It was just another day in Askr for Eirika. She had finally found herself becoming somewhat comfortable in this strange new world she was summoned into. Eirika looked into her mirror and proudly unsheathed her sword which has kept her company. She may not have her brother or much else from Magvel with her at the moment, but for now she has her trusted Sieglinde in hand to remind her of home. Thankfully in Askr, Eirika has found herself in good company with some kindred spirits. Every morning she leaves her room in pristine quality and awaits to meet others from different worlds and who will join everyone else in this new kingdom. Today, she planned on meeting up with Eliwood, another hero with a gentle temperament like herself. Eliwood also found himself a little isolated from his home as well. He was excited for his own friends' inevitable arrival here, and not to mention potentially even his own future son which he's heard so much about from some certain other heroes.
"If it isn't the Marquess of Pherae himself, Lord Eliwood!" The Elegant Princess announces before she performs a tiny curtsey upon finding Marquess Eliwood.
"Ah, the esteemed Princess Eirika of Renais! I have been eagerly awaiting your arrival." The Regal Marquess bows as he realizes he is in the presence of her highness.
Both Eliwood and Eirika burst into laughter together afterwards.
Eliwood overlooked the beautifully exotic yet very tame garden while he began to ponder about his place here, "You know I always knew my title was not the most esteemed out there, but I was proud of it. Around here it feels more uncommon to not have a title rather than to have one."
Eirika nodded her head in agreement "While I'm certainly used to being around so much other royalty and esteemed knights, it's just… overwhelming at times to know how many kingdoms are out there."
Eliwood started to count off who was already in Askr, "Hero Kings, Emperors, Bandit Princes and even Princesses from hidden kingdoms! Goes quite a way to make you feel a bit insignificant at times doesn't it, Eirika? Not to mention it's hard to feel like a particularly brave or legendary hero, especially when you're the one people generally want to protect."
Eirika chuckled, "We're even more alike than I would have imagined, Eliwood. My brother was always the one for combat, to the point of him avoiding becoming heir to the throne a long time ago. I remember when I had to plead for him to teach me beginners sword training personally."
Eliwood affirmed his new friend, "Well, I see it's paid off tremendously! Do you ever get to spar with your brother? While I may not have an actual brother, I find myself sparring with my blood brother Hector in a regular routine."
A look of despair quickly washed over Eliwood and he quickly began to lament to himself "...This place isn't going to ruin that near decade long streak for us now, is it?"
"Eliwood, did you say something?" Eirika questioned a thousand yard stare Eliwood had developed towards a blank wall.
Quickly, Eliwood snapped out of his brief scare. "Ah yes, sorry what I meant to ask is… if you and Ephraim ever got to spar?"
"Oh no, Ephraim was always too intimidating in that regard." Eirika waved her hand to shoot down that idea. "Although," she mused, "I did get to fight against another friend of mine, while we all had a good laugh about me being able to beat him… in hindsight I think it really made him deeply upset. I… still feel that I could… no should have done so much more..." Eirika trailed off, as the casual talk took her back to more unpleasant memories.
This wasn't his first experience where Eliwood heard about hardships, and he was able to pick up on the obvious change in tone for the conversation. Eliwood delicately worked in, "Was this friend of yours also royalty, Eirika? You did mention you knew and got to meet a lot of noble figures on your journey, would you like to talk about any of them? If you don't want to talk about it we can just drop it, I would understand." Eliwood recognized that the girl had seen a lot of trouble in her life and was not ready yet to share. Eirika had never mentioned any of it, but to be fair he has been mostly quiet on his own troubles from the past.
Eirika breathed in where she tried her best to keep her composure and tried to power through her words, "A-ah, w-well… he was a... special person and h-he… well… we lost him."
Even without the sound of her anxious voice, Eliwood could see the pain just in her eyes, "Say no more. I can tell this this is too much for you to talk about right now."
"...Thank you", was the only thing Eirika let out as she was also struggling with making eye contact.
Eager to change the subject for Eirika's sake, Eliwood thought of a light hearted topic and was about to ask, "Hey Eirika, have I ever told you about the time that I met-?"
"Ah, Eirika! I sure am glad to see you here!"
She knew that voice, it was no one else but her dear brother! The sadness that was starting to overwhelm Eirika quickly disappeared as her face started to glow as the time to finally reunite with her brother had arrived.
Eirika turned to face the familiar voice and began to exclaim, "Ah Ephr-"
She stopped.
She froze.
She dropped her sword.
