Interviews with a Tactician

by Scourge of Infinis

In which Robin decides to conduct interviews with existing and potential Shepherds to ensure their loyalty and commitment to the cause (and some other details). What could possibly go wrong?

48. The Medium Part

Another year, another chapter. This was supposed to go out in the dying days of last year, but celebrations were a bit too intense. Anyway, resolution for 2023 is to not have such long gaps between chapters. I'm almost certain I can keep to that resolution, too!

We're also on the verge of another Fire Emblem game, yet I'll still probably be sticking with writing Awakening stuff. There's just something about it that keeps me coming back, you know?

Anyway, apologies for the longer than usual delay. I promise I'll try to do better. Maybe we'll even finish the story this year!

To those still here, thank you for your continued readership and I hope the wait was worth it. Enjoy!

---

Of the many things that Robin was, a diplomat was not one of them. Robin was a man who was at home on the battlefield or back at camp, drafting strategies to win battles and end wars; it was where he was most comfortable. Power, palace intrigue, and politicking didn't interest him, and was actually more of a distraction than anything. All Robin needed was for his employer to give him an army and point to the nearest war that needed winning. As long as Robin was left alone to do his job, he left his superiors or whoever it was to take care of the politics. That was the deal he had worked out with Chrom and that worked pretty well right up until they won the war against Gangrel and Robin was involuntarily thrust into Ylissean politics. Maybe Chrom was a better politician than Robin gave him credit for, since Ylisse was faced with a daunting list of problems after the Plegia war. And Chrom, wanting to spend his time with the love of his life who he had impulsively decided to marry, cannily dumped all the problem solving on Robin by creating a special position in Ylisse and immediately appointing Robin to it. Although Robin's official title was "Grandmaster of the Realm," a more fitting title was probably "Royal Problem Solver," since that's what Robin ended up doing from the moment he was appointed. The only saving grace was that problem solving was one of Robin's many talents, even problems on a country-wide scale.

So as Robin embarked on his epic quest to put Ylisse back together after it almost collapsed during the Plegian invasion, he got his first unpleasant taste of politics. And what Robin quickly realized was that politics was full of pompous nobles, vested interests, inflated egos, schemes, plots, and backstabbing. Proper politicking required patience, compromise, trade offs, people skills, and a lot of ego stroking. Robin, being Ylisse's newly appointed problem solver, didn't have the luxury of any of the above and was instead faced with problems that required immediate action to prevent the country from burning down. What Robin did have was Chrom's unconditional trust and support, which helped him push through emergency measures to solve Ylisse's most dire problems and shield him from the wrath of all those nobles and vested interests whose toes he stepped on (repeatedly, in some cases). And it was Chrom's backing that helped Robin stay in his position despite a continuously growing number of enemies and an ever bigger number of schemes to try to remove him. Eventually Robin's enemies realized that they couldn't get rid of him, but they still could make his job a lot more annoying, especially concerning measures that weren't required to prevent the imminent collapse of the country. For his part, that was when Robin learned the fine art of ego stroking and haggling, since playing nice with people was a lot more efficient than antagonizing them and then spending his valuable time fighting their obstructionist efforts to stifle his projects out of spite. It took more effort to play nice with people he actively disliked, but at least he could always beat them into submission by pulling the "I'll take this to the exalt'' card, knowing that Chrom always had his back.

So Robin did pick up a few points on how to deal with people and get what he wanted while in Ylisse. It helped that he could do things regardless because the country's leader would always support him, meaning that Robin could afford to piss people off when it really came to it. Sadly, Robin didn't have this luxury now that he was in Valm, and he still didn't have the patience necessary to deal with nobles for a prolonged period of time. Given these limitations, it was decided that the best course of action now that the Shepherds were in negotiations with the various leaders of the now liberated Valmese territories was to let Chrom and Say'ri take the lead in the negotiations and keep Robin as far away from the Valmese nobles as possible. And if that was not possible and Robin had to talk to them for whatever reason, Robin agreed that the best course of action was for him to say as little as possible, and just smile and nod politely. But ideally he preferred if he could not be involved with nobles at all. Sadly, the world was not ideal and Robin found himself having to participate in this celebratory dance or ball or whatever that everyone decided to hold, as otherwise the conspicuous absence of the man responsible for drafting their ultimately victorious plans would not go unnoticed.

