn't like she was trying to attract attention; Lucina was sure her hands were still hidden behind her back. She couldn't have known anything about her trying to escape.
Lucina threw a glance behind the girl, and sure enough, her sisters were still on the other side of the wagon playing a game with their hands. Surely that would be more interesting than the prisoner sitting at the back of the wagon. Was something wrong? Had she noticed something?
Nervously, Lucina almost checked behind her again, but she stopped herself. If she snuck a glance behind her, she would give herself away.
"What do you want?" she asked instead, moving her arms further down and what she hoped was out of sight. "Is there anything you need? I don't have any money."
The girl tilted her head. "I don't want money," she proclaimed. "I want you to move!"
Move? Lucina's eyes narrowed. What was she playing at? In her timeline, there was always something beneath her words, and to miss what she was trying to get meant leaving with lighter pockets. As she slid back, Lucina kept her gaze on the little girl, watching in silence as she reached into the bag Lucina had been leaning on. She spent a few seconds digging through the bag, before she finally pulled away with a small teddy bear in her hands. The girl made a triumphant sound, grinning ear to ear, but instead of moving away, she plopped back down in front of Lucina.
"Okay," she said, pulling the stuffed bear close to her chest with a grin. "I'm ready for you to continue!"
There weren't many things that unnerved Lucina. Hardened by the tragedies and struggles she'd weathered under Grima's reign, she had seen innocent people ripped limb from limb by the Risen hordes, and yet somehow, when she saw the girl smile, something about it instantly put her on edge.
On anyone else, a smile was a harmless expression of joy. But Anna never smiled for something as pointless as joy, no–like everything else she did, she did for a purpose. A smile meant that you had something she wanted, and no matter what you did, she was going to have it.
Leaning back, Lucina hid her uneasiness behind a stoic expression, and she said, "Continue... what? I'm sorry, I have no idea what you're talking about."
The girl twirled her hand in a strange motion that didn't help Lucina at all. Was she asking for her money now? Was this a robbery?
When she didn't immediately respond, the girl just rolled her eyes. "Your story?"
Her story? What was she–
A hazy memory came back to Lucina from the night before. As she'd slipped into the cart, there was a girl who'd seen her come in, and Lucina had told her a story to lull her to sleep. She'd almost completely forgotten about it, but the girl hadn't, and now she expected her to continue. She'd even brought the same teddy bear with her, and as she stared up at Lucina with expectant eyes, an uncomfortable feeling crept into her side.
If the girl kept watching her, then Lucina risked being caught. Even if the girl didn't catch her, just by being there, she was sure to draw sharper eyes. Plus, she couldn't remember where she'd left off.
"The story. Yes, I remember," she said, nodding. "Well... I was in the middle of doing something else. Are you fine with returning later?"
Later, like maybe after Lucina was long gone?
"Oh." To Lucina's surprise, the girl sounded almost disappointed. A twinge of guilt pulled at Lucina's chest, but she forced it down. Her mother was holding her prisoner. Why did she have to care about what the girl wanted her to do?
"Anna?" Up front, Anna glanced over her shoulder, a cheerful smile on her face as she called out, "What are you doing back there?"
All four of her daughters turned to face her. Lucina turned too, a moment of fear flickering across her face.
Had Anna found her out? Lucina didn't think so. Anna didn't seem too worried about her, so she hadn't noticed anything yet, and Lucina let her guard fall back.
For a moment, the four daughters glanced around at each other, asking which one of them she'd been speaking to. One by one, they all noticed that one of them had left the group, and all eyes fell on the girl sitting in the back with Lucina.
"Anna?" the woman repeated, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh, I'm just talking to Miss Marth!" the girl replied.
"About what?" one of her sisters piped up.
The girl looked at Lucina. Ignoring Lucina's subtle head shake, she turned back and answered, "She was gonna tell me a story!"
"A story?"
And now all three of the other girls had their attention fixed on her. As they scrambled over to sit by their sister, Lucina let out a sigh, sliding her fingers out from between her bonds. Well, there went her escape effort.
Up by the front, Uncle Gregor chuckled, and not for the first time on this stupid trip, Lucina wished she could disappear behind the wares stacked around her. It was one thing to see him again, another for him to witness her tied up and sunk low like this.
At least he was still the same good-humored man she remembered him as. That was something she hadn't had the chance to screw up, probably because he had nothing to do with the Plegian-Ylisse war or Ylisstol.
