"Well, Severa…" Severa winced as she ate her breakfast. It was music rehearsal today, and Lachesis had a notably frustrated tone as she spoke. "I did notice that the casting list still remains partially full; I know there are few candidates with the appropriate experience, but I do believe that making those decisions would assist in both my job and yours."

"Right," Severa grumbled. It wasn't like Lady Lachesis was wrong, and her Maribelle-like demeanor did mean that arguments would not go Severa's way anyways. "I'll get on that today. I had some ideas that I'll pursue, at least…"

Lachesis nodded affirmatively. "I am very glad to hear it. It would not be your vision if we had to settle on some last minute players that could not find a note or hold a rhythm, yes?"

"Yeah. Speaking of…" They both turned to Lucina, who had already grabbed seconds. She looked up at the duo.

"What? Did you want help on your search, Sev?"

Lachesis squinted. "I think not, Lady Lucina. You shall come with me; we have some work to do with your voice."

Lucina looked confident. "I'm excited! I have never had the chance to sing before! Well, formally, at least." The Nordion princess grimaced.

"We shall make sure to put in the work, starting today." She looked back at Severa, "Lady Severa, if you need assistance, I should be very happy to assist."

"Thank you, Lady Lachesis, I shall… uh… take my leave, then." She stood up awkwardly, and rushed out of the Dining Hall. Lachesis turned to Lucina, and grabbed the coffee mug next to the Ylissean princess.

"Are you drinking… coffee? "

Lucina looked confused, "Yes? It was all we had to drink back then."

Lachesis nodded sympathetically. "Ah, yes, Cordelia did inform me of your struggles. Unfortunately, coffee can have negative effects on your voice, so we shall have to excise this from your diet for the time being." Lucina looked a little crestfallen, "Never fear! It is just for a short time!"

"Right, I want to make Sev proud, so I'll do whatever I need to!"

Lachesis chuckled to herself. "Are you sure? My rehearsals shall be quite challenging."

Lucina gulped, but nodded. There was no possible way that it could be worse than having to endure that ravaged world. A musical rehearsal, even the worst kind, could never compare.

Severa groaned as she looked at her list. She only bothered to learn a few names of some heroes, so some of her notes were just descriptors. She looked at her notes:

King- Fatherly, quiet, with a baritone voice.

Princess- Has important aria, needs to be a strong singer.

Queen? - Not necessarily motherly, but might help. Hides her kindness through sterness.

Severa scowled. "Really specific Severa, great job." She muttered to herself. Well, those were just notes to look for. Luckily, she had a few options from her scouting over the past few weeks. And she was fairly certain that her first target would be up here, overlooking the training grounds…

"Whatcha lookin' for, kid?" A voice startled her; she recognized the woman from the archery contest; she was the loud one cheering on one of the new heroes. "You have that face that Byleth gets whenever he's looking for something."

"Uh…" Severa didn't really know how to respond, "I'm looking for someone, but I'm not sure if you know them…"

The woman patted Severa on the back. "Don't worry! I'm really good at finding people! Name's Catherine, by the way."

"Severa." She looked Catherine over. She looked as brash and loud as she talked, and she had an overconfident grin that looked very similar to Lucina's dad- uh, Chrom. "How are you going to help me? I haven't even told you who I'm looking for."

"Yeah, but I know someone who's good at finding people."

"Calling for me already, I see." Shamir noted from the shadows, causing Severa to jump.

"Gawds, you almost killed me from fright! What is wrong with you?!" She shouted at the amused archer.

"Apologies, I didn't mean to startle you." Her expression said otherwise, but Severa didn't want to argue. "So, who are you searching for?"

Severa looked embarrassed, "Uh, I'm looking for some good singers, for a thing."

"A thing? Nice and descriptive." Shamir remarked. Severa huffed. If there was one thing she hated, it was being beaten to a good verbal jab.

Catherine side eyed Shamir, "Well, Severa, if it's a singer you need…". Shamir looked back at her partner.

" No. "

"C'mon, Shamir; your voice is really good!"

"I only sang at Garreg Mach because it was compulsory."

