It was unusual for Lysithea to be wandering around the streets of Askr's castle town, the various brick-and-mortar shops lining the paved sidewalk while many of the kingdom's denizens walked to and from around her. Under ordinary circumstances, Hubert would have had her under guard while she traveled the streets, mostly as a formality as she was anything if not perfectly capable of defending herself. Even when she objected, she knew him well enough to know he would have at least one of his people shadowing her in case of unprovoked attack by some unfortunate thief. Considering how close of friends she was with El, Hubert had become similarly paranoid about her well-being just as much as the emperor's.
Here though, she did not have that feeling of being watched, and she wasn't alone this time. Byleth had proposed the idea to come with him along with the man she ran into briefly when she was reunited with the king. She had been apprehensive at first, still torn over the idea of leaving her world to travel to his forever and wishing to not make the decision even harder for herself, but also for the fact that she was researching a way to aid Princess Fjorm of the Nifl kingdom and her own shortened lifespan circumstances, understanding what it was like to measure one's life in a handful of years. She couldn't afford to be distracted, yet El impressed upon her that she should take the opportunity to spend time with Byleth for she may potentially never get the chance again, oblivious to the offer Byleth made after their... reunion.
A streak of pink blazed across her face as she recalled her first time. She hadn't expected it to be so... passionate, believing that it would be in a bed and with a far more romantic set-up, but she had been so swept up in her joy in seeing Byleth alive again that rational thought was dashed as she gave herself to him. The warmth and ecstasy that swam through her body as he plunged himself into her again and again was something that, even if she did reject his offer, she would remember for the rest of her life.
Her party passed by a clothing shop, and the other two female companions that came along with them stopped momentarily to peer through the glass to look at the dresses displayed. She was introduced to the others only yesterday so that she could be given a brief overview and be more comfortable around them. They were from a kingdom, or halidom as they referred to it, called Ylisse, where the husband was the Exalt's, and not king's as she was corrected, chief advisor and tactician. However once she was introduced to his wife and daughter was when the family started to get bizarre.
Lucina was an older version of the Exalt's daughter, hailing from a world that may as well be dead as far as Lysithea was concerned, which to her seemed like it would cause various issues when interacting with the Exalt, notably that his best friend married his daughter, though she technically wasn't. The married couple admitted that the Exalt was hesitant about the notion at first, but ultimately supported it since he trusted his friend to make his older daughter happy.
Then there was the more bizarre case of their older daughter, pointedly that their marriage and consummation had happened in another timeline. Before it was explained to her, she thought it peculiar that their daughter, Morgan, appeared to be about half their age, maybe even closer. Yet even after the explanation she was left with more questions than answers, answers that which none of them had since their daughter was an amnesiac. Even after a day to process what she learned of them, she still found herself puzzled, but came to at least one conclusion: by all accounts this family simply should not exist. Lucina would ordinarily be far too young for Robin, and they'd be much older than they are now if Morgan was this age. Yet by some bizarre twist of fate, they looked to be a happy family, able to make their unique circumstance work.
"Lysithea!" Lucina asked her, bringing her out of her train of thought. "Would you like to come inside with Morgan and I? We wanted to take a closer look at the dresses inside."
"You go on ahead," she replied. "Despite my look, fashion has never exactly been one of my strong points."
"I see..." answered the princess with a sullen face. "Very well. We shouldn't be too long." The mother and daughter pair headed inside and disappeared among the racks of clothing, leaving her with the men as they waited outside.
"Oh no..." Robin muttered, following it up with a groan. It was odd to Lysithea that Robin would wait until now to voice his disagreement about the shopping.
"Is something the matter, Robin?" she inquired.
Robin looked over at her, concerned practically falling off of his face. "If fashion isn't one of your strong points, Morgan and Lucina's is... something to be desired..." Lysithea could tell right away that the tactician was trying to be as delicate as possible with his word choice, not savoring the idea of outright insulting his wife and daughter's fashion sense. And now she began to wonder if she should have gone in after all to stop them from making a mistake.
"It can't be that bad," said Byleth, but if pictures were really worth one thousand words, Robin's face would be "dread" repeated one thousand times. The king's eyes widened slightly as he received the message, and she noticed him trying to hide him taking a deep breath as he braced himself. Odd that he would considering that Lysithea knew from experience that he didn't have a sense of fashion, but she knew him to be sensible enough to not wear anything garish.
As they waited, Lysithea stole a glance at Robin as read through a blue book that he always carried around with him, his book on tactics as she was informed when she asked. She had been making these sort of glances frequently, the object of her attention being the man's hair. She wouldn't have imagined running into anyone that had white hair much like that of her and El, a sure indicator of just what was eating away at them. She thought it inappropriate to ask him directly about it, they had just only recently met after all, and asking something personal would be distasteful. As far she assumed though, Robin's world didn't have Crests, yet the worry remained that he was afflicted by something else, something unique to his world.
"Have you been enjoying yourself so far, Lysithea?" the tactician asked her, a smile plastered on his face. He was at least certainly enjoying himself, if nothing else to take a break from his work and spend time with his family.