Well, whatever. As Robin had no plans or intention to mingle with any of these lords or get involved in their political nonsense, he decided he would pop in, mingle a bit, and stick with his more diplomatic friends who could do the talking for him.

So that's how Robin found himself walking from where his daughter was recovering to the hall or wherever this celebratory thing was being held. He'd have been there already if this blasted castle wasn't so big and confusing! How did they ever fight their way through here without getting lost…?

Robin was making his way down a hallway when he turned and ran into a group of women who were chatting, walking slowly, and most importantly, taking up a lot of the hallway, making it impossible for Robin to pass them. By the way they were all dressed, Robin guessed that they were all important, or retinue for someone important. That meant that Robin had to calmly wait until they moved or politely ask them to. The problem was that the women were all talking too loudly to hear him and Robin had no patience to wait for them to move.

"Okay, just…excuse me. Pardon me. Coming through!" Robin shouted, pushing, shoving, and elbowing his way past the women.

"Ow! Excuse me! How dare you!" exclaimed a particularly indignant looking woman at the front.

"Sorry, but you were walking too slowly and taking much too long walking down this hallway," Robin explained casually.

"The nerve! Who do you think you are?!"

"A man who needs to be somewhere. Excuse me." Robin made his way to his destination without looking back or particularly caring who he managed to antagonize.

The woman at the head of the column looked furiously at the departing tactician.

"My lady, do you wish for me to punish him for his insolence?" one of the ladies asked.

"Hmph. Not yet," the woman at the head of the column huffed, straightening her clothes. "We have an important event to attend and potential alliances to forge. The most powerful people in the continent will be there and we can't miss this opportunity to mingle, impress, and perhaps find powerful allies. I have to look my best and can't let some insolent servant ruin this."

"As you wish, my lady."

"Oh, but don't you expect me to let this go. After tonight, I will find this miserable servant and ensure he pays for his disrespect!"

"Of course, my lady."

"Good." The woman took a deep breath to steady herself. "Now, let us continue."

---

"Okay, gods. Finally."

Robin finally managed to find where the victory event was being held and made his way inside. The first thing he noticed was how many well-dressed people there were. Robin supposed that these snooty nobles traveled with a full wardrobe, even for official events organized on short notice. A lot of them looked real fancy.

Robin looked around, trying to find anyone he recognized. He saw a spot of blue amongst the crowd, which meant only one thing. Robin waved as Lucina turned her head to him, and made his way through the crowd to her.

"Hey, Lucina."

"I'm glad to see you have made it here, Robin. I take it your presence here means that Morgan is going to be okay?"

"Yes, thankfully. She seemed to have been hit with a particularly powerful spell the likes of which I've never seen before. Lucky my present and future self had enough foresight to cover her coat in enough protective charms, spells, and hexes to dull several Arcthunder spells. I think her main injuries were from her body hitting the wall because of the force of the spell knocking her back. Whatever the Valmese had, it hit hard. Hopefully Miriel can find what spells they were using so we could use them too."

"That's good to hear," Lucina said, relieved. She then continued quietly, "Robin, I…wish to offer my sincerest apologies for what happened to Morgan."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"You have entrusted me to ensure that no harm comes to her. While I have tried my utmost and stayed close to her while she commanded our forces during the fight with Walhart, the unexpected cavalry charge inside the castle caught us all unaware. In the process, Morgan and I were separated, and I couldn't be there to protect her from what had transpired. I have failed, and because of this, Morgan was injured." Lucina looked down guiltily. "I'm sorry, Robin."

Robin's first and default instinct when it came to ensuring Morgan's wellbeing was to blame whoever he held responsible for their failure of this most critical of tasks, so the urge to berate Lucina was strong. However, the more tactically astute part of Robin's mind then kicked in to go through the events of the last battle that led to Morgan's unfortunate being injured.

The fight was going well until they reached Walhart's throne room, which was where his most elite and loyal guards were. They were skilled, strong, and would rather die with their lord than contemplate surrender. Robin knew that the momentum was on his side, but the remnants of Walhart's army were going to make the final part as difficult as possible. And this wasn't even mentioning taking down Walhart himself. But it was during the bloody battle in the throne room that Robin suddenly heard the sound of war horns, turning around only to see the incredible sight of Walhart stop his war horse, surrounded by his personal mounted retainers.

Robin briefly wondered whether they were crazy enough to do what he thought they were when the men spurred their horses and showed that, yes, they were indeed crazy enough to do a cavalry charge right in the throne room.