"Ooh, Shamir said a big word in a full sentence! Severa, mark that down, it's a once in a lifetime event!"

Shamir smirked, "I doubt you know what 'compulsory' even means."

"I got a formal education," Catherine huffed, "Just because I choose not to use that bookish flotsam..."

Severa looked over Shamir: Well, she didn't exactly have a motherly aura about her, but she could work with that, especially if her voice was as decent as Catherine implied… "I'll write you down as a maybe." She noted, before walking off.

"Hey, did she just…" Shamir was interrupted by Catherine's booming laughter, which made Severa smile a little. She loved to get the last word in.

But then she sighed. In truth, Severa did have someone in mind for the Queen role, she just… wasn't particularly thrilled to have that conversation. "Ugh, I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later." She grumbled.

"What was bound to happen?" Severa immediately groaned and grabbed her face. There was the voice that used to give her migraines instantaneously. She turned around to face Cynthia, who was looking at Severa with that blank smile on her face. "Hey Sev!" She said eagerly.

"Hey Cynthia… You were in this hallway too?"

Cynthia nodded excitedly, "I was talking to Catherine about joining the Scions of Justice!" She posed. "She… uh… she said maybe! Which is an improvement from the last two people I asked!"

"Good for you." Severa replied. Cynthia kept pace with her as she attempted to walk away.

"So…" She began, "Why are you looking for singers? Did you finish your project?"

"P-project?! What project?! How did you figure out?" Severa snapped. Cynthia tilted her head in confusion.

"Lucy told me? Was it supposed to be a secret?"

"I- No, I suppose it isn't a secret anymore." Severa rubbed the back of her head. "Sorry."

"No worries!" Cynthia exclaimed. "Do you want help?"

"I don't really need help."

"As my big sister's agent, I think I can definitely help!"

"You're… Lucy's agent?" Severa squinted. "The Pega-Pony Princess?"

Cynthia frowned. "Wow, they way you say my title feels wrong." She noted, "But yeah! I'm here to represent Lucy's feelings and wishes!"

Severa grunted. Even if she told Cynthia to get lost. She doubted she would. And it didn't help that the two that she met earlier were still following them. She slowly turned around, and she caught a flash of blonde hair hide behind a pillar. Yep, still following. "Fine, you can come with me." Severa acquiesced, though she wasn't thrilled about the prospect.

"Yay!" Cynthia gave her friend a tight hug. "Won't let you down!"

Severa grumbled again. There's no way this ends well.

Lucina sat down, taking a much needed breather. She was right, this was nothing compared to past hardships.

But she didn't think it would be this close. Her lungs were on fire, and her legs wobbled a bit. Even in the shape she was in, this was still tiring.

"Considering your lack of practice and formal education, I am quite impressed," Lachesis noted, "Your basics are lacking, but you learn quite quickly."

"Well, breathing from the diaphragm is something you do for fighting as well, so it's a pretty easy adjustment."

Lachesis nodded. "Quite. For now, we shall stop here. You must practice your basics every day, and do take care of your voice!"

"Right, I'll do my best!"

Lachesis helped the Ylissean Princess up. "Shall we venture over to where the others are rehearsing? I'm sure you would enjoy seeing everyone's progress."

Lucina nodded. If anything, it would give her more motivation.

And she was right, as the first sounds to hit her ears was a wondrous soundscape of strings and piano, being played by a small group of players. Robin deftly played the keys, as Cordelia conducted the group.

"All of you have made strong improvements with your instruments! I'm really impressed! At this rate, playing this whole opera will be a breeze!" Cordelia looked ecstatic, as she turned to Lucina and Lachesis. "How are things going with Lucina, Lady Lachesis?"

"Her first rehearsal went quite swimmingly, Lady Cordelia," Lachesis replied, "Miss Lucina has some work to do, but I have complete faith in her abilities."

Cordelia smiled. "I'm sure Severa would be happy to hear that." Robin gave her a look. "What? I'm just saying-"

"I do appreciate it," Lucina replied, "I just hope I can make Sev's life a little easier. I know she's worked really hard on this."