"It's a nice change from what I'm used to in my world," she replied. "When my days aren't full of helping El to rebuild Fódlan, I try to visit the streets and see the shops for myself rather than have servants do so for me. Even when I do get the rare chance, I get the feeling that Hubert has one of his men shadowing me for my 'protection'. As if he doesn't think I can defend myself from some petty thug. I'm sure you know the feeling, Byleth."
"...Yes," the king answered. "Catherine has me under guard no matter where I go. I can't say no. It is her job."
"Chrom once offered to have me under guard when traveling once I became grandmaster," informed Robin before chuckling, "He tried to argue for it, but when I reminded him about he used to go on patrol by himself on occasion, and that was the end of that."
"It must be nice," commented Lysithea, mildly envious. "To be able to walk around freely without someone thinking you can't handle yourself."
"I'm sure this Hubert means well, and if I may, it's likely not because he doesn't believe in your abilities as a mage, and it doesn't sound like it has to do with your role in your Empire either."
Lysithea's eyes flashed as she realized what the tactician meant, even if his conclusion and hers might not have been the same. She figured there was indeed some sort of reason why Hubert continued to insist despite her constant objections, and it must be because of El. The emperor had gone many years without a single friend, with him being the exception, and in her case she and El held a more speical connection. Having both suffered under the hands of the Agarthans, both she and the emperor could truly understand each other. It forged a bond unlike they had with near anyone else, save for Byleth, akin to that of sisterhood, something that neither of them shared with anyone else from the Black Eagle Strike Force.
And it was also the biggest reason why she was having trouble making a decision regard Byleth's offer to return to his Fódlan rather than hers. After her Byleth died, El was the person she was closest with now. The emperor was greatly distraught after their former professor perished, the first time she had ever seen her "sister" cry like that, and the first time she had done the same. Her heart had belonged to the man, and to see with her own eyes that he was dead somehow hurt more than being in the Agarthan's Crest experiments. They supported each other throughout their mourning and they became closer than ever before.
So when he proposed the offer to her, it created such a dilemma that, for a rare time in her life, she didn't have a response, a life-changing decision that gave her pause. On the one hand, it would mean leaving behind the world she knew to one with a different system in place, leaving her friends and family, and leaving her sister-in-spirit. Yet on the other, it was another second chance, this time to spend the rest of her life with the man she fell in love with, which also came with its own challenges. As he is king of his Fódlan, she would be queen, and she would have to learn just what sort of policies and vision Byleth has in place for his kingdom. Then there was the issue of meeting the very same people she knew in her world. They would recognize each other, but who knows how they changed from the outcome of the war that took place there. Strangers wearing familiar faces.
"Are you okay Lysithea?" she heard Byleth ask. Realizing she was staring at the ground now with worry, she tilted her head back up.
"I'm fine," she answered, though internally she was anything but. Byleth, with his experience with her, knew when there was something on her mind but refused to talk about it. Before he could press further, the bell above the clothing store chimed as the door opened. Lucina and Morgan emerged from the building, both with an arm slung through a singular bag.
"We've finished!" Morgan exclaimed excitedly. The mother-daughter pair were practically beaming with what they must have purchase, but if Robin's dire prophesizing was anything to go by, what they must have bought could not be good.
"What did you get?" the father asked, but his tone was less than enthused.
Morgan quickly rummaged through her bag and pulled out what had to be the gaudiest blouse she had ever seen. The collar, sleeves, and hem were like the scales of a salmon, the bottom portion a bright, polka-dotted lime, and the top half an unappealing gold held up by a ruby string. The dress that Lucina brought forth wasn't any better, a blinding marmalade that clashed immensely with her hair color, with an angled, gold spiral that climbed all the way up to the collar. Lysithea tried to contain her disgust from the sight, managing to not make a sound but couldn't resist her face contorting in revulsion. She was no expert on fashion, but even she knew when something was far beyond tacky.
"What do you think, father?!" Morgan eagerly asked the man, her face one of excitement in contrast to Lysithea's. Robin for his part wasn't as obvious with his displeasure with the dress, enough of an indication for the other white-haired mage that this was indeed not the first occurrence for him.
"It's... uh..." he stumbled, doing his best to not offend the two bluenettes.
"Ha ha! I see! You're so stunned by the sight that it has left you speechless, hasn't it? Don't worry father, you can tell me later!" Morgan then stowed the offensive blouse away back in her bag, and Lysithea could practically see the relief in his body language as much as he tried to mask it.
Lucina turned toward her to fully display the dress she bought. "What do you think of this dress, Lysithea?"
The mage gulped, hoping that she would avoid being put on the spot. She rapidly tried to find an answer that wouldn't offend the princess after having only met her recently, yet at the same time she found it difficult to lie. It was pointed out to her a while back that she wasn't good at it.
"It's... certainly unique, Lucina," she replied, a decent compromise to her dilemma. "It's sure to attract attention from that... er, uniqueness!" A slight stumble of her own she knew, but if she had to keep looking at that thing any longer she might have to just go out and say how she really viewed it.