With their giant armored horses and even more heavily armored selves, the charge took the Resistance forces by surprise. Walhart and his retinue easily charged through the forces in the throne room, trampling and slashing those who weren't fast enough to jump out of the way. And since Robin thought that the "fighting cavalry" part of the battle was over, he didn't have pike or spearmen on hand to counter the lumbering cavalry, which resulted in Walhart and his forces managing to cleave their way through the attacking forces, leaving them separated for the Valmese infantry to engage.

Robin knew from experience that no plan survives contact with the enemy. How much that actually impacted the battle depended on his ability to mitigate the fallout by having backup plans or…actually, backup plans were Robin's preferred method of dealing with things not going to plan since the alternative was to react in real time and with whatever resources he had available. And doing that was unpredictable and far from ideal. Unfortunately that's what Robin had to do since he was dealing with an unexpected cavalry charge that was cutting deeper into his ranks, Valmese infantry advancing on the disorganized front line, and enemy mages still giving his forces trouble from behind the Valmese lines.

Things got a bit blurry because of all the chaos around him, but Robin remembered that it was sometime then that Morgan managed to separate herself to reorganize the forces on her side when she got hit.

The whole situation was unexpected, chaotic, and a real mess all around. Robin almost got himself trampled by the charging cavalry and was pretty sure that he took a few hits from the enemy mages. And if Robin was having a hard time keeping track of things, Lucina probably didn't fare much better.

Having taken all of this into account, Robin took a deep breath and managed to fight his initial reaction to berate Lucina, choosing instead to say, "It's okay, Lucina. That entire situation back there wasn't great, to say the least. No one expected Walhart to pull off that cavalry charge inside and in those right quarters. I'm just glad that Morgan is okay and neither of you managed to get yourselves trampled and/or skewered."

"But—!"

"Believe me that I'd have some very strong words for you if you did!" Robin laughed, trying to lighten the mood. "But really. Don't blame yourself, Lucina. The battlefield is, despite my best efforts, fluid and unpredictable. We can only do our best to ensure that things go according to plan and none of our loved ones get hurt. As long as you did your best and didn't purposefully put Morgan's life in danger, I can't ask you for more."

"Robin, I…"

"I know you have a tendency to blame yourself for everything that goes wrong. And trust me, I take Morgan's safety very seriously! So take my word as Morgan's father and your commanding officer that you shouldn't feel bad for what happened to her. All I can ask is that you do your best to try to ensure that it doesn't happen again."

"I…" Lucina sighed. "Thank you, Robin. That means a great deal coming from you."

"I mean it. Besides, I heard that you were by her side as soon as you were able to get there and did everything and more while she was in the medical ward."

"It…was the least I could do. You can't imagine my relief when I heard that she would be okay. I don't think I could face you if anything happened to Morgan. And if the worst was to happen…" Lucina shook her head. "I don't think I would be able to live with myself."

"This conversation would be a lot different if that were the case…" Robin shook his head and then cleared his throat. "But enough about that. Morgan is going to be okay and that's all that matters. Well, that and the fact that you shouldn't beat yourself up over it."

"Thank you, Robin." Lucina smiled gratefully. "I promise I will do my utmost to ensure that no harm comes to Morgan moving forward."

"That's all I can ask." Robin then looked around, deciding to change the subject. "Everyone here looks all fancy and dressed up for the occasion. What's up with you?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"You're not dressed all fancy," Robin said, pointing to Lucina's swordmaster outfit. "What gives?"

"Ah. We had arranged this event in such haste that there was no time for some of us to find clothes for the occasion. Father and Mother managed to put together the appropriate outfits as they are leaders of Ylisse and must represent our country."

"And you? Are you not part of the royal family?"

"Yes, although I'm more comfortable in soldier's attire than formalwear, if I'm being honest. It's been so long since I wore anything resembling formal clothes that they just feel awkward. Besides, when Father and Mother took me to the local stores to find something, there was nothing that really caught my eye. I also believe Father and Mother had some comments about my tastes when I showed them what I would have liked to wear."

"So everyone is just happy for you to wear your regular swordmaster's clothes for this time, then?"

"It is the best solution." Lucina shrugged. "I prefer it this way. And we can explain it away as my being 'the unrefined sister, more comfortable on the battlefield than in the courts,' or something to that effect."