"Yeah," Robin said, "and her work has been excellent, it's only right we meet that effort." He read the notes that his daughter had left. "Speaking of which, Cordy; Severa says that we should check measure 57 of the Knights Aria."

Cordelia looked over the score. "Ah, the cornet solo?"

"There's an alternate part for a violin solo, if needed," Robin turned to Stahl, "What do you think, Stahl?"

The cavalier shrugged. "It could work, I guess, but it would really be preferable if we could find the two brass players that Severa wants."

Cordelia pondered this for a moment. "I suppose we could request some professionals from the court…"

"If need be," Robin interjected, "Let's talk to Severa first, see what she thinks." Everyone nodded; it seemed like the best course of action. "I just hope her casting search is going well…"

Severa and Cynthia reached the wyvern stables, and Severa sucked in a deep breath.

"Are you actually nervous?" Cynthia asked, "You're never nervous."

"I'm nervous all the time, Cynthia," Severa snapped, "Just because you never notice these things, doesn't mean I don't feel it."

"Right, sorry. Who's supposed to be here?"

Severa didn't answer, and just opened the door. As expected, there was only one person in there, and she barely had any time to say anything before the figure approached and wrapped her in a big hug.

"Selena!" Camilla nearly shouted, "It's been too long!"

"L-Lady Camilla…" She managed to choke out. Camilla immediately let go.

"Right, I need to watch my strength," she let go of her retainer, "How are things, my dear?"

"Good, good…" Severa moved a little awkwardly, "How have things been with you?" Camilla smiled widely.

"Why don't we get some tea and catch up? I haven't spoken to you in forever!"

Severa nodded. "Maybe later. I'm running an errand at the moment," She did give Camilla an apologetic hug. "Which is why I'm here, actually!"

Camilla looked a little downtrodden, "Ah, alright… What do you need from me, Selena?"

Severa was quiet for a moment, before Cynthia intervened. "Sev, did you want her to play the role of the queen?"

"Queen?" Camilla raised an eyebrow, "And who are you, might I ask?"

Cynthia posed and flashed the Nohrian a grin. "Cynthia, Severa's friend and friend of Justice everywhere!"

Camilla giggled. "Selena, I was unaware you had such an adorable friend," she stated, "And what's this about 'playing a queen'?"

Severa muttered something, before speaking up. "I wrote an opera, and I was wondering…"

Camilla looked excited. "You thought of me ? You really are too much!" She thought about the offer for a minute. "I haven't sang in a long time, if I'm honest."

"That shouldn't be a problem," Severa replied, "I'm sure Azura or Lady Lachesis could help you."

"Oooh, I would enjoy that very much." Camilla gave her retainer another tight hug. "Let's meet up for tea soon, okay? I miss talking to my dear retainer." Severa smiled.

"Yeah, I would… I would like that too." She turned and stiffly walked outside, leaving Cynthia to wave at the Nohrian princess. She quickly caught up to Severa, and poked her in her ribs. "Hey, what gives?!"

"What was that, Sev?" Cynthia asked, "Why were you acting so weird?"

Severa scowled. It didn't make sense to her, either. Why was she so defensive about Camilla? It wasn't as if Camilla was awful; she was a little clingy, and she could get really possessive, but all in all, the Nohrian princess was quite agreeable. That was when she had a horrible realization. She didn't want Camilla to meet Lucy. She had spent so much time trying to get close to Lucina again, that she was petrified that Camilla might not take it well.

"Sev?"

"Cynthia, I have a confession to make." She glared at the pegasus knight, "And you need to keep it a secret."

Cynthia sat there, head in her hands, taking in all of the information that Severa had given her.

"Well, honestly," she began, "This makes a lot of sense."

"Honestly, I'm surprised nobody else has realized it by now."

Cynthia groaned, "No, don't say that. I bet everyone but Lucy and myself are aware. Our whole family is… not great at reading others sometimes."

Severa raised an eyebrow, "That might have been the most self-aware thing to come out of that mouth in all the time I've known you."