"You think so?" she answered with some measure of giddiness. Lysithea wondered if perhaps even that was the wrong thing to say for Robin's sake. "I had you figured for a discerning taste. You're dress is absolutely marvelous!"
"Even though it wasn't entirely my idea..." the mage thought to herself. That was when she heard her stomach rumble at her, her eyes shooting down at the sudden noise. Normally she would be a bit embarrassed in the presence of new company by the sound, but at the present moment she was thankful for the distraction.
"Hungry?" Byleth asked her, a slight smile on his face. She couldn't help but notice that he sounded a little more eager about it then he should have for something so trivial.
"We have been touring for a while," Robin stated matter-of-factly. "There's a district not too far from here that we go to on occasion for lunch when work hasn't piled up on us. Hopefully the resturant we frequent won't be too crowded and we can dine there."
"What sort of food do they serve?" Lysithea inquired.
"It's an odd mix of Nifl and Múspell cuisine," Lucina answered. "One would think that the two nations's food would not be able to mix very well, yet to our surprise they blend rather nicely with each other."
"It's definitely a more unique experience!" chimed in Morgan, smile brimming across her face as she tried to contain her excitement. "And a lot of people in Askr flock to it because of its reputation and food! Buuuut because of that it's never empty, and given what time it is..."
"Exactly right, Morgan. We should hurry there before we are stuck in a long line."
"Must be quite the dining if it's this popular with the locals..." pondered Lysithea aloud. Being in Askr for a short a time as she had, she had not had much experience with even Askrian cuisine. Adding two more nations to her palate so quickly might be a little overboard.
"I guarantee it's something you do not want to miss while you're here," informed Robin, as though reading her thoughts. "They also have the two cultures separate if you'd prefer it that way, to try them out before mixing them together."
"I suppose there is no use in arguing further. I must admit though, I am curious as to what their dessert menu is like. I have yet to try any of the potentially delectable sweets that either nation has to offer."
Byleth smirked at Lysithea's admission. No matter what timeline she was from, her love for sweets was a constant. "Shall we go then?"
"Follow us," instructed Robin as he began heading out, Morgan and Lucina quickly locking in-step with him. Lysithea and Byleth did as told and came up next to the trio, walking side-by-side to the other.
Lysithea couldn't help but blush a little as her face warmed, walking alongside the man she wish she could have had as her husband. Her surroundings and his presence next to her made her think just how it would be if they could do this in the streets of Enbarr, or wherever they happened to have settled down. Being able to gaze upon the world they helped make, to see the sights and sounds of city life she knew he, and admittedly herself, had never truly experienced would make for some happy memories. To walk down the paved streets, perhaps even holding hands like a couple as they did so, exploring the various sort of shops that lined the roads...
Yet as she thought on it, it only made her heart hurt that such a thing wasn't possible... at least before now. There was now a chance for her to do exactly what she daydreamed about, but it brought on all sorts of challenges with it as she would, hypothetically, become queen. Would they ever be able to do so, given his royal status? No one would be able to stop him because of his title of course, but he was likely swamped with having to reform his own Fódlan. Would they ever have time to do as they are now?
She shook her head. She was getting ahead of herself. There was still the matter of leaving everything she had ever known behind for the sake of her own happiness. And she couldn't just... leave everyone like that. They might all be there in his Fódlan, but their beliefs and thoughts would be different. El would be dead there, the person she was the next closest with after Byleth, and seeing what public opinion of her might would likely be upsetting. So much of her life would have to change, so much to adapt to. And yet... difficult challenges such as those wasn't new to her, and what would it say about her if she turned her back when faced with them?
Leaving her friends forever, her sister-in-spirit as well, leave the life she had just received for an entirely new one, all for the man she wanted to spend her life with... would it be worth it? The answer she struggled with, and she wasn't sure what to do.
Soon they arrived at their destination, and the collective group's heart sank a little as the line stretched out of the door of the restaurant. Dozens of people lined up and crowed the street for their chance at the unique dishes served there, yet Lysithea couldn't help but feel as though it might not be worth the wait.
"Aw come on..." said a deflated Morgan, "We have to wait in that?!"
"It is a popular destination," reminded her father. "And it is close to lunch time."
"Should we try somewhere else then?" Lysithea suggested. She noticed Lucina turning her head toward her husband, and though she couldn't tell what silent message was being conveyed, it wasn't one that led her to believe she agreed with the mage's idea. Rather she noticed a slight smirk followed by a nod, with her husband doing the same. The time she spent studying Byleth's minute facial expressions and body language to help her better understand him was paying off more than she had originally thought, although she couldn't tell what they were planning.
"Robin," said Lucina, smiling innocently. "Why don't you, Byleth, and Morgan wait in line for us? You can discuss tactics while Lysithea and I get a chance to bond." Lucina then glanced over and stared at Byleth for longer than she had with Robin. It took him but a moment to understand what she meant, raising Lysithea's suspicion even more as to just what was going on. Meanwhile Morgan flung her head back and forth, decidedly more confused than she was about what the adults were plotting.
"It would pass the time," Byleth commented. "If you're sure it's worth the wait."