"The…? Oh right. We all changed your relations to us for the sake of convenience and keeping everyone's sanity, didn't we?"

"This way makes the most sense. Besides, I could ask you the same question."

"That being?"

"You also chose not to wear any formal clothes?"

"Lucina, what can possibly be more formal and fancier than this incredible coat of mine?" Robin asked. "It's pretty, formal, fancy, battle-worthy, and a thousand other things all at once. It's basically multi-purpose!"

Lucina laughed at that. "I suppose you do have a point there, Robin."

"Exactly. Who needs some dumb suit or whatever passes off for formalwear when you have the fanciest coat around right here? I put it on and automatically look like I belong in the highest of societies!"

"Yes, I suppose you do." Lucina nodded. "And we're all glad you could make it."

"I thought I'd grace you all with my radiant presence," Robin quipped. "You know, show up, shake some hands, eat some food, that sort of thing. Just so people know what the Ylissean League's amazing tactician looks like."

"I'm sure that your presence will be appreciated."

"People will at least appreciate that I'm the best dressed person in the room. Anyway, I'll keep my mouth shut and let you do all the talking, if that's okay."

"Surely you will say a few words to our guests and allies?"

Robin scoffed. "Aside from Chon'sin and maaaybe some people from Rosanne, we have no allies here. As far as I'm concerned, they're all untrustworthy opportunists at best and despicable traitors at worst. They're lucky I didn't decide to cut them down when they showed up with their reinforcements…"

"Robin, without Walhart's allies turning on him, we wouldn't have had the numbers needed to defeat him."

"Hmph. I've worked with much more desperate numbers against me." Robin scowled, grabbing the nearest champagne glass and downing it in one go.

"Oh dear…"

"Well look who's out and about."

"Hm?"

Robin looked up to see Sumia and Cordelia approaching.

"I take it that your being here means that Morgan is going to be okay?" Sumia asked.

"Yep. Most of the damage was a result of her being thrown backward and her body hitting the wall behind her. Whatever that spell was, it was something else! Luckily she should be fine."

"That's good to hear," Sumia sighed, relieved. "We were all so worried when we heard what happened."

"Not to mention you, who wouldn't leave her side all this time," Cordelia added.

"Thanks, guys. It's heartening to hear that Morgan and I have so many well-wishers."

"Well we'd be in a very awkward spot if our chief tactician and his apprentice got taken out of action all at once," Cordelia said.

"Oh, I see how it is. We're just your tactical guides, huh?"

"To be fair, one of you is very cute."

"Excuse you. Morgan is the cutest tactician around!" Robin exclaimed in mock indignation. "Anyway, what's up with you two? No fancy clothes either?"

Sumia shook her head. "No, sadly. Not enough time to do the shopping required."

"Besides, we're military personnel first and foremost," Cordelia added. "Chrom and Olivia need to look nice to represent Ylisse. We are just here to guarantee our delegation's security. It makes things easier for us not to dress up."

"A shame, too. It's been so long since I've worn anything nice or fancy…" Sumia sighed.

"I'm sure you'll get the chance to. While we're here in Valm. It was agreed that we'd avoid the mistakes made in Plegia and stay for the entire duration of the negotiations."

"You make it seem like they'll last for a while," Sumia noted.

"That's the feeling I get. There are too many parties involved and too many conflicting interests. Ideally we'd take our leave and let Say'ri and Virion lead the negotiations, but then we'd risk Valm falling under the control of some religious fanatics who worship a dark dragon god that wants to end all life."

Lucina raised a brow.

"...Mistakes were made in Plegia. Now then—"

"H-hey, Robin!"

"Chrom!" Robin smiled, seeing his friend who was hurriedly approaching him. "Looking very fancy and regal today, aren't we?"

"Well I do have an image to maintain. How's Morgan?"

"I've been told that she'll be okay. No lasting damage, thankfully."

"Good, that's good." Chrom smiled before deciding to jump right into it. "Robin, I have to talk to you about—"

"Hold that thought," Robin said suddenly, looking past Chrom and frowning. "I'll let you do the talking. I can't promise I will be diplomatic if you let me say anything."

"What are you—"

Robin grabbed a few glasses and started drinking before Chrom could finish his sentence. When Chrom was about to ask Robin what he was doing when some new voices entered the conversation.

"Ah, greetings!"

