The rest of the boat ride goes on without incident, most of my little army is nearly recovered. The exceptions are Keaton, due to the Beast Killer wound on his arm, and Caeldori, gods, I even feel bad for her, to be dragged into the other side's army right after her mother was murdered in front of her? It is a cruel action, but I can see the reason why Phoenix made the call. Most of our units are weary, three tough fights within a week's time.

The ones who are off the best are Jakob, Beruka and her Wyvern. Everyone else is suffering from anywhere between multiple wounds, exhaustion, or scars that will not ever heal. I have taken to practicing using swords with my left arm, since even after healing, my right is protesting its use. 'Can we even make it out of this alive with this many problems?'

"We'll make it." Phoenix breaks me out of my thoughts, as we are slowly making our way through town, doing one last check over on our units.

"How… I wasn't thinking about that."

She gives me a critical look, "I recognize the distress and uncertainty. Being new to war can also push that on you faster, doubly so if you are the one who is the commander."

"That last war you fought in, er, is it okay if I ask about it?"

She nods, "It sounds like you need some motivational insight on the ones I partook in. I'll provide what I can."

'Ones?' "Were the odds so dire in yours?"

She looks off in the distance, "Worse," She pauses, "Bad enough to seek out the Divine Dragon, Naga, to send the other Shepherd's children and me back to the past to get another chance."

"...Time travel? Shepherds?"

"The Shepherds are Ylissa's finest military force, led by Exalt Chrom, who is my father's best friend. While the Tactician is… was my father, Robin." She lets out a bitter laugh, "He left me with some pretty big shoes to fill, but I was determined to live up to his title 'World's Greatest Tactician'." She finally looks back at me, "I'll do whatever it takes to see us through this, just like my father would."

She didn't answer the time travel part, must be a sore subject, "Well, you told me some of the most heroic achievements, what about one of the most daunting?"

A few minutes pass as she thinks it over, "This happened a year after Walhart the Conqueror was killed, that invasion on my homeland from Valm that I told you about before. The Grimleal high priest, Validar, offered Chrom the last of the gemstones for the Fire Emblem…"

Phoenix spares no detail with that one, it seems like she recalls every single bit of information that has happened in that fight. She avoids any questions about time travel, or anything more explanation about the whole 'her alternate father killed her father who killed her mother'.

We are barely even a minute into the trip out when we are stopped by a yell from the sky, "Lady Yasei!" It comes from a Nohrian, with a bow, riding a Wyvern. 'There are Wyvern Riders that use bows? When?' He touches down and hands me a letter with King Garon's seal. "Orders from the king." He supplies before taking right back off.

'Orders?' I open the letter and glance through it. "We're changing our course to Cheve." I announce, "Big brother Xander has confirmed the rebel forces and has requested additional reinforcements." I tuck the letter away, 'the only scent here has is that Wyvern Rider.'

"He smells dead." Keaton's words echo through me.

Phoenix has already brought a map out and is looking the routes over, in less than a minute she is finished, "Fastest route leads directly West… looks like there is a forest surrounding a mountain about a day or two before Cheve."

Keaton bristles his fur and growls, "That is a Kitsune hamlet. Largest one, too."

"...Yasei? Your call, you are still the commander, after all." She says, "I can draw up another route, but circling the forest and mountain looks like an extra two days at the least."

My pupils narrow and I smirk, "Hopefully we'll run into Kaden on the way there." 'Blood, kill . ' I share a look with Keaton, "Mate, how does a helping of fox sound when we get there?"

His response comes from licking his lips, "That's… what is wrong with you people?" Caeldori asks.

"Keaton, can I borrow you for a minute?" Phoenix asks, "I would to know any and all information you have have Kitsunes and their hamlets."

The Wolfskin shrugs, "Only encountered two hamlets, one of them being my territory. I got plenty of knowledge on them, though." The two lag behind and continue the conversation.

"Your mate said it's the biggest one, you think we're up for, big sis?" Elise approaches me.

I flash a fanged smile, "Absolutely."

The sun is nearing its dip and we make camp for the night. The process of setting it up has become second nature to me by now. "I'll get us something." I tell Keaton, "You need to rest that arm."