She saw him.
"Oh hello there, Eirika! I-is everything alright?"
Eirika never entertained the idea of seeing Lyon again, yet he stood before her like nothing had ever happened.
Like he never lost control of himself to the horrible Demon King.
Like she never had to promise to end him for his sake and the world's.
Like it was the Real Lyon that she knew at his deathbed who thanked her, the one that she had not enough words for at that moment.
All thoughts left Eirika's mind. She just could only sprint towards Lyon and embrace him. She didn't even realize the amount of tears that poured down her face.
The rest of the world didn't even matter to her any more. She had already forgotten Eliwood, Ephriam, and the rest of the world that may notice. She just wanted to hold onto to someone she lost. Someone that left her. The only thing that Eirika could do was to bury her head into Lyon's chest where his cloak would get drenched, and softly repeat Lyon's name on end.
Absolutely paralyzed, Lyon was stuck only able to say one thing much like the girl in his arms, "E-Eirika?"
It wasn't until Ephraim placed his hand on his sister's shoulder that Eirika was brought back into reality and was able to hear someone again. "Eirika? Is everything alright?" Ephraim tried to question her, with no answer coming from his twin.
Eirika needed to gasp for air after such an intense cry, and she let go of Lyon. The princess's typically refined nature was completely in shambles. Eirika's face had become almost as red as her armor, her nose was running, and her eyes were burning, just as red as the rest of her face. The only response she could muster was "I.. I'm just so s-sorry!"
Almost nearly as fast as she had sprinted towards Lyon, Eirika fled the scene.
"Sister!" Ephraim called out to Eirika, as he heard her whimpers grow fainter the further she ran away. He would have ran after his sister but Eliwood blocked Ephraim's path calmly yet firmly. "Give her time," he stated.
Ephraim demanded Eliwood let him pass and raised his voice, "Give her time for what?! I am supposed to be there for Eirika!"
Eliwood just solemnly shook his head, "I don't know yet, but for now I am sure she's not ready to talk about it. Things have been different for you and her."
"She's my twin! What could possibly have changed in whatever short time she was here before us?!" Ephraim who had begun shouting at this stranger in front of him and was becoming insulted at how this person claimed to know more about his family than him. Without words, Ephraim was directed towards a frozen Lyon by Eliwood, who whispered, "Would anyone do that because she missed someone for a little bit? I don't know what quite happened, but I do know that... 'moment' implies a lot more than you realize for now."
Lyon himself was not dealing with the transpiring events particularly well as of now. His face gave the impression he had seen a ghost appear before him and had a petrified body pose. His mind was trying to process if that event had actually happened. Although his dampened chest was more proof than he'd ever need that someone had cried into his arms less than a minute ago.
After a quick inhale and exhale, Ephraim used a relatively calmer tone of voice to agree, "Fine. We'll let her calm down before we confront her on anything. I've dealt with trying to cheer her up when she was upset before but… I've never seen anyone with that much sadness in front of me."
*Knock Knock*
Eirika was unsure of how much time had passed when she heard a knock on her door, after she had locked herself in her room. She still had not truly calmed down yet from her shock from seeing Lyon again, but she had moved on from bawling her eyes and tried to become silent.
*Knock Knock Knock*
The sound was getting intense. The person behind the door quickly addressed himself, "Eirika? It's me Eliwood, I know you're in there."
"..."
Eirika remained silent.
"I understand you don't want to talk, and I don't blame you at all right now for feeling that way. However, I don't think you have the luxury to avoid what has happened today." Eliwood attempted to reason.
Even after she wiped her eyes, Eirika was still silent; however she still got up and opened the door for Eliwood.
The loud door creaked as it opened suddenly, Eliwood was taken by surprise for a moment and asked, "Ah, well… may I come in?"
She nodded her head, and Eliwood entered the room where there was a suffocating sense of dread. The blinds were closed, and the overcasting darkness prevented him from making out anything that wasn't illuminated by light pouring out from behind the door.
In an attempt to lighten the mood, Eliwood presents Eirika's Siegline. "*Ahem* You, er… left this behind back there, and here I thought returning it would be… the proper thing to do!"
"...Thank you…" Eirika finally responded to something, to the delight of Eliwood.
The two sat upon Eirika's bed, where she placed her hand upon her sword with a somber piercing stare also directed at it. The stillness and silence of the room was suffocating. Eliwood tried flashing a smile at Eirika and in response he got a very faint half-hearted smile.