"Believe me, it is," assured the princess. "I'm not a connoisseur with the life that I've had, but the food here is unlike anything else before it."
The king turned toward his companion, his expression unreadable. "Are you all right with that Lysithea?"
She didn't answer right away, glancing between him and Lucina suspiciously but the latter never gave any hint of what was going on. "If it's as tasty as you say it is, then I guess I will agree to it. Just don't make us wait too long before I begin to change my mind!"
With that said, the three tacticians headed over to the back of the line, Morgan looking particularly giddy as she walked with bit of a spring to her step, possibly eager to learn from Byleth. The princess and the advisor went the opposite direction, following the line until eventually led to an open pavilion. The circular area was lined with different shops, from clothing to smithies, and even another couple of restaurants. There was an even a sweet shop that immediately drew Lysithea's attention as she gazed upon the cakes on display through the window, salivating at the thought of digging her teeth into them. Perhaps after lunch they could head there and engage in desert, though her wonderment about being accompanied inside was secondary. She would go in regardless.
"Let's wait over here, Lysithea," said Lucina, pointing at the the large, magnificent marble fountain on display in at the pavilion's center. There were children running around it while their parents enjoyed their own meals, and even a few young couples stood around it and were tossing gold coins into the pool at the base. The two women proceeded over to it and sat down on rim, Lysithea taking note that the pool was dotted with gold coins.
"The line is longer than I realized..." Lucina commented as she studied the entrance to the restaurant, the aptly named "Fire and Ice". The crowd was switching between minute amounts of shuffling and standing, leaving Lysithea to wonder how bored she might have become had she waited with the tacticians.
"I hope your praise of it wasn't just empty words," warned Lysithea as she crossed her arms. "There are bound to be plenty of other options with much shorter wait times."
"It is worth the wait, I assure you, but while we do so, let's talk for a little while."
Lysithea eyed her suspiciously, still aware that her companion was up to something. "Okay..."
"Is... something wrong with my face?" the princess asked, puzzled.
"Not at all. What did you want to discuss?"
"How are you enjoying Askr so far?"
Lysithea put a finger to her chin to ponder. "It honestly isn't much different than what I'm used to. The setting may be different, but aside from that my brief experience here compared to Fódlan is similar. Living in a castle, the urban environment. The biggest surprise was discovering that there are worlds far removed from my own, and even... different timelines."
Lucina leaned over slightly as she surveyed their surroundings. "I can see how one could be overwhelmed by that. I'm no stranger when it comes to traveling to a different time or world. It took quite some getting used to seeing people like my father be very similar in age to me. Though with my goal in mind, I wasn't completely taken aback by the changes."
"One thing that did concern me was learning that a younger version of myself is here," Lysithea pointed out. "A version of me back when I was a student. I have had to swear to myself to keep away from her, as to not unwittingly alter her future." She tilted her gaze down that a shadow cast over her eyes as she whispered "No matter how much I want to..."
"That was my biggest surprise when we arrived here. To meet so many different versions of me that each led different lives after their battle was over, although one never had the troubles the rest of us did. I must admit, I do find myself somewhat envious of her."
Lysithea sighed, her impatience and suspicion getting the best of her. "What is this about, Lucina?"
Lucina instantly turned toward her. "I'm sorry?"
The mage turned toward her, brows slightly furrowed. "You're up to something."
The princess's face contorted as a bead of sweat trickled down from her temple. "I... I don't know what you mean."
Lysithea's brow furrowed deeper. "I saw those gestures you made toward your husband and Byleth. You wanted to get us alone together for something, though I cannot determine what it is."
The princess let out a defeated breath. "Robin always said that discretion was the better part of valor. If I made it that obvious then I guess my acting skills need improvement."
"Even if you hadn't made it clearly obvious, I've learned how to read body language quite well thanks to Byleth. Surely you must be aware of his stoic disposition and how hard it is to tell what he's thinking."
"I am," she answered with a nod. "And if that is true then that is an impressive skill of yours."
"Of course it is!" she replied with a proud smile.
Lucina straightened herself up, preparing herself to execute her plan. "But you are correct in your suspicion. I did want to have us be alone because there was something I wanted to discuss with you. I will speak plainly: Byleth has informed me of your dilemma regarding his offer for you to return to his world."
A bewildered look struck Lysithea as she heard her. Why would Byleth get anyone else involved with this matter?
"Oh he did, did he?" she responded with disdain. Did he think she couldn't make this decision on her own? She waved that thought away, and instantly regretted letting her insecurity momentarily getting the better of her. She knew he wasn't like that. The logical answer was that he was bringing in help to make up her mind in his favor. "I will have to speak with him about getting other people involved with personal matters."
"Don't be too harsh on him. I only agreed to do so on the condition that he must accept whatever decision you come to."
Lysithea hummed in satisfaction. At least he was being mature about it. "I see. Very well then Lucina, but I don't see how you might be able to help."
"He thought I could because of how similar of a situation yours is with my own, about leaving your world behind to live in another. I understand just how much of a struggle it is to make that decision."