He is about to protest when Elise enters, "She's right, the only reason big sis was able to fight so quickly is because Father bought a dose of an Elixir for her." She bonks him on the head with her staff, "Get some rest, mister." I giggle and leave, it's great to see him relaxed enough for Elise to act goofy around him. I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have been allowed to bonk him a few weeks ago.

I enter the nearby plains, sadly no forest this time. I keep my hearing on high alert as I hear the various bugs and critters scamper about, nothing worth chasing down. I notice a lake a bit of the way in and I hear some sort of extended sorrowful cry… wait, that is not an animal. I approach the sound and see a blue-haired woman, her dress is in tatters, skin beaten and sliced at many points, though it seems there have been larger wounds that were tended to… "Azura!" She pitifully turns my way, gods, she is so pale, her eyes red from probably a long time spent crying. "ELISE, JAKOB!" I scream, "Bring your healing staves!" I turn to the poor woman, "Gods, Azura, what happened to you…?"

"Y-Yasei?" She whimpers, "It's good to see you again…"

"Shh…" I hush her.

"Lady Ya... my word!" Jakob speeds to my side, Elise close behind. "Please, hold still miss…?"

Oh right, I never told anyone else about her, "Azura." I reply to keep her from talking. "She's the one who gave me my Dragonstone." I turn to her, "I forgot to tell them about you…"

Two sets of staves start spreading their healing magic across her body, the scars and bruises fading. Her dress, however, is nearly beyond fixing. "It's alright, Yasei. I was left to be forgotten no more than two days after the battle." Tears threaten to spill again.

"No, it is not alright." I counter, "I mean gods, look at you! Who did this to you?"

She looks away, "Hey, miss Azura." Elise speaks up, "Let's get her back to camp so she can rest, we can ask her questions later."

Jakob and I nod, "Excellent idea, Lady Elise." My Butler says, "Are you fit to walk?"

The blue-haired songstress gets up and does a few test steps, "Yes." She takes a few steps with them before noticing I am still in place, "Yasei?"

"I… got something I need to do, first." She hesitates, then nods and follows the other two back to camp. "Two times I offer to hunt and something happens." I mumble to myself before resuming my task, "It's like the gods don't want me to get a kill in." I pause as a scent wafts into the air, "Deer?" Sure enough, on the other side of the lake, stands a small herd of deer, completely oblivious to me. I lick my lips, crouch, and make my way over there. One energy sphere and I snag myself a kill as the rest prance away.

"Keaton!" I call out as I re-enter camp, my mate shows up less than a minute later.

"Nice." I hold off on biting until his first, "Who's the new one?" He asks after swallows the first piece.

"Azura," I point to my Dragonstone necklace as I down my first, "She gave me the Dragonstone back in Hoshido. How's your arm? And don't go acting tough…"

He grimaces, "It feels like it is on fire. Was your Wyrmslayer wound the same way?"

"Yea…"

He looks away, "And I reopened it, didn't I?"

I narrow my eyes, "Oh no, don't you start with that. Big sister isn't trying to place guilt on you, is she?"

"Would she be lying if she did?" He counters, "It doesn't change the fact that I did."

I scoff, "So she was?" I grit my teeth, "That's… Gods, I knew she would have a hard time accepting my relationship with you, but… I'm talking to her after this." I shake my head, "I'm not going to let them push you away again."

"And what if it costs you your family?" He calmly asks. "If it came down to choose?"

"You, I won't lose you." I reply without a second thought. "You mean too much to me to lose."

He gives me a quick glance before looking away, "That's your dragon's opinion, what about your human side?"

I am about to respond immediately again, but I stop and collect myself for a moment, "Camilla can throw all the supporting words she wants to, but she still disapproves of my choice. Xander will probably turn out the same way, while Leo's reaction will be the worst. Elise would be the only reason I would even consider staying for."

"Elise would probably follow you, you know."

'Huh?' "I… I know she cares for me much more than in a sisterly way, but she still wants a family, too. I mean her siblings and a husband."