With his eyes closed, Eliwood paused and took a moment to breathe. He knew that he couldn't beat around the bush anymore with his question, and was aware he was about to tear away whatever stability Eirika had been able to regain in her isolation.
"You loved him, didn't you?"
Eirika began to clench her sword tightly. Her arms trembled. Even with her gloves, Eliwood was concerned about her palms and fingers beneath them. Her face did her best to remain tough, but it was quite clear how deep those few words cut her to her core.
"Y-you… could call it love... I j-just still am not sure what type of l-love it is… but all I'm certain of is that Lyon was… or… is dear to my heart."
"...And you lost him?" Eliwood inquired.
Sieglinde shook violently in her hands, as Eliwood noticed a look of angry defiance against her own sadness appeared upon Eirika's face.
Conviction arose within Eirika as she nearly shouted, "Yes... I was the one that took him out of this world."
Taken aback, Eliwood's mouth dropped open momentarily, before shutting it himself.
As if her previous moment of confidence hadn't existed, Eirika continued and clarified "I… well it wasn't really… him that I… ended... but it also was. I was... blessed enough to be able to end Lyon's misery. He lost himself to a twisted and dark force, but in his last moments he thanked me… and then… he told me he always loved me with his dying breath."
They both sat in silence, Eliwood in disbelief and Eirika stone faced after her explanation.
Eliwood was prepared for a sad tale, but this… he had no real response.
The first thought Eliwood had to even try to comfort her was to place a hand on Eirika's back, to no reaction.
He let her know, "I'm so sorry for what happened. Just know… it's not your fault."
Feigning a painfully insincere smile, Eirika responded "I know, Eliwood… I-I know."
"It's not your fault, Eirika." Eliwood repeated.
Dropping the fake smile, Eirika said, "I know."
"It's not your fault." He told her again.
"I know, Eliwood." Where anger rose within her voice.
"Eirika… it's not your fault." Eliwood repeated yet again.
"I… I… I…" Ashamed of becoming so emotional yet again, Eirika was fighting back any more tears today.
Eliwood in response rubbed her back gently and told her in his comforting voice, "It's ok, Eirika… it's time to let it all out"
Eirika cried yet another ugly cry again that day. She hated it. She hated how she felt. Every single part of her mind has these rushing thoughts bouncing around and just echoing from her mind into Eirika's mouth and coming out in a near jumble, "I just feel powerless to something else new! First, it was how I had to flee my home, and how I'm responsible for Seth's unhealing scar. It also came up when father's death reached my ears and how I was unable to find my brother. Then I trusted and still lost Lyon... and how I was unable to find a better solution for him. Now I can't even control my emotions…"
The amount of anger within Eirika has boiled over to never before seen levels as her hand clenched into a fist, and began to slam into her thigh again and again. "I've just ended up… USELESS AS USUAL! ...I had hoped that I've grown after all this time.. something would have ended up different for me when I got to come to a new world. Yet within days of meeting each other you already know me as someone that needs to rely on others, just like everyone always has!" Eirika bemoaned, as her legs began to burn bright red.
Without skipping a beat, Eliwood consoled Eirika on the matter while he posed a simple question,"Shh... Eirika, I don't think anyone can deal with such heartache on their own. Have you ever really gotten a chance to talk these things out with anyone since they've happened?"
Eirika held her tongue because she didn't have a true response. Her hand stopped moving but her fists began to clench itself so tight it could crush coal.
Deductive as ever Eliwood continued, "I'm going to assume that means no?"
She tried to gather some reasoning for her defence at the matter and began to explain, "I-I needed to focus on the reconstruction of-"
Eliwood cut Eirika off without much hesitation, he knew it was for her good to give her another perspective, "I lost my father. While I didn't have to take his life, I watched him give it away to help others which included me. When I could have just been strong enough to be there for him. I really wished to be alone above all else after it happened, but if I got my way I know now I would not have been much better off than the moment it happened."
The fist Eirika had created finally loosened and she wiped a tear out of her eye. Eirika cleared her throat and spoke up after some hesitation and pondering, "So what am I supposed to do then?"
Reaching for the back of his neck, Eliwood began nervously scratching before he came out and said, "You er… might not like it, but truly you need to accept that you have done what you could. What I know of you so far, I don't doubt for a second you never stopped giving it your all for the best result you could obtain. Eirika, I'm sorry for saying this again, from the bottom of my heart, but it's not your fault for what happened."