Lysithea tilted her head toward her companion with a raised brow. "But your original world is in ruins. It makes sense that you would decide to do as such."
Lucina nodded. "Perhaps. However I was princess of Ylisse, and I did have an obligation to assume my role as Exalt once I accomplished my mission, to lead the rebuilding efforts and try to restore the world to what it once was. At first I had no way of returning so it was a somewhat easier decision to make, yet even when the chance to do so did arise... I still refused."
That got Lysithea's attention as her eyes widened and turned her body to give the princess her undivided attention. "...You did? Why?"
"To understand that," she answered with a sad smile. "You have to know more about my history."
"We have time while we're waiting."
The princess nodded before taking a deep breath to collect her thoughts. "Where I am from, it was a hellish landscape. The sky was perpetually covered with clouds, the land was practically barren. Towns had been razed, cities decimated, and everyday was a fight for our lives, and we faced an unrelenting enemy. The Risen did not tire, did not require food or water, and all they knew how to do was obey their master's will and kill anything that lived."
"The Risen?"
"The name that was given to the undead warriors used by Grima, the Fell Dragon. Grima sought only the complete annihilation of all life, the only reason being out of pure hatred. He was monstrous, and virtually unkillable save for using the Fire Emblem to empower my blade, Falchion. Both are relics created by Naga, the Divine Dragon, many years ago to be used in times of great crisis. Usually those crises involve some powerful dragon."
Lysithea put a finger under her lip. "Hmm, judging from the brief description you gave me when we were introduced, I assume that in your case they didn't work for you."
Lucina sighed. "Ordinarily they would have, but the Fire Emblem requires five gemstones to unlock its full power. We only had possession of four; the fifth was lost to us forever. As a result, the ritual to unlock Falchion's true potential was incomplete, which almost guaranteed our inevitable doom... until Naga offered an alternative."
"To be sent back in time to prevent it all from ever happening."
Lucina nodded. "With no other option, I made the decision to do just that. As leader of what remained of humanity, I made it my mission to travel to the past and prevent Grima's return, whatever the cost."
"Wait, hold on," said a surprised Lysithea. "I know you are royalty and all, but you were everyone's leader?" The princess nodded again. "I can't imagine what that must have been like for you."
"It was... difficult." Lucina had lowered her voice somewhat as painful memories drudged up in her mind. "To be the one everyone looked to to save them, to carry their hopes and the weight of the world when hardly anything ever seemed to go right... I had to be everyone's hope. Put their lives, my role as princess, and my mission above all other matters. There was no time for anything else, especially myself."
Lysithea knitted her brows. The war that she partook in was bloody for sure, but it was nothing compared to what Lucina's was like. She couldn't even really call the latter's case a war; it was an apocalypse. If every day was effectively a loss, that would demoralize anyone, and when the fate of an entire world is on your shoulders... "I can't imagine the immense amount of pressure you felt through it all."
Lucina tilted her head toward the sky. "It was immense, and because of my position I had to keep it all to myself. Only my sister, Cynthia, had an inkling as to what it was like for me. There was never any time for me to rest. I had to keep fighting, keep pushing my way forward, remain focused on my mission. Letting up even once would have meant the end... but even so, I still had my doubts."
"How so?"
Lucina gazed down upon her open hand. "My father remaining alive was the key, but could I really save him? Could I truly change fate, given everything I saw? But in the end, whether I could or couldn't didn't matter. I only knew that I must save my father, that I must change fate to ensure it would never happen again."
"I see. To be everyone's hope, to see what you've seen, and to face such an impossible task. I'm sure all of that stress must have worn on you."
"Robin thought the same," she answered with an amused smirk. "And he was right. I spent so much of my focus and time on my responsibilities that he saw how much I was neglecting myself." The smirk Lysithea noticed gave way to a warm smile as Lucina thought on her husband. "So much changed for me because of him."
"That much I understand..." Lysithea murmured, remembering how if it wasn't for Byleth's determination, she might not even be here right now.
"I tell you all of this to provide context," Lucina looked her dead in the eye with the seriousness a woman of her experience could muster. "My mission was my only priority, and I would do what was necessary to accomplish it. That meant trying to alter events in the new time without them carrying considerable consequences."
Lysithea nodded. "And since you were from a future where the worst happened, you knew how events in the past would turn out."
"Yes," Lucina relaxed a little as she adjusted herself in her seat. "But as to not cause any alarm with my father and the Shepherds, I hid my identity and first warned them over what was to come. I made sure to guide events to be more favorable for my father's time, such as intervening when an assassin attempted to kill him in the garden of Ylisstol. In my time, he was injured from the strike, enough so that he could not defend my aunt, the late Exalt Emmeryn, when a larger group of assassins took her life."
"I assume your intervention was successful in this time."
"It was, but... eventually it led to her sacrificing herself to greatly disrupt the war between Ylisse and Plegia. At the time I was dismayed by her decision, for it only meant that events were proceeding just as in my time, albeit delayed.
Lysithea didn't bother to ask about the names of the locations the princess was mentioning in her recollection. She concluded that if the princess didn't find the desire to explain them relevant, then neither would she.