"Oh… I've been picking out a few new scents for a while now, things not felt in a Wolfskin pack. And I thought one of them was… erm, love." He shrugs, "It is… sweeter than lust, I got the scent off you when we have those… moments? Like the one where you wanted me to hold you."

My face starts burning, "So, you think Elise… loves me? Like, love in a marriage sort of way?"

"I guess? Those nights where you slept together, you might have had lust, but she had that sweeter smell."

I shake my head, "That just has to be her perfume, it's just messing with your sense of smell." I get up, "I-I should get going. I'll see you tonight." 'Why am I so worried about her loving me…? How do I bring that up?'

Keaton does not bother following me, and I make my way around camp, "Lady Yasei!" It is Jakob, "Gods, you look like you have a fever!" In a swift motion, he removes a glove, checks my forehead, and puts it back on. "Are you dizzy? Nauseous?"

I shake my head, 'Am I really that red?' "Just some… inappropriate thoughts crossing my mind, is all." He seems to take the excuse, "I'm just going to head to bed a little early." Another quick dash across the camp gets me to my tent, well, the one Keaton, me… and Elise share. Camilla has her own.

"Um… Princess Cor… Yasei?" Caeldori approaches me, "May I ask you something?" The poor woman is fidgeting in place.

"Sure."

"What exactly do you plan to do with me?" I can see her eyes start to tear up.

"I thought Phoenix made it clear, you're fighting for us."

"I need a Pegasus." Somehow, mentioning the flying beast's name nearly brought her to tears.

"I… can't help you there. You'll need to learn how to fight on foot." That comes out harsher than intended.

A moment passes in silence, "About Hinoka…"

I glare at her and shrinks back, "I didn't want her dead, alright? Anything else?" She shakes her head and all but runs away.

I resume my walk and end up at the tent, then I poke my head in to see the Nohrian ball of sunshine sitting on her cot, doodling on a sheet of paper. Then she shakes her head, erases whatever she is doing, and starts over. "That won't work." I hear her comment.

I enter in fully, "Hey, lil sis!"

She jumps in place and scrambles to hide the sheet, "Hello, Yasei!" She has that large smile on her face that just screams, 'I wasn't doing anything suspicious, I promise!'"You usually don't come back this early." She ends up crumbling the paper and shoving it… in her dress. 'Well then . '

"I felt a little more tired than normal, er… mind if I talk with you for a bit?" My face heats up again.

...and so does hers, "Uh, sure!" She scoots over on her cot and pats the open spot. I nod and take the open spot, "So, what did you need?"

Gods, I can hear her heartbeat now. 'How did I not notice it before?' "Just… stuff." I point at the pencil still in her hand, "What were you working on?"

"Phoenix wanted someone else's opinion on who should be… paired up on the field."

"So you came in here and wrote them down instead of talking?"

"Well, yea. I needed to gather my thoughts, you know?"

"Am I with Keaton?"

"Well, duh." She rolls her eyes, "There is no better pair up. Well, Phoenix and Selena are certainly something together."

"What about you? Who's your pair up?"

She stiffens, "I um… got a… special plan for me and a few others. It doesn't look too effective, though."

I tilt my head, "Did you ask these others?"

"Pfft, nah. I'll just draw something else up."

"Maybe I can help?" I scoot a little closer.

Her breath quickens, "Tactics aren't as easy as I thought, finding good pairs is pretty tough. I mean, a really good pair has to be in sync, you know? Kinda like how you and Keaton just seem to know what the other is going to do."

I make a bold move and wrap one of my arms around her, pulling her closer, 'gods don't let me be wrong here.' She drops her pencil, "Elise… these people you wanted to pair up. They're close to you, aren't they?"

"Of course, I mean, you can't just put two people together and expect miracles. Add a third and you start to juggle even more potential problems. I know I wouldn't want to force myself in between you and Ke…" Her eyes widen, "I mean two other people." She squeaks.

"Elise…" I raise my eyebrow.

"Alright, alright. It's you, Keaton, and me. Just… I keep telling myself that I want to be with someone else but then you keep popping up in the front of my thoughts and I'm trying really hard so you and Keaton can have all the time you want together so then maybe I can find someone but then at night I think of you and the things we could do and… and…" She breathes.