Eirika shut her eyes, her body tensed up and she started to tremble a bit. She felt time slow down, as she breathed in and repeated what Eliwood said to her, "It's not your fault."
"It's not my fault," she whispered to herself.
"It's not my fault," she says softly yet again, but now with a faint smile
A single tear runs down the side of her face, while her smile still grows.
She opens her eyes and reaches over to hug Eliwood tightly, and softly says "Thank you, Eliwood."
Eliwood reciprocates her hug and lets her know, "You're stronger than you know, Eirika."
"And here we are back at where we started! Do you two have any more questions for me before I go?" Sharena, the princess of Askr and self proclaimed 'Official New Hero Tour Guide' happily finishes wrapping up another tour. "…And is everything ok with other heroes?" However, Sharena was able to pick up on the feeling of unease of the tour coming from the mostly silent Ephraim and Lyon.
Immediately chiming in without giving Ephraim a chance to say anything, Lyon puts on an innocuous smile and speaks up for both of them, "Ah, no worries we're both good here. Just a bit tired from before we got here. Thank you very much for the tour."
Sharena taking his word nods her head and heads off mentioning, "Alrighty then, if that's it! Never be scared to ask anyone for help if you need it."
The smile drops off of Lyon's face as soon as Sharena's back is towards the duo. The two await in awkward silence as Ephraim waits for Sharena to be out of sight before he asks, "When did you get good at lying?"
"Er what makes you say-"
"You used to be so terrible at it..." Ephraim cuts Lyon and reminisces for a brief moment before continuing, "Like after that day we all skipped Father MacGregor's class. You were tripping over every other word you spoke when asked about where we were when we ditched, despite all of our rehearsing with you."
Lyon looks to the side, "W-Well first off that was because Eirika was snorting laughs while I was trying to lie which made it impossible to concentrate. ...Although I-I have been practicing… but it's all been for a good cause I swear! H-how could you even tell I was lying though?"
Shaking his head and crosses his arm, Ephraim signs and explains, "Well, that isn't the point right now regardless. Your chest is still slightly damp, and we both saw what happened. I don't need how you speak to realize how that everything is 'good here' as you said Lyon."
Both Ephraim and Lyon avoid eye contact for a few brief seconds that feel much longer than they really are.
Ephraim's voice giving off a rare feeling of uncertainty pipes up, "Well… should we talk about what happened?"
Lyon, who isn't as rare to hear being uncertain, but is feeling much more so than he's ever felt before mutters, "W-well… I wouldn't particularly want to but... I-I would presume we should? However, what is there to even say to one another? Sounds like that redheaded man said one thing and left." Lyon sighed before he finished, "...I hate not knowing what I did wrong to someone."
"Lets not jump to conclusions Lyon, you're always so ready to put the blame on yourself for anything. Even when it's something that's just my idea, when I have messed something up you're trying to help me with, or even-"
"Alright but, Ephraim, she wasn't crying your name! It's...I-t's just... I'm sorry… I'm just not used to anything like that." Lyon outbursts and tries to apologize.
Ephraim chuckles at his friend's line, "Don't mean to make light of the situation, but I doubt most people period have had a situation like that. ...Still, what about this makes you think you did anything wrong here?"
Without skipping a beat Lyon answered, "Those eyes…" Shuddering at remembering Eirika's face in that moment Lyon explained, "Just when she saw me and her expression of joy crumbled into absolute despair... I felt so much pain and sadness in her eyes. As if… the sight of me brought it on! The idea of being such a burden to someone else, makes me feel sick. Especially any of the few people… I-I... get to call my friends."
"Lyon…"
Trying to push past what he just said, Lyon wipes his nose and tries to steer the conversation back to Ephraim, "So what did that orange haired man say to you anyways? Did you get to catch his name?"
"Ah well, forgive my manners for not properly introducing myself before. I am Eliwood, Marquess of Pherae."
Seemingly appearing out of thin air to the two as they got wrapped up with talking to one another, Ephraim and Lyon straightened themselves up and introduced themselves back.
"So your name is Eliwood, is it? Well met, I am Ephraim." Says the Rennais prince, in a non prince like fashion.
Lyon, true to himself, opts for a more polite and formal introduction, "Ah, hello there. My name is Prince Lyon, I am the son of the emperor of Grado in Magvel. It is very much a pleasure to meet you."