"Hey." Cynthia's response was sharp but quiet. They both sat there in silence for a bit. "Alright, I have a couple things to say." Severa looked at Cynthia intently, waiting to hear what her thoughts were, "First of all, I think both of you would be great together, so I'm all for it." Severa was taken aback, her voice was so serious.

"I- really?"

Cynthia nodded. "Lucy is bad at taking care of herself, and the only people she listens to are mom and dad- and you." She paused. "And I always thought of you like a sister anyways, so I wouldn't mind it being official!"

"... What was the other thing?"

"Why would that make you act weird with Camilla?"

"Well…" Severa scratched her head, "She's kind of like if you mixed Cherche and Tharja… and she's quite fond of me."

Cynthia sulked, "Well aren't you popular?"

"Not that way, idiot. More of a sisterly thing… I think."

"You hope?"

Severa rolled her eyes. "Why are you choosing now, of all times, to be thoughtful?"

Cynthia ignored the barb. "Well, I guess I'd be tentative if I thought I was going to be on Auntie Tharja's bad side…" she shuddered.

"Anything else?"

"Oh yeah! Have those two been following us the whole time?"

Severa looked across the bench where they chose to sit. Catherine and Shamir were sitting on a separate bench, attempting to look inconspicuous. Severa glared, and motioned at them. They approached quickly. "What are you doing?" She hissed at the duo.

Shamir looked over to Catherine. "I'm just making sure she doesn't break anything."

"Oh, very mature, Shamir," Catherine retorted, "You were the one suggesting we help."

Severa squinted, "No offense, but how could you possibly help?"

"Clarisse gave me a list of all the heroes here in the castle, their statuses, and other meaningful data." Shamir replied, "That could cut the list of potential candidates down by a lot."

"Yeah… I suppose that would be helpful."

Catherine smiled. "Right? Now give us a description and we'll get everything sent in the right direction!"

Severa pondered. "Alright, I need a candidate for the Good King. He's dignified, but not brash and loud."

Shamir and Catherine turned to each other and began to whisper. The swordswoman broke up the impromptu huddle.

"I think we know the perfect person already, and we don't even need the list."

"Catherine, what are you talking about?" Seteth's voice was thin, and he sounded impatient. "As you can see, I'm rather busy."

Catherine and Shamir had led Severa and Cynthia to a small office in the East Wing of the Castle. A green-haired man with a humorless expression greeted them. While they had mentioned that his first impression was… less than favorable; Severa was a little surprised by how blunt the man was.

"I can see that, Seteth," Catherine replied, "What could you be possibly working on? We just arrived here!"

He pointed to a stack of papers. "That," he answered, "is a proposition to start a formal schooling system here in the Askrian Township. And that," he pointed to another stack of papers, "are all the potential teachers for each topic. Speaking of; Shamir, would you be available to teach some topics?"

"It all depends on the topics, but sure." Seteth nodded.

Catherine rubbed the back of her head. "Well, I didn't realize that you had so much on your plate, Seteth. Sorry Severa, I suppose we'll have to find someone else for your opera."

Seteth looked over at Severa. "I did not say no, Catherine," he replied, "Young lady, you are looking for performers for your opera?"

"Yes!" Severa said, "I'm looking for someone to play the King and Princess. They're both small roles, but they both require some intense singing…"

"Do you have a part for me to read?" Seteth asked. Severa handed him a small booklet, which he flipped through. "I shall need a few days; but I will prepare, and you can make a determination on my performance then?"

"Wait, seriously?" Severa replied, "That's it?"

"Were you expecting me to argue with you, admonish you for wasting everyone's time or something of a similar vein?" Seteth scoffed at the thought, "I may not be the most personable, but I do understand the need for recreational activities." He placed the sheet music on his desk. "Now, if that is all…"

"Yes," Shamir interjected, "Thanks for the time." The sniper corralled the other 3 out of his office. "Well, that was surprising." She remarked.

"I can still hear you." They all heard Seteth speak from inside the office.

"I will admit, this is going much easier than I was expecting," Severa said, "I thought I was going to have to be a little more-"

"Grouchy? Severa-esque?" Cynthia interjected. Severa glared at her. "Sorry."