"The war ended far sooner than it did in my time as a result," Lucina continued. "And for two years Ylisse was at peace. Then Walhart began his conquest on Valm, and my father was requested to help deal with it. In turn he requested the aid of Plegia for support as Walhart would have threatened both nations, and... Validar... provided his entire navy and no more."
Concerned etched itself in Lysithea's face as she tilted back slightly in her seat. She took her companion to be a calm, level-headed individual in the short time they knew each other, and to hear her utter a name with such venom took her by surprise. He must have been responsible for some heinous act, but she imagined Lucina would get to that shortly.
"Transporting an entire navy would take time," Lucina continued, voice returning to normal as she composed herself. "So during the wait I informed my father that my friends from my time had come with me, but had since scattered. Time travel is... not an exact science as I discovered. But they had journeyed with me, and had as much of a mind to prevent Grima's resurrection as I did. I wanted to find them and see that goal to fruition."
Lysithea saw Lucina's cheeks turn a faint pink as a soft smile graced her face. "It was during that search that Robin and I grew closer together, enough so that I came to have feelings for him."
The mage leaned back slightly and smirked at her companion. "He must have made quite an impact on someone who was solely focused on her mission."
Lucina admitted so with a nod. "You have to understand that I was a very guarded individual. Having lost my father, my mother, and so many friends and allies, I could no longer afford to let anyone grow close to me. They might very well disappear the next day, and it would just be another source of heartache. Not only this, but I always knew that my father was murdered by someone close to him, and aside from my mother, Robin was the closest with him. As such he was my primary suspect for who the traitor was."
"So how did he manage to lower those barriers?"
"We... talked," Lucina informed. "Often. Not just about my mission, but my well-being. He noticed how much I was pushing myself to the brink of collapse, and how much stress has been accumulating from a life of fighting and tragedy. I... had not realized until then how much I needed to let it all out. I had not confided with anyone before, not even my own sister."
"You trusted him with that kind of personal information?" Lysithea asked, puzzled. "You did say he was your primary suspect."
Lucina looked bemused with herself. "I know how ironic it sounds, but he did genuinely care, and I could see that. So I told him my worries, my doubts, so much that I had always kept to myself. And he listened, sympathized, and offered me assurances that I was not alone in all of it. I had never felt such relief before, and by the time we rejoined my father, I realized that I had fallen in love with him."
"And how did you feel about that?"
It took Lucina a moment to respond, focusing on a random spot on the ground as she tried to recollect. "I was... confused. Shocked. Excited. I was in love with someone from a time that was not my own, someone that would have been several years my elder in that time. I barely remember the Robin from my time, to the point that I don't recall if Robin was male or female. But I could not deny my own feelings for him. I woke up every morning eager to see his face again, I found myself... enjoying time I spent with him. What else could that mean but love?"
Lysithea knew that all too well, feeling the same exact thing during the time when she and Byleth were searching for possible solutions to her twin Crest problem. She already had feelings for him before then, but they become more intense during that period.
"And at the center of all those emotions was the knowledge that this shouldn't be happening. I may not remember much about the Robin from my time, but I do know they never had children. And when he came to me one night and confessed his own feelings, it further exacerbated that anomaly. Events in his world were happening differently in some fashion, but they always reached the same conclusion. Except this."
"It sounds to me like that would be a good thing, wouldn't it?" Lysithea asked with raised brow. "If something entirely new were to happen, it wouldn't lead to the same conclusion from how you recall it."
"Yes, I see that now. Our feelings for each other shook so much I knew of history, but that wasn't even what really unraveled everything."
Lucina didn't continue right away with what she meant, but it didn't take long for Lysithea to figure out what she was talking about based on what she had recently said. "Your daughter Morgan."
The princess nodded and smiled. "I couldn't believe she was mine at first. Yet when she showed me the Brand of the Exalt on her right hand, there was no denying it. Somehow, in some other timeline entirely, the world was peaceful enough that Robin and I had a daughter. I had trouble being around her at first because of this revelation, but her presence did inspire me to keep fighting, for my mission had become a personal one."
"Did that make you happy?"
She pondered for a moment as she thought back to that time, before closing her eyes and the smile returned. "Yes, though I didn't think I deserved it. So many suffered back on my world, so much had been taken from me that my sole reason for living was to ensure the success of my mission. Yet all of a sudden I had a daughter, a husband-to-be, my mother and father again... for the first time in a very long time, I actually felt hope rather than just say the word to try and motivate myself and those around me."
Lysithea noticed the emphasis Lucina put on the word "hope" as she said it. She already gathered from her story that the princess was in quite the dire situation, both within and without. To be introduced to a daughter and to fall in love with someone seemed to do wonders for her well-being if she had only used hope as an empty word before. She wondered just how dour the princess was before, not getting a clear picture from just her story, but if it was as bad as she said it was, the woman she was looking at now was definitely not the same as she was before.
"I see..."
"Yet despite all that," continued Lucina. "I had to remain focused on putting my mission before anything else. Even before Robin and Morgan. I never wanted to be put in a situation where I had to choose between them or my mission. I couldn't allow my personal feelings get in the way of the greater good. And yet... that is exactly what ended up happening."