Eliwood nods his head and goes onto mention, "Yes, Eirika has mentioned you two. It is a pleasure to meet you both. Although I know someone else who is probably much more enthusiastic to see you two than I would. "
Stepping out from behind Eliwood came a quiet, although a significantly more calm, Eirika, than Lyon or Ephraim had seen today. A bittersweet smile is on her face as she plainly states, "It's so nice to see both of you again," where her voice matched her expression, having genuine pleasure in seeing two people so dear to her just with a hint of sadness behind it.
The two princes both stumble over words, letting out incomprehensible silence before giving up on what to say to Eirika, as she stands before them.
"*Ahem*", coughed the outside negotiator, taking all the attention in the room.
"Would you like me to introduce you two to Princess Eirika?" Eliwood asked playfully, winking at the uncomfortable group.
"Well, we can catch up a bit on the way to my room. I believe… we have something we should discuss with one another… If you'll join me that is"
Breaking his silence in a bombastic fashion, Ephraim proclaims, "Alright Eirika, we will all hear what you have to say to us. We'll be with you regardless what the road you take us down might lead to."
Lyon, also inspired by the confidence and vigor Ephraim emits, lets Eirika know, "No matter what it is, I know that you can pull through. Working together, what can't you and Ephraim accomplish?"
"Thank you both of you for being so willing to be there for me." Eirika thanked the boys, but followed up with a request, "Now I think it would be best if we end up a little more secluded so we could talk more freely, so if you'll follow me."
Ephraim and Lyon look at each other and nod their heads in unison. They both say without hesitation, "Whatever you think is best, Eirika."
"Well I will be taking my leave now you three. I think this is getting more personal than it should for a simple bystander to be a part of at this point." Eliwood says as he waves farewell to Eirika and her friends before they depart towards her.
The walk back to Eirika's room was much longer than either Ephraim or Lyon imagined. The atmosphere isn't nearly as stifling as their first trip down Askr's long hallways, but they both wish to break the tension with someone they both normally are so comfortable talking with.
Ephraim's eyes dart around the room until they land on something he can talk about. His eyes finally light up when he sees a weapon on Eirika. Ephraim speaks the first words anyone in the group says in minutes pondering, "Eirika that sword at your side... I gotta say it looks familiar to a sword I've seen before but nothing is jumping out at me."
Eirika gets excited at the chance to demonstrate her current sword prowess and nonchalantly answers, "Oh this old thing right here? It's name is Sieglinde. Perhaps it sounds familiar to you, brother?"
"Hrmm..." Ephraim stops walking to think intensely. All he can respond with is an unsure "No?"
Lyon lightly snickers, "You sure do need to study up more, Ephraim. That's your country's Sacred Tw-"
What Eirika wielding that sword means finally connects in Lyon's brain. Looking back and forth at the sword and it's holder Lyon exclaims excitedly,"Eirika! You mean you're skilled enough to wield a Sacred Twin! That's amazing! They're only used by Legendary Heroes!"
Ephraim is taken aback upon hearing Lyon's answer also shouting, "Is that true, Eirika!? You have been holding onto our Sacred Twin all this time here?"
Eirika blushes at the praise being thrown at her, "W-well yes, it's surprisingly natural to use. I can get into it another time, but here is our destination."
Eirika directs the attention of the two princes towards her room and opens the door.
Sunlight comes pouring in through the now opened window giving the room a warm feeling it had lacked earlier. Ephraim and Lyon both take a moment to observe her room which is something Eirika didn't plan for.
"Heh heh heh", Ephraim laughs, "Well no matter what's happened Eirika, I can tell you never lost your sense of unparalleled organization that makes the rest of us look bad."
Eirika, still caught off guard, tries justifying herself, "Oh well.. You know it's something that's relaxing to do that kills some time here and there."
"Uh huh, I get that Eirika." Lyon responds before sighing and goes on to lament, "I wish I could be as organized as you are, but I can never manage to finish tidying up. There's just so many books sitting around piling up in different spots all over my room and I end up rereading them again instead of categorizing them."
Eirika can't help but laugh at Lyon's minor struggles even if she knows it sounds a bit mean, "Pfft! Well it sounds like you have your own system in a way. If you want to get started on a new pile here you can ask me for recommendations." Eirika explains as she signals to her bookshelf categorized alphabetically by the continent it is originally from.
Lyon's eyes light up and gleefully responds, "Oh! Eirika, those are the books from the Royal Askr Library, correct?"
"Yes! It's really a great place." Eirika quickly answers, finally realizing she has a book buddy in Askr, "You could get lost for hours in it because the library is so massive, both metaphorically and literally... We'll have to go together one day!"