"Yeah, I was expecting Seteth to be a little less receptive than he was," Catherine admitted, "Maybe he's not such a bore after all." Shamir nodded in agreement.

"So, just one more role?" She asked Severa. Severa nodded.

"Well, I might look around a little more for other people, just in case," she replied, "But yeah, just the princess is left."

"Describe her for me."

"Well, she's very… strong-minded, trapped in a struggle between her dreams and her duty."

Shamir looked at Catherine. "Remind you of anyone?"

"Nope, doesn't ring a bell!" Catherine looked outside, leaning against a window. "Ah, it's gonna rain again." Shamir sighed, and turned to both Cynthia and Severa.

"Well, I'm also out of ideas." The sniper took a seat on the windowsill. "Any ideas, you two?"

Severa thought hard. All of the good singers she knew were already in the project, so that was essentially a dead end.

"Wait!" Cynthia exclaimed, "I met someone a couple of days ago, when I was surveying on my pegasus." She tapped her chin. "She was flying around as well, but she had her own wings?"

Shamir nodded, "Right, I've seen her as well. She tends to spend her time near the greenhouse."

Severa crossed her arms. "Leanne, I've run into her a few times. But what does that have to do with anything?"

"We-well, I heard her singing to some other birds, and her voice was beautiful!" Severa grabbed Cynthia by the collar and shook her in frustration.

"You could have shared that with me earlier , you colossal nerd!"

"H-hey! I thought we were past being a jerk, Sev!"

"Ugh," Severa let go of the pegasus knight, "Fine, I'm sorry. I shouldn't take all my stress out on you." She put her hands on her hips. "Gawds…"

Catherine smiled. "Well, it could be worse! All we have to do is find her, and a large winged woman isn't exactly going to be hard to find!"

The sound of thunder echoed through the hallway, and the pitter patter of rain began to bounce off of the windows. Shamir looked outside. "Once again, your intuition is disturbingly accurate, Catherine."

"What, the rain? I already told you-"

Shamir smirked and opened the window. "Well, that's only part of it…" A large bird flung itself into the hallway.

"AH! Cold rain!" The heron screeched, shaking her feathers aggressively. Water sprayed onto the others. "Agh!"

"Yeah… agh!" Severa grumbled, "My outfit is ruined!"

The heron glowed for a moment, and the silhouette transformed from a large bird to a winged woman. "So… sorry! Did not mean to make you wet!"

"It's… it's fine," Severa looked over the woman, "I'm guessing you're Leanne."

"Yes! I am Leanne! Who are… you?" She glided over to the swordswoman, quite a bit closer than Severa was comfortable.

"Uh… Severa, and this is … my friend Cynthia. And these two are-"

"Catherine and Shamir," Catherine took over, "Pleased to meetcha!" She extended a hand to Leanne, who grabbed it but just held it for a moment.

"Sev… Cyn… Cat… Shamir!" Leanne took each one of their hands in succession, before she suddenly had a thought. "How… you know my name?"

Cynthia smiled. "Oh, Severa has been looking for a singer, and we have heard some wonderful things about your voice!" Leanne's face brightened up. "Judging by the look on your face, it's a pretty spot-on statement!"

"Love singing!" Leanne peeped, and began to lightly serenade the quartet. Severa was swept away. Very few voices had this sonorous, full quality. It might have been the greatest voice she had heard. It reminded her of home. Of the few early mornings with her mother singing. Before… well, everything went wrong. "Did… I make you upset?" Leanne asked. Severa felt her cheek. She was crying? Wait, Cynthia and Catherine were crying too? Shamir was purposely not looking at the rest of the group; perhaps a few tears had fallen from her eyes as well?

"No!" Severa shouted, "No, no no no; it was just… very beautiful." She looked determined. "You have to join my opera! Your talent is too great to not have in it!"

Leanne tilted her head. "Op-er-a?" She asked. "What is… oper-ah?"

"Well…" Severa paused. How do you even explain that? "Well, it's like singing with a bunch of other people, and performing for a lot of people!"

