Lucina had been in her room when Chrom and Robin came back. She could see them approach from her window; she kept her door open so she could see when Chrom passed by. He walked down the hall on his own, since Robin had likely been stopped by Tharja and wouldn't be joining him as a result. Lucina got out of bed so she could greet him.
Chrom noticed her quickly. "You're asleep yet?" He asked.
"I'm not quite tired," Lucina explained. "I had slept a little bit before dinner. Did your trip go well?"
He smiled at the question. "It went better than I dared to hope, if I'm being honest." Chrom paused, only for a moment. "Was Morgan too worried?"
"It was…frustrating," Lucina admitted. "He couldn't seem to think of much else once we got back home. He wouldn't listen to my assurances, but he's outside with Noire now. I believe they decided to sleep there for tonight."
Chrom nodded. "Well, try to get some rest. I'm sure the staff could use some help if you can't sleep and need something to do."
"All right. Good night, Father."
"'Night."
He went to his room and Lucina closed the door to hers. She laid back down, glad that at least now Morgan wouldn't worry about anything else. Tomorrow should be easier, and the day after that would fall back into customary chaos that came with birthdays.
…
She woke up a little early, by her standards—just about normal time for everyone else. Lucina got up and ready for the day, then decided to see if Morgan and Noire were still outside. She greeted whoever she passed as she made her way there. It was fairly easy to figure out where they were; there were two tents and remnants of a small fire in the center of the garden.
Noire was sitting outside one of the tents, scowling at an ant. When Lucina approached, however, she picked up a stick and hit it enough times for it to stop moving, then moved a leave overtop of it. "Morgan's still asleep," Noire said, looking up at Lucina. "I would've woken him up, but he looked like he was having a nice dream…"
"Let him rest," Lucina replied softly.
Noire nodded, then visibly gathered her courage to continue on the conversation. "Your parents came home last night, right? I heard my mother talking with yours."
"They're back," Lucina agreed. "Likely making final preparations for tomorrow."
"Does the whole castle staff go out of their way to make everyone a party complete with decorations and a big cake, or just Morgan?" Noire asked curiously.
"If I'm being honest," Lucina began, "It may just be Morgan. He is the youngest—all celebrations are close to the same, but the staff tend to spend a bit more time on his. I don't blame them, of course; no one can deny that his happiness can be contagious. It makes sense that they would focus more on making him happy than say…myself, who would only smile, nod, and leave it at that. Morgan always goes out of his way to thank them."
"Sounds about right for Morgan," Noire said. She seemed to spot another ant and stood up. "…I'm going inside. I have justification if I kill any bugs there."
Lucina let her go, taking her place near Morgan. There was little need to stay close, now that their parents had returned—but she knew that he did occasionally seek company even after they come back. She was about to go back inside for breakfast when Morgan emerged from his tent.
"…You let me sleep in," he noted, still sounding tired.
"You need the rest," Lucina countered. "But you'll be happy to hear that Father and Mother came back last night."
"I thought I heard them," Morgan said. He stretched, then turned back to the tents. "Can you help me take these down and put them away?"
Lucina stood up and nodded. "Of course; we can go to breakfast afterwards."
They each took down a tent, carrying them inside and putting them away. They walked to the dining hall together, and Morgan smiled when he saw Chrom and Robin. A fairly normal conversation followed; while Morgan did ask where they went, Robin only smiled and insisted for it to stay secret for another day. Morgan playfully tried to get a few hints, but Robin nor Chrom budged. His earlier worry seemed to have never happened at all, given his current cheerfulness.
After breakfast, the day proceeded fairly normally. Lucina trained, eventually being joined by Chrom for a short while; Morgan and Noire could be heard laughing as they usually were. Lunch came and Morgan tried again to get some information out of Chrom and Robin, but ultimately didn't succeed. In the afternoon Lucina offered to help the staff get everything ready, and dinner brought with it the tradition of Morgan picking one of his gifts to open early.
The evening was quiet—which was rare on the night before someone's birthday. Lucina stayed up for a little while longer than Morgan; all she really wanted to do was admire the night sky for a few more moments. It was a clear night, and tomorrow would likely be a clear day. In only a few hours, her brother would be fourteen…it almost made her feel old, although she couldn't remember a time without him. His joy the next morning would rival that of when he was first taught how to use magic, first left the castle, and found a way to reach the future—two of which happened on or near his birthday. Lucina wondered if she was the only one who was waiting to see what kind of surprise Morgan would receive this year. She already had an idea of what it might be; Chrom had told her they were going south, after all, and there were little people they could be visiting save for the ones she was thinking of now.