Lysithea recoiled. "Wait what?!"
"Yes. You see, I discovered that Robin was meant to be the vessel that would return Grima to the world. I couldn't believe it, nor the cruel irony of my situation. I had at first believed that there was no way Robin would betray my father, yet Validar demonstrated he could control Robin somehow, and he used him to steal the Fire Emblem away from my father. My heart was torn about what to do, and at first I decided to confront him and... murder him, before Grima could return all over again."
The mage couldn't believe the words that the princess just uttered. The logic was sound, but she could see that Lucina was not a murderer. And to kill someone that made her happy seemed so stupid, even if it meant completing her mission. She was relieved that she never had to be put into such a dilemma before.
"I can't imagine what you must have been going through during that," Lysithea sympathized. "However, judging by his presence here, you obviously did not go through with it."
Lucina gave a sad smile. "I just... couldn't do it. Robin had showed me that my own happiness mattered. So much had been taken from me throughout my life, and now I was forced to destroy the small amount of happiness that was returning to me after so long. Even as I pointed my sword at him, all he could think about was me finding happiness with someone else. But... I didn't want anyone else. I wanted him. So I dropped my sword and refused to do it, because I loved him too much. Because he made me happy."
The mage wished she knew what that was like, to be so happy with someone that you chose them over something that you had dedicated yourself to fulfilling. She had never got to that point with her relationship with Byleth. She had feelings for him certainly, but having never told him out of fear of being unsuccessful with their search for a method to remove her Crests... it was her biggest regret in life.
Yet she could now see just how important both Robin and Morgan were to Lucina. They had effectively changed her life, bringing happiness to someone who didn't think she deserved it for the longest time. She wanted to be with Robin regardless of a mission she dedicated her very being to, going so far as to cast it aside at the ultimate test of her resolve. That kind of bond must be strong indeed for someone like her.
"I'm glad I didn't do it," Lucina went on. "I love spending time with him, I love being here with him. Robin, Morgan, young Morgan. Having them in my life has meant so much to me. Had it not been for them I would have left my father and the other Shepherds once victory had been obtained."
"Why?"
"At first it was because I didn't want to distract him and my mother from spending time with the younger Lucina. I didn't want to burden them with the responsibility of having to potentially explain my presence at Ylisstol. But their constant reassurances that I would not be, along with Robin and Morgan being in my life now, gave me more reason to stay." Lucina began blushing slighty. "And... to be honest, a small part me of wanted to as well, even before all of that."
Lysithea took notice of her timidity. "That's nothing to be embarrassed about. It meant being able to reconnect with your parents, even if they technically are not yours."
"Yes..." Lucina sighed, a comfortable one by the sound of it, as she leaned back and once more looked up at the sky. "I never would have imagined how positively my life has changed by making the decision to travel to Robin's world. My friends have noted how much my mood has changed from before then. And I have to agree with them. I actually feel... happy."
Lysithea glanced up at the sky as she contemplated Lucina's words. Going to a different world that looked so much like her own, to reconnect with the family she lost, to make one of her own in the process. Whereas if she had not done so, she would very likely be dead now in only prolonging what was inevitable. The faces of her once dead parents were different in a sense, yet that didn't seem to matter much to her now. It really did appear as though she was in a similar situation as the princess, to travel to a familiar yet different world, and ended up finding happiness along the way. Although in this case, she would be doing it for happiness, and not for some world-saving goal in mind.
But was that so bad though? It would be incredibly selfish, but then again happiness was a selfish emotion. Her life was busy working with El to reform Fódlan, and while it was certainly fulfilling, she realized now that it felt... lacking. She wanted Byleth to see everything they had fought for, and that was never going to happen. Despite how active her life was now, there was just that one missing component that would have truly made it complete. Traveling to his version of Fódlan would be scary, but he would be there, they could be together, and overtime, much like Lucina, she would grow accustomed to it.
And yet...
"I'm glad to hear that so much good as happened for you Lucina," said Lysithea as she lowered her head to stare at the ground. "And I can see how our situations are similar, but there is one key difference. You never had the option to return to your world, whereas with mine I can choose to stay there."
"That is true..." Lucina admitted in such a way that Lysithea turned to face her with puzzlement. "Or at least it used to be."
Lysithea's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"
"Three of my friends, Inigo, Severa, and my cousin Owain, traveled to a different world at the request of a being named Anankos. He needed their help in saving his world, and they agreed to do so. When they succeeded, they came back with an orb that, according to Anankos, would allow us to return to our original world."
There was so many questions that flooded Lysithea's mind now. How could a being from a different world entirely be able to do that? Just how powerful was this "Anankos" that he was capable of doing such a feat? But she understood that these were irrelevant to the conversation, and all she could ask was: "What was that like for you?"
"It was... a struggle for me. I was able to more easily accept my circumstance because I operated under the assumption that it was impossible to go back. With that orb, it changed that circumstance. I began to feel like I was obligated to return, to take up my role as Exalt and lead what remained of the people of my world in reconstruction. It was once again another battle between my duty, and my happiness."