Leanne scratched her head. "I… like singing with friends!" She exclaimed, "I would like… to sing with others!"

Severa let out a sigh of relief. That was it, her casting journey was at least halfway over! "That's a relief! We should meet up and practice some of the music soon!" Leanne nodded eagerly. "Great, we meet in the music rooms every week, I think you'll really enjoy it!"

Leanne kept close to Severa. "Can you… teach me opera? I want… to know more!"

"I uh… sure!" Severa turned to Shamir and Catherine. "Thank you both for your help… I could've handled it, but you made things a lot easier."

Shamir smirked, "Improbably so, but you're welcome."

"Yeah!" Catherine barked, "You ever need help again, just give a holler!"

"Cynthia, are you coming?" Severa asked.

"Yeah! Coming, Sev!" Cynthia bounded down the hallway, ahead of Severa and Leanne. Catherine turned to Shamir, who looked a little reflective.

"What's up, Shamir?"

"Hmm…" Shamir replied, "Leanne didn't give me a nickname."

"Fir, I thought we were going to spar." Marisa was in the mess hall, with Fir and Tana.

"Well, we were!" Fir replied, "But it's raining now, and last time that it was raining… "

Marisa sighed; Fir was right, but that didn't really explain why they were in the Cooking Class… and why Tana was there. "B-but, why the cooking class?"

Tana smiled, "Oh, that was my idea! I thought it would be something fun for us to do!"

Fir nodded, "Yeah! I thought you and Tana could partner up, you know?" Marisa stared at Fir.

"So that's your game…" she muttered, but her anger was quickly replaced with panic when Tana took her hand.

"Do.. you not want to help me?" Tana asked, her eyes big and pleading.

"O-of course not, milady!" Marisa stuttered out, "I was just…" She sighed, "Lead the way, Princess."

"Yay!" Tana exclaimed, "Come on, let's find a workspace!"

Fir smirked to herself. "Alright, mission accomplished, now to get back to practi-"

"Where are you going, kid?" A harsh voice asked Fir, who stiffened up. "Couldn't find a partner?"

Fir turned around; the woman behind her screamed bad news. Her dark green hair and fierce face glowered at the swordswoman. "Y-yeah!" Fir squeaked out, "Just could not find one! Oh darn!"

The woman grinned, much to Fir's dismay. "Great, I couldn't find one either. You'll do nicely."

"Uh… alright…" Fir found herself being led to a workstation. "I'm Fir, by the way."

"General Petrine, of the Daein Army." Petrine announced, earning a glare from a nearby Nephenee. "It's truly a pleasure." The two of them looked at the recipe being handed out by Stahl and Oscar. "A Quiche?" Petrine squinted at the card. "What in Ashnard's good name is that?"

"It's an egg custard tart, for lack of a better description." Stahl remarked. "We have some premade crusts for everyone, so all you have to do is prepping whatever fillings you want and making the custard."

Petrine glared. "What kind of fillings?"

"Well, we have leeks, spinach, ham, bacon, onion..."

"Good, some meat." The general looked over at Fir. "Any objections to bacon?"

Fir shook her head, "I would like some spinach and onion, if that's no trouble." She received a harsh snort for her reply.

"Acceptable," Petrine answered, "Though I refuse to prepare the spinach."

"That's okay! I can handle that!" As they received their ingredients, both of them began their work.

Nephenee's mood had never been fouler. Petrine was only a few meters away, cackling about her so-called greatness. There were very few people that Nephenee could even consider using the word 'hate' to describe, and she was one of them.

"Nephenee, please relax your hold on the knife," Kagero ordered gently, "You will injure yourself."

"... Ahm sorry," She put the knife on the cutting board, "I'm tryin' not to let her get to me."

Kagero smiled. "Look at me," she said, "I will not let her hurt you in any way, Nephenee. And this is not Daein, she has no power here."

"It feels like she does."

Kagero gave Nephenee a wink. "Do you think she has more power than me?"

"I-I don't think there's anybody with as much power as ya." Nephenee admitted. The ninja chuckled.

"Oh, that's quite false," she replied, "You hold power over me, for instance." Nephenee blushed and stammered. "Oh? Were you unaware of this?"