Before getting carried away and neglecting the third person in the room, Eirika directs her attention to her brother. She humors her book fearing brother, "Would you like to come with us, Ephraim?"
Ephraim crossed his arms and was not amused, "Haha, how very funny Eirika." Ephraim tries to regather everyone's focus on why they're here, "Now... I believe we should probably focus on why we came in here."
Eirika shakes her head to realign her focus. She deeply inhales in and then out before she tells the boys anything.
Eirika clears her throat and starts to say, "Ah yes... I think... it would be best if both of you were to sit down for what I am about to say."
Ephraim and Lyon both see the intensity coming from Eirika's eyes and do as she says getting on to her bed without much response. They wait on anything that would leave her mouth next.
Eirika takes another breath and remembers what Eliwood told her. She managed to articulate her situation as best she can, "I am from… er… a future, you could call it. One… after a war broke out in Magvel…"
Lyon gasps at such news.
Ephraim angrily snaps demanding to know, "What could have started such a horrible thing?"
Eirika looks away from the two as she answers, "...The war started... with an invasion by the Grado Empire."
Ephraim goes silent with disbelief.
Lyon's face quickly became a sickly shade of white.
"It was an awful war… Rennais fell... we lost dad.." Eirika continues while being visibly shaken, remembering what has happened.
Eirika looks back to make eye contact lyon and tears up "..a-nd and-"
Lyon cuts Eirika off to stop what pain he can, "I-I understand Eirika… y-you… don't need to say it." Lyon's eyes fall to the ground before he shudders and gulps as he inquires, "Just… I need to know if my Father started the war. I just… couldn't imagine that happening, but I need to know."
"L-Lyon…" Eirika struggles to choke out, "Y-your f-father didn't start the war…"
Lyon looks up in bewilderment, with his expression instantly flipping from anguish to absolute confusion.
Ephraim who was sitting and stirring in a silent fury finally ruptures, "Eirika, you said it was Grado! Who else could have started it!?"
"I-In a way… " Eirika begins, but gets interrupted by taking too long to get out her next thought.
"In a way what? What could be so hard" Ephraim shouts out, as he's at his limit from all he's heard.
Eirika blurts out, "L-Lyon did but-"
"NO!" Lyon cries out. Lyon leaps off of Eirika's bed and his hands start pressing upon the sides of his head as if he's trying to crush his own skull "NO! No No No… NO!" He continues to yell out and circles around the room.
Eirika tries to get in front of the erratically pacing Lyon, but he steps around her. Eirika speaks up louder and clearer to quickly inform him of the fact,"But it wasn't actually you, Lyon! You were able to tell me so! The Demon King of old got control of you!"
Lyon stops moving to turn towards Eirika and screams at the top of his lungs, "DOES THAT MAKE IT ANY BETTER!?"
Lyon turns around, embarrassed by his outburst can't look at either of his friends and rephrases himself,"D-does that change the fact I'm the reason why you had to go through so much suffering?" Lyon sniffs and wipes his nose before continuing, "N-not just you.. Just.. everyone's! The entire continent suffered because of me!"
Ephraim who can't sit back anymore jumps up and gets right in Lyon's face telling his friend, "Lyon, this isn't set in stone! "
Eirika also rushes next to Ephraim exclaiming, "Lyon, please! I still have more to say!"
"Ephraim... Eirika... I-I..."
That is all Lyon could utter before he started breaking down into uncontrollable sobbing with tears streaming down his face rushing like a rough river.
"I-I j-just... w-wanted to save everyone." Were the last words Lyon spoke to Ephraim and Eirika before bolting out of Eirika's room.
Lyon slams the door shut and places all of his body weight to block the twins from leaving the room for as long as he can.
Ephraim is pounding his fist into the door and he jiggles the doorknob to get it to open as he demands Lyon to open the door.
The only thing the Magvel twins can make out is Lyon talking to himself, but it is far too faint for them to make out anything he says.
Lyon backs away from the door, and Ephraim nearly falls over himself as the door opens to his surprise.
For a brief moment the twins see Lyon tome in hand loudly chanting "Tenebras in Tenebris Manet!"
The hallway grows dark. Not just dark, but every corner and square inch is blacker than the deepest depths of the ocean. Eirika and Ephraim hear footsteps depart from them but trying to listen to them doesn't help as they are more echos than distinct sounds.
"Come on Eirika, we need to find Lyon now." Ephraim's voice booms in response as he picks himself up.