"Oh, Anna," the woman said, huffing. "What have I told you about talking to strangers?"
"That wasn't me," the girl said, and she pointed to one of her sisters. "She's the one who got in trouble for that."
"Well, that's no excuse. I may have said it to her, but it's a lesson all of you should have learned. Come on, now. What is it?"
Together, all four of the girls replied, "If the deal is bad, leave it be."
"Exactly! Don't stay behind to haggle for a tale if she really doesn't want to tell one."
"But mom, she tells really good stories!"
"She does?" her sister asked, raising her voice in doubt. "I'll believe it when I hear it."
"Me too! I want to hear!"
Lucina shrunk back from all the attention, grimacing as the four girls inched closer each time she inched back. She glanced over at the front for help, but Uncle Gregor just laughed, while Anna shook her head.
"Can't you go back to your game instead of bothering the nice lady?" their mother asked.
"But mom, we're bored!"
With another huff, Anna made an "I tried" gesture with the reins. "Well, just make sure not to wear her out."
And with that declaration of surrender, the daughters turned back to her. It had been so long since Lucina had spoken to anyone under the age of fourteen, she had no idea what to do here! Why couldn't she have been caught by anyone else?
"Oh, and Anna, you said you needed water?" their mother said, and she unhooked a canteen and thrust it into one of the girl's arms.
The girl looked at the canteen, confused. "Mom, I didn't ask for water."
"Well then figure out which one of you did," Anna replied, waving a hand over her shoulder as she turned back to the road. "I've got to focus on the road ahead if we want to make it to the next town by tomorrow morn."
For a moment, all four of the girls stared at each other in silence. A silent message passed between them–an Anna thing, Lucina assumed–before the girl with the canteen handed it over to the girl on her left, who plucked off the cap and took a long drink. As soon as she was done, they all returned their curious gazes to her; something which Lucina really could have gone without.
This was weird, right? People didn't normally gather around their prisoners and expect them to spill their life stories. Yes, Chrom and Lissa had done that, but they lived sheltered lives in Castle Ylisstol. Surely normal children would be more cautious than... this?
They were looking at her so expectantly, too, eager to hear the first words out of her mouth, and she almost felt bad that she had no idea where to begin.
"Ah... well..." Her eye darted around, trying to think of a story to tell them. Should she talk about the time her friends fished villagers out of a Risen horde? Or maybe the time she had to pick out the remains of a bear tangled in a bush for lunch?
Dammit. I'll just tell them the one about the Risen wyverns and hope that's enough to entertain them, she thought.
And if it wasn't, well, that was no big loss for her. Hopefully, that would get them to leave her alone.
"Mom, are the zombie wyverns going to find us here?"
"Hon, zombies aren't real."
"But Miss Marth said they liked to eat families who traveled alone! We're traveling alone!"
Lucina watched from the wagon as Anna tried to assure her daughters that, no, they weren't going to be eaten by wyverns, with a small smile she kept hidden behind her shoulder. It was quite silly, but after everything Lucina had been through, it was a welcome change of pace.
Night had fallen, and with night came respite. As soon as the sun had set, Anna had stopped the wagon, set a pot over a fire, and gathered her daughters around a small, cozy blaze. The scene brought a smile to Lucina's face; there was something nostalgic about seeing a group of young children crowded around their mother as she handed out food to each of them, humoring all their antics and making sure they didn't do anything stupid. She'd witnessed families ripped apart, but seeing one that, for once, wasn't worried that they would live to see another day... it was nice. It reminded Lucina of happier times. Of carefree times.
No, she thought, shaking her head. Don't forget, Lucina. This isn't a normal family, this is Anna's family. She was a liar, a cheat, all for the sake of money. Even at the end of the world, the only person she cared about was herself.
So what if she had a family? Everyone did. It didn't matter whether someone had a family or friends. What mattered was how they treated them, and at the end of the day, Lucina still despised the woman.
Whatever she was cooking smelled delicious, though. A rich, meaty scene drifted out from over the fire and curled around her nose, making her mouth water. She would have loved nothing more than to take a sip of that to quench her dry throat, and she was going to get none because Anna didn't care for her at all.
The wagon creaked and shifted as someone hopped on with her Lucina looked over, and to her surprise, she found Gregor climbing onto the back of the wagon with her. Her eyes to the wooden bowl in his hands, steam wafting out from inside, and she almost smiled. Of course, she could always trust Uncle Gregor to remember she existed. Her lips twitched up, but Lucina brought her expression back under control; after all, Anna was still nearby.