"I… I've gotta focus on choppin'." Nephenee mumbled. For a few minutes, they worked in silence. "Thanks, Kag. I needed to get my mind off of that."

Kagero smiled again. "Well, I was not just saying those things to get your mind off of an old enemy. I have not really been forward with my emotions, so it is… nice to get this opportunity to speak candidly about… us."

"Was that why ya winked?"

"Yes! Lady Lissa insisted that it would affect you in a positive way," Kagero looked excited, "Was it sufficient?"

Nephenee blushed. "It was- yeah, it worked." She remembered something in that moment. "Oh, oh yeah! Miss Maribelle told me 'bout some sorta ball? And I was wonderin' if ya wanted to go?"

Kagero chuckled, "I am hardly the best dancer, Nephenee; but yes, I would be delighted." In truth, she was quite aware of these plans. But it was cute to see Nephenee like this. "What sort of formal wear would you wear?"

"Ah… y'know, I've always wanted to try a large ball gown…"

"Intriguing, perhaps I shall wear some Hoshidan formal wear, I believe we would make quite the striking pair together in that way."

"Yeah, I'd like that!" Nephenee began to him some sort of song as she chopped, and Kagero found it quite hard not to join in.

"Wow, you took on that many enemies at once? And you fought Ike's father to a stalemate?" Fir found herself, despite all reservations, impressed by the loud and brash Petrine. Sure, she was definitely not the best person, but she was a feast of interesting knowledge and fun stories.

"Greil was quite the opponent!" Petrine continued, "Even with my exceptional speed he managed to keep me at bay!" She was mixing the custard together, and as much as she hated to admit it, she was having… fun? It was different from fighting, but she enjoyed telling these stories and cooking. "Ike, of course, was no slouch either…" she grumbled a bit at that.

"Do you know Miss Titania as well?" Fir asked, "She's really knowledgeable as well, but she doesn't really talk about her past…"

"She doesn't, does she?" Petrine tilted her head. "We were… acquaintances at best. That's how enemies are."

"Right, that makes sense." Fir felt a little awkward. "So…"

Petrine huffed. "So, who in this place is worth a good spar?"

Fir brightened up. "Well, there's Marisa- she's the pink haired woman over there-, of course you have Ike… Ephraim, Ayra, Chrom, Lucina, Echidna, Hector, Titania…"

"What about you?"

"Well, I'm still a student, really…"

Petrine rolled her eyes. "Everyone's a student, no matter how good or bad they are. You and I should spar, I think it would be a fun match."

"You really think so?" Fir asked, "I'll spar with you! Gratefully!"

The general smirked. "You better be, kid." She said with a harsh playfulness. "Now, tell me about those gladiator fights you mentioned…"

Ishtar looked at her leeks despondently. To say her chopping was uneven would be an understatement.

"Well, I'd call that a good first attempt!." Kiran remarked, as his perfect custard and diced mushrooms mocked the mage. The summoner had mentioned his prior experience as a cook, but still...

"Good?" Ishtar asked. "This is subpar at best! Look at your work and compare!"

"It's not fair to compare our work," Kiran replied simply, "It would be better to compare your work with those two ." He nodded his head over to their left, where Marisa and Tana were both somehow looking at a plate of scrambled eggs. "Before I was here, my job was to cook, so I should be better than you at it. I'm still impressed by what you've done so far."

"If you are quite sure…" Ishtar replied.

"Anyways," Kiran continued, "It won't stop it from being less delicious." He handed her some slices of thick cut ham. "Here, why don't you try cutting up the ham? Just remember to take it slow."

Ishtar nodded and began to cut.

"Remember: cats paw." Kiran whispered. Right, cats paw. She thought, and began cutting. It took longer than she would like, but eventually it was done. It was messy, but it was far superior work to what she had done.

"Is this acceptable?" She didn't want to sound too excited, but this was quite an improvement.

Kiran smiled. "Yes, I do believe this is acceptable, Lady Ishtar." She huffed at that. He always acted this way when he thought she was being too proper.