She squeaks again when I easily bring her up on my lap, "You know Keaton and I are fine with it, right? You are the only one he is willing to share with me." She nods and I bring her a little closer, so our faces are just a few inches apart, "I would be happy to share the rest of my life with you two. Keaton always tends to my dragon… and you can tend to my human. There, easy fix, right?" I bring her to a kiss and she just melts in my arms.

We break the kiss, yet she still looks away, unsure, "I-I'll talk to Keaton, first. How about you go check over Azura in the meantime?" She offers.

I smile, "Sure thing." I place her down on the ground and get up, "I'll see you later!" I call out as I leave. 'Gods, she actually is in love with me!' Alright, that leaves one more thing...

I exit the tent and look for Camilla, she is currently on watch duty, along with Beruka. The two Wyverns are huddled side-by-side, it is almost cute. "Big sister." I say as I approach them.

She turns at me and smiles, "Hello, dear Yasei."

"Lady Yasei." Beruka nods.

"I wanted to talk to you Camilla... alone."

"I can cover the watch by myself if need be."

The eldest Nohrian Princess gives her retainer a quick hug, before walking over to me, "Of course... what do you need? Oh! Are you ready for your Wyvern ride?"

'Huh... actually forgot about that.' I nod, "Sure, we can do that first." Big sister called her Wyvern over and mounted him, before scooting up some to make room for me.'Once again... thank the gods I am smaller than average.' I hop on and I have to press my body against hers to fit in the saddle well enough. My face flushes as I take in her scent and... oh, 'How is she aroused already?'

"Here we go, hold on tight." I shiver from the way she put emphasis on that, then I squeak as we take off. "Darling, you won't be able to see anything if your face is buried in my back."

I just noticed my eyes are squeezed shut and my teeth are clamped together. I slowly open my eyes, "Wow..." Everything looks so different up here.

She giggles, "I knew you would love this."

I giggle in return, "It's kind of unnerving, but I am enjoying myself."

A moment passes as we soar through the sky, "So… what did you want to talk about?"

'I was hoping we would have landed before this came up.' I sigh, "It's about…" I start, but then I scream as I felt like I am… falling. Camilla's Wyvern lets out a death throe as an arrow pierces its scales. "Big sister!" I yelp as we fall. 'Focus, wings.' Yet I can't bring myself to, 'gods, we're going to…'

Slowly stop falling? It seems surreal, outlandish, but time itself seems to slow down for us as the ground comes ever closer.

"I got you…" I hear a voice whisper as both of us are gently brought down. 'Who just…?' I take a glance at see that messenger Wyvern rider… but his Wyvern looks different. Instead of the large-bodied flying beast, it looks skinny and it has brownish fur instead of scales. It is adorned with purple and red armor, 'Just like his armor… and the lead soldier's armor.' Now that I have a good look, his bow is also of a purple and red combination. "That was close." He nods, before his Wyvern starts to take flight again.

"Hold!" Camilla exclaims. "How did you…?"

He shrugs, "I have a knack for sensing trouble, I guess. Now, I have more letters to…"

"Oh no, you are staying here. By my orders."

He glares at Camilla, me, big sister's wyvern, then back to Camilla. "Well," He smirks, "There is a conflict of interest." His wyvern lands, "Sorry, princess, but I do, in fact, have more important things to do than bow to some Royal's whims."

"You dare use such an attitude against me?!" She unsheathes her Divine Axe.

"My liege!" Beruka approaches and Selena is behind her… with Phoenix in tow.

"I have this handled…" She reassures them.

He scoffs, "You won't even get in reach of me." My hair stands on end as I feel… something happen, 'Hold on, something's wrong here.' How can he be so calm.

"You will answer for…" Out of all the things that could happen, when Camilla started walking forwards, a blast of cold hits the area and she is encased in a block of ice.

The man shrugs, "I told you so." And with that, his wyvern takes off at a speed I have never seen one of them take. Less than a minute later, the ice block fades… it doesn't melt or shatter… it just fades.

'Well then…'