"Thank you," she said, her eyes fixed on the bowl as Uncle Gregor set it down on the floor in front of her.
Uncle Gregor gave her a broad grin in return. "It is nothing to thank Gregor for, only human decency."
"Yes, I suppose it is." Nodding her thanks, Lucina reached down to take the bowl–
Only to remember that her hands were still tied up.
Well, that certainly made this a lot more difficult. Lucina opened her mouth to ask for help, but Uncle Gregor cut her off.
"Miss Marth tells good stories."
"Huh?"
"The one of the wyverns?" Upon seeing understanding dawn on Lucina's face, Uncle Gregor's smile widened. "Yes, Gregor heard it. It was very good tale, very interesting the things Marth spoke of."
"Oh. Thanks."
"Yes, very good." Uncle Gregor paused, before leveling her with a strange look. "But the things Marth spoke of, they are very peculiar, she knows?"
"Peculiar? How so?" Lucina tried to keep the nervousness out of her voice, but it was hard when she had the weight of the future resting on her words. Had she messed up? Lucina didn't think there was anything important she needed to withhold, but had she accidentally let something slip that she wasn't supposed to know about?
"Marth says she is a knight," he went on, looking out into the forest, "a noblewoman living inside a castle, yet she speaks of things as a well-traveled warrior. She has been to many places, no?"
"I–I have, yes." Lucina nodded slowly, her eyes narrowed and fixed on his face now. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Oh, nothing to worry for," Uncle Gregor replied, and he waved his hand dismissively. Then he took another suspicious pause, scanning the forest around him before he moved closer to her. "Is just... there is someone Gregor is looking for. Marth has been to many places, so he was thinking she might have seen him."
"You're looking for someone?" Lucina breathed a sigh of relief. "Are they a friend?"
"We have history. Is not important."
History? Lucina wasn't sure if she liked the sound of that, but from what she remembered of him, the second Plegia-Ylisse war was the first time he'd met the Shepherds, so it couldn't be anyone she knew.
"I'm not sure how much help. What do they look like?" she asked, leaning back against a stack of tomes.
"He is man. Bald man, no hair. Strange markings on face." None of that rang a bell. When she shook her head, Uncle Gregor added, "He has purple armor he is wearing. Spiky purple armor. Marth has not seen him?"
"I'm sorry, I have not." Seeing Uncle Gregor's disappointed frown, Lucina felt sorry that she couldn't help him. If he had found this strange purple man in the past, then hopefully there was someone else out there who would point him in the right direction, but Lucina could offer nothing.
"Oh. Well, it is no weight on Gregor's back. He is sorry for bothering you."
With a groan, he pushed himself back up, and he jumped off the wagon, leaving Lucina to wonder what that had been about as she watched him rejoin Anna and her family.
In the end, it probably didn't matter. There was no purple-wearing bandit in her future, so whether Uncle Gregor met him or not didn't matter to her. Still, she couldn't help but be curious about it. Maybe there was some interesting story she had missed from Uncle Gregor's past?
Just like she had missed her chance to ask Uncle Gregor for help with the food. The bowl was still sitting on the floor in front of her, out of her reach, and it would stay that way until she figured out how to get out of these bonds, taunting her with that savory scent dancing on her tongue.
Lucina let her head fall back against the tower of books behind her and groaned. Oh Naga dammit, what did I do to deserve this?
The last time I updated this was one month ago, which, I'd say, is a good deal longer than a week. Sorry about that.
Really, with the end of the school year approaching, there was a lot of stuff I needed to catch up on, like school work, the SAT, that kind of fun jazz. While that sort of stuff has been swamping me, I still feel kind of guilty that I never found the time to pull together something, and that's because I still had quite a bit of free time that I've been squandering instead of writing since the entire month of May hasn't been the best of times for me. Sometimes it do be like that, and writing takes a back seat.
Usually these author notes tend to ramble on because I've been writing these really late into the night, and it shows. I'll try to cut to the chase here, though. No more excuses from me, I'll just try to upload more consistently over the summer and hope that'll be proof of what I've probably said more than enough times by this point.
Anyway, expect a chapter two weeks from now because I will most certainly try to shoot for that goal. Until then, thanks for sticking with me. I wish you all well, and stay safe!