"Is it really, though?" She asked.

"Your satisfaction of your work speaks volumes without me having to say anything," The summoner remarked, "But yes, this is excellent work. Proud of you."

Ishtar giggled. "That is high praise, coming from you!" She replied, "Usually you just give people glowing reviews that use the words 'great'!"

"I can't help it, I'm a positive person!" They both laughed, and continued to cook.

Petrine smelled the quiche. It was eggy, and the bacon smelled smoky; it was reminiscent of a war camp, in a strange way. "Looks good." She said smugly. "Good job, Fir."

"Yeah, we did a good job, huh?" Fir and Petrine clasped hands. The general grinned.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" She asked, "Let's dig in." It was… good? Surprisingly good, for what looked like fancy royal food. The texture was firm and the taste was very rich. "Hah, we did do a good job."

"Not bad for a one-off attempt," Fir said, "I'm not sure if I'll ever do this again, but…"

Petrine grinned. "Tough luck, kid," she replied, "I need a partner for this class, and I think I'll keep you."

Fir smiled nervously, "Ha ha… What?"

"You heard me; or would you rather put it on a wager? If I win our spar, you stay as my cooking partner."

"A-alright…" Fir shifted weight on her legs. She had a bad feeling about this...

"That could've gone better."

"Well, I really enjoyed it!"

"Princess, we made scrambled eggs."

"They were delectable scrambled eggs!" Marisa and Tana were sitting on a bench outside, looking at the stars. The mercenary had managed to grab some pastries for dessert, which Tana was gobbling up with glee. "And I had fun, didn't you?"

"I-" Marisa paused. Of course she had fun, she always enjoyed the time she spent with the princess. "Yes, but perhaps I wasn't the best partner for this, Princess."

Tana pouted, "You need to stop that, Marisa! I enjoy the time I spend with you ! And I wanted you to have fun too!"

"I did have fun," Marisa replied, "Thank you, Princess."

"Ugh!" Tana frowned, "Please Marisa, call me Tana! You don't need to be so formal!"

"Right, T-Tana." Marisa stammered, "I'm sorry, I'm just not good at this."

Tana smiled. "Marisa, you are one of my best friends. It is no trouble for you to struggle with this sort of thing." She touched Marisa's shoulder, which caused the mercenary to jump up.

"I … have some work to do in the training grounds." She said quickly, before running off. Tana sighed and frowned, putting head in her hands.

"She didn't even grab her croissant…" Tana sighed, "Oh, Marisa…"

"Hello, Severa!"

Severa whipped her head around. A masked… man?- was standing in front of her, holding a bouquet of roses. "Uh, hi." Severa stared at the person. The shadows were hiding their face, but the voice was familiar.

"I am here to request something of you," the person was purposely keeping their voice as low as possible, "Is-is something wrong?"

"No," Severa crossed her arms and scowled. "Well? Out with it!" She already had her guesses to who this was, but it would at least be polite to let this person talk.

The masked person shifted awkwardly and put their hands behind their back. "I-I am humbly requesting that you-" The person froze, and then tried to hide behind the roses. Severa rolled her eyes and walked up to them.

"Lucina, this is idiotic, just take off the mask already!"

"Lucina? No, I'm… um… Marth!"

"Marth is the name you borrowed when you traveled back in time, Lucy; we literally discussed it together!"

"... Martin?"

"Gawds, Lucy; you aren't fooling me," Severa stated coldly, "Come on."

Lucina stammered, "H-how did you know?!" She tore off her mask, "Cynthia said that this was still a good disguise!"

"Wow, Cynthia thought it was a good idea and you still did it?" Severa paused, "Wait, why w ould Cynthia say that? What were you going to ask?" She felt a strange mixture of dread and hope.

Lucina blushed. "Well, Cynthia told me…"

"Yeah?"

"She told me everything."

Severa stood there for a second, in stone cold silence, before her eyes widened.

"Cynthia did WHAT?!"

WHOA, Severa is about to FREAK OUT!

Thank you all for reading, and any comments, questions, statements, etc. are appreciated and loved!

Thank you all for reading!