Eirika trying to get a sense of her brother's location in the darkness rebuts, "Ephraim, let's just stay put… until this incantation wears off. It won't help us to try and follow and run into people and walls."
Wanting to disagree, Ephraim sighs. He instead reluctantly agrees with his sister, "I- Fine. Whatever. As soon as this little thing lets up we're going to comb this entire castle to find him."
"Don't worry, that's exactly what I was thinking." Eirika reaffirms Ephraim's idea. "…Although it certainly would be easier said than done." Eirika also adds trying to be realistic about their situation.
"I believe this is where I step back in." Outsteps a familiar voice from the darkness.
Ephraim aggressively turns around to find the new voice, "Who goes there?"
"Lord Eliwood… that is you, right?" Eirika guesses, recognizing the voice.
Eliwood answers for clarification and formally reveals his intention for why he's present, "Yes, Eirika… I worried that some news might not be taken the best and would like to help if things needed an outside hand."
Suddenly the light and color returns to their hallways. Despite not adjusting to the darkness at all, everyone who stepped out of their room to see what happened winced and covered their eyes for a moment along with Eliwood, Eirika, and Ephraim with the blinding return to light.
"Ah! Well now at least we can all see each other." Ephraim states as he jumps back just a bit, as Eliwood was standing even closer than he realized.
Eliwood who is not feeling up for being his usual formalness about the situation states, "Let's cut to the chase. I overheard Lyon talk to himself before he made his escape. I was hoping that if he fled, I could try to slow him down but it seems he did something I didn't plan on."
"So what was Lyon's saying?" Eirika eagerly asked.
"It was a little quiet but I believed he said something about trying to run to the garden or something. There's many openings but down the hall to the left back towards where you came. I'd suggest we split up because it's so open there and he might try to run again." Eliwood explained to the twins.
Ephraim gladly proclaims "Alright then, I'll go ahead! I think bet I can catch up to him"
Without any hesitation Ephraim is off on his way near sprinting to find Lyon.
"Wait Ephraim-" Eirika tries to yell as she is about to run after Ephraim. She doesn't finish her thought before she is caught off guard as Eliwood grabs her arm.
"Was there anything else you wanted to say to your friend?" Eliwood asks
"Er what?" Eirika is taken aback at Eliwood's surprise question.
Eliwood goes on to explain his question more thoroughly, "I imagined there is something you might not have gotten to say earlier. Perhaps something you would like to say not in the presence of… say a certain brother."
"I- … maybe, yes." Eirika answers truthfully.
"He said he was going to try to hide in the library. Go find him, I'll pretend like I'm looking with Ephraim to keep him busy." The Marquess directs the princess towards the library and to be on her way.
Eirika nods her head and turns in the direction of the library. Eirika takes two quick steps towards Lyon.
She turns back around and runs up to Eliwood, much to his surprise whispering to him, "Thank you for being such a good friend."
The princess then turns back around and runs off to find Lyon, while being faster than she ran earlier today to escape.
Whispering to himself Eliwood says, "I know you're strong enough to say what needs to be said Eirika... Good luck."
All Eirika wants to do is shout out for Lyon in the library to find him. This wouldn't be good for two reasons: first of all; Lyon doesn't want to be found right now and second of all… it's a library.
The Askr Royal Library is truly unlike any other Eirika knows of, endless floors and massive columns of books fill it. It seems as if it was almost designed as a labyrinth, perfect for getting lost in but sadly not in the fun kind today.
"Think, think, think, Eirika… what would Lyon be doing in a time like this?" Eirika asks herself after starting to tire herself out from searching with such haste.
She stops moving and pauses before answering her own question, "If Lyon had to be anywhere, it would very likely be a corner… that's where I always found him in Grado's library."
Eirika walks in a near aimless fashion between floors for what feels like an eternity. That is until she finally comes across a familiar purple hair and long cloaked ball, or more accurately someone sitting down and hunched over resembling a ball. As Eirika finally finds Lyon she almost exclaims but covers her mouth. Eirika restrained herself from running up and startling Lyon. She knew she had to approach this with gentleness and care. In response, she quietly sat down next to Lyon while he was too stuck inside his own mind to even notice.
Waiting a brief moment to see if Lyon reacts in the slightest. Eirika reaches out a hand and places it softly on his shoulder.
Lyon's body jolts with fear in response and tries to explain "A-a-ah I'm sorry for taking up space I'll mov-", but as he picks his head up he sees Eirika's worried face.