"It meant leaving your family behind..."
"Half of it actually. Robin and Morgan assured me that they would come with me no matter what, and I knew they were serious."
Lysithea raised a questioning brow at her. "I don't get it then. If they were going to come with you, wouldn't you have gone back because of your role?"
"Because doing so meant taking them away from everything Robin knew, and Morgan was just getting acclimated to the new world she found herself in. Regardless of that, my friends and I convened to discuss what we should do. That discussion needed to happen before I made a decision, as I wanted to gauge their opinions on the matter. Some of them felt the same obligation I did, while the others enjoyed being in our parents world. We couldn't make a consensus except on one thing: that we would all go together if that was the decision made."
"So how did you decide?"
"As I was their leader, it fell to me to make the decision for the group. It was the most important decision I would have to make in my entire life. Traveling to the past was an easier one, as I was willing to do anything to save my world. That decision though... it would be as life-altering as my marriage to Robin."
"And you decided to stay in the new world."
Lucina nodded. "Everyone was surprised to hear me say that, but I felt confident in it. That chapter of my life was over. The future, my future, did not lie in my past, but rather making a life for myself in the world we found ourselves in. I could also not take Robin and Morgan away from the world they knew, despite what they had said. As for the power vacuum my absence would have left behind, I remain convinced that those who survived will have found a new leader to guide them in their restoration."
Lysithea looked straight ahead at the line in front of them. Robin, Byleth, and Morgan had by now approached the entrance, appearing engrossed in their own conversation. When she looked over at Lucina, she had also noticed her husband and daughter, and at once she looked to be more at ease.
"That was an incredibly selfish decision you made," remarked Lysithea, yet there was no chastising to be heard from her words. Lucina returning would have made things easier for the people back in her world rather than looking for a new leader entirely, but she could see the logic there. A new leader would rise, as they always do in times of crisis.
"Yes... it was," admitted the princess, "But I do not regret it."
That was what the mage needed to hear, to know if there was even a hint of doubt or regret upon reflection. It was a very touching story from the princess, one she sympathized with how hard her life had been, only to find that light shining in the darkness that changed everything for her. Yet she admitted to herself that it would have not done much to help her conundrum until Lucina mentioned the orb. To put her own happiness before her duty as a princess... some people would frown upon such a thing, but she was not one of them. It isn't wrong to want to be happy.
It isn't wrong to want to be happy...
"Thank you for telling me your story, Lucina," said Lysithea warmly. "I must admit it's similar to my own. The darkness that covered me for much of my life, and how I found a light shining in that darkness. The most distinct difference was that my light was snuffed out, but... now I have a chance to relight it."
"I'm glad I was able to help," replied Lucina as she stood up. "I hope it makes the decision you reach easier."
The mage stood up with her. "I have a lot to think about now, but it does help. But before we rejoin the others, there is one other question I have for you."
Lucina tilted her head. "What is it?"
"It doesn't have to do with what we just talked about it, but it's about Robin. Specifically his hair."
"I'm... not sure I understand."
The mage looked over at the man in question. "Well... you see... in my experience, those with white hair have shortened lifespans due to their bodies holding two Crests. Does... does he suffer from something similar?"
"Oh! No, nothing like that. He once had the Mark of Grima on his right hand, but all it meant was that he was Grima's vessel, but it's no longer there."
She looked back at Lucina with raised brows. "So it is just naturally that color?"
"I guess so. It's a little odd that it would be since Validar's was black. I suppose it must come from his mother, though he has no idea who that is, or if she is even still alive."
Lysithea smiled with relief. "I see. That's good to hear. A-about his hair color I mean, not his mother being dead!"
Lucina giggled. "It's okay, I know what you meant. Come on, let's go rejoin them. I'm beginning to feel quite peckish."
The mage watched as the princess rejoined her husband's side, hugging the man once she did so, who looked bewildered that she would hug him out of nowhere. She then turned to her daughter and gave her a hug too, who notably did not look as bewildered and simply basked in mother's embrace.
She would like that too. To be able to embrace a family of her own, to know what it was like to live a life with the man who gave her so much to live for. She had lost that chance before, and now she was given a second one. She shook her head at the absurdity of it. It seems life was always giving her second chances, and much like before, Byleth was the cause of it.
It would be scary to move to a different world. Faces that are the same, yet different. A more direct role in reforming Fódlan. Leaving everyone she knew from her world behind. But he would be there, and it would make the transition more soothing. A life with him she wanted to have before was within her grasp, and much like that revealing conversation with him before, she was going to take that chance.
She looked over at Byleth, who was now looking at her and wondering why she had not moved to rejoin him. She wondered the same thing, and with a smile she went to him to do just that.
I apologize for the long delay between chapters, but I just really haven't had the interest in writing for a time now. I lost quite a bit of when I started working full-time, and lost motivation to continue writing, but I at least wanted to finish this up with how close it was to being complete.
I hope you enjoyed this little mini-series of mine! I at least certainly did with my two favorite FE pairings interacting in the only way they could!