Lyon's head drops back down, as he can't stomach making eye contact. Not sure if he's talking to himself or to Eirika, Lyon mutters "I don't deserve to be here, I'm no hero and I'll never be one."
Eirika slides closer to her troubled friend still keeping her hand planted on him for support, "Lyon, you can't say that. What about those burn victims you healed? That port town you saved from the storm? You told me 'I just want to be able to help people' and you are someone who puts everyone else's well being above their own is the traits of a hero... in my eyes at least."
Lyon's head jumps up upon hearing what Eirika knows and begins to question, "How do you know about the port-", although it wasn't long until he remembered Eirika's situation. He then sat up in a more typical position, but still covered his eyes with his hands and continued to belittle himself stating, "Well whatever, it doesn't matter. I didn't do anything of worth in the long run clearly. You have already and I know Ephraim will accomplish... so much more than I could ever dream. I don't even know why I even bothered, I'll just always be a burden no matter what I do. I'd much rather disappear than ever hurt anyone. I can't even understand how you or Ephraim would ever want to be around me. And I just-"
"Shh Lyon," Eirika stops her tormented friend.
She takes his hands off of his eyes, and places them on her lap.
"You need to accept that you are worthy. Worthy of friendship, worthy of being allowed to make mistakes, worthy of being allowed to live happily with who you are."
"But-" Lyon tries to chime in to no avail
Continuing with no hesitation Eirika asks, "Do you know what I was thinking the entire time on my journey?"
Lyon doesn't answer.
"I hope Lyon is doing well."Eirika says as a smile grows across her face.
Lyon's hands tense up and Lyon is still avoiding eye contact
Eirika can see Lyon needs to hear more, "You never left my thoughts. I was always so worried for you, your soul is so gentle and kind... I hoped you managed to escape from the conflict somehow. I always was wishing that we could reunite on the same side together with Ephraim."
The smile Eirika had dropped off as what she was saying changed from what she hoped, to what she did, "Even after I found out what happened… I knew I had to spare you. It crushed me but I knew I had to do what was best for your sake."
Lyon was finally making eye contact once again and tried speaking up, "Eirika… I never knew how much..."
Still not finished with her thoughts Eirika once again continues and softly laughs to herself, "All along, I've had all of these feelings and in highsight I was so clueless to them"
"W-What kind of feelings do you mean, Eirika?" The prince asks in growing confusion.
"The same ones I know you have for me" Eirika answers without a moment's pause.
Eirika goes on to lean in towards Lyon's face. He can see Eirika's intent in lush blue-green sea colored eyes before she shut them. His mind and heart starts racing. No ideas of substance come to his mind, no real reaction but an odd semblance of uncertainty and fear. Fear he'll somehow mess up this moment he's envisioned countless times be-
Before he can get out another though out Eirika's soft lips reach his.
His mind goes blank.
He kisses her back without hesitation.
With something that can say more than words ever could in an instant, all his irrational thoughts leave his head and he is able to accept that all of Eirika's feelings are deep and true.
When the two finally separate, no words are spoken for a brief moment, just slightly heavy breathing and staring at each other.
Eirika speaks up to break the silence, "S-So… Thank you, Lyon. For you just being yourself."
"...N-no thank you, Eirika." Lyon responds, and grows a flushed embarrassed smile as he adds on, "I-I never imagined how much I could mean to anyone."
Dropping the smile, but keeping the flushed embarrassed face Lyon speaks up again, "Although… I do have to ask… h-how long have you known?"
Eirika answers Lyon, "W-well you did manage to confess to me." Eirika does chuckle a bit mentioning "In hindsight… it maybe was a little obvious, but I just never noticed…"
The two laugh for a moment and say nothing, as nothing needs to be said.
Eirika finally stands up after enough of a break, and she reaches out her hand towards Lyon asking, "Shall we be off?"
"Yes… let's go, Eirika." Lyon happily answers, taking her hand with a much more free smile on his face than he's had for quite awhile.
The prince and princess start walking hand in hand towards the library exit.
"..."
That smile drops off of Lyon's face yet again and lets go of Eirika's hand as he tenses up.
Eirika in a concerned voice quickly asks, "Is something wrong?"
"I just realized…" Lyon grows nervous as he gulps and continues, "S-should we tell Ephraim that we er- um… like each other?"
Eirika blushes and laughs yet again, "It's fun for a girl to keep some secrets from her brother~"
Eirika winks before she takes Lyon's hand one last time and together they race out of the library to find Ephraim.