Chrom turned around to see some of the foreign lords approaching where he was.

"Your Lordships," Lucina greeted politely.

"Come now, there is no need for formalities. We are all equals here in victory!" said the man leading the pack.

"Although perhaps some would be more equal than others," mused the woman. "After all, we would still be under Walhart's yoke were it not for your Ylissean League."

"Your forces have certainly shown courage and daring in their engagements," said the man with the eyepatch.

"While your words are certainly appreciated, we cannot take all the credit. It was thanks to everyone's combined efforts that we were victorious," Chrom said.

"We thank you for your modesty, and must sincerely apologize for our despicable behavior. You have relied on our assistance and we have repaid you with betrayal," the man with the eyepatch said, shaking his head.

"Betrayal?"

"At Fort Steiger," clarified the man at the front. "It was…not our best moment."

Behind Chrom, Robin growled while taking another glass.

"Ah. Yes, I recall." Chrom shook his head. He then re-examined the three individuals in front of him, slowly recognizing them, although they certainly looked different from when he saw them last.

"I must also apologize for my meager contribution to the final battle. While I had fully intended to assist your forces in the final assault, Excellus' schemes in my realm meant that I had to focus my attention there in order to keep his supporters from organizing a rebellion and committing our full forces to Walhart's cause." The woman who Chrom now recognized as Lady Eizengard frowned. "Such dirty tactics. It was always a mystery why Walhart tolerated Excellus…"

"Robin? Are you okay? You seem to be drinking quite a lot…" Sumia remarked, slightly worried at seeing the tactician finish the drink currently in his hand and immediately reach for another one.

"Need to look busy. Keep my mouth occupied. Otherwise urge to say something undiplomatic to these people too strong to resist," Robin explained. "As long as I'm in the background and they don't talk to me, it should be—"

"Ah, and if it isn't the tactical genius himself!"

"Grr…."

Realizing that he was going to be included in the conversation whether he wanted to or not, Robin frantically looked around before stuffing a handful of snacks into his mouth.

"Robin, was it?" the man (Lord Clyde, was it?), asked, approaching the tactician.

"Er, Lord Clyde, perhaps—" Chrom, seeing the approaching disaster, tried to intervene.

"I must say, it's very rare when someone lives up to the reputation and rumors, but you are indeed every bit the tactician you are made up to be."

"Mmm." Robin nodded politely, conspicuously chewing his food.

"And while I know it doesn't excuse our actions back at Fort Steiger, I do hope that you can at least understand why we did it," Clyde said. "Excellus had many deplorable schemes going and many of us under his thumb. Hopefully now that he's gone and his actions exposed, there are no hard feelings?"

"Mmm!" Robin smiled and nodded again, despite his grip tightening on his glass.

"Yes, I think that we all move on in the spirit of victory and reconciliation," Chrom said quickly, seeing Robin's body tense. "We all understand why some of us did what they did, and now that Walhart is gone and Excellus' plans are exposed, it is important to focus on the future instead of the past."

"Words of wisdom," the second man, Lord Demitrius, said. "I'm sure you'll be hearing more stories like ours during your stay here. Excellus' web caught a number of us in it…"

"I'm sure we'll be able to look past this when the negotiations start," Chrom predicted confidently. "Now if you'll excuse us, we have some introductions to make so we can understand who we will be dealing with later."

"Of course. We will leave you to it. And if you require any assistance, you need only ask. We owe you at least that much."

The three leaders bowed and departed.

"Okay…" Chrom sighed, relieved. "Crisis averted. We made nice with the foreign leaders and didn't do or say anything to offend them."

"And not too soon, too," Cordelia noted.

"What do you mean?"

The sound of shattering glass caught Chrom's attention.

"Those damn…!" Robin was breathing heavily, his hand that was holding the remnants of his glass starting to bleed. "Betrayed us back at the fort and all they could say was—!"

"Easy, Robin. They're gone now and you successfully managed to be polite and quiet and not say anything. Now, let's put this away…" Sumia slowly took the broken glass out of Robin's hand and put it aside. "And get this cleaned up."

Sumia's hands started to glow as she chanted something. Soon, Robin felt the soothing feeling of healing magic slowly working on the wounds on his hand.

"Do you really feel that strongly about it?" Lucina asked.

"Basilio and countless others are dead due the betrayal at Steiger," Robin stated flatly. "And before any of you say anything, I don't care what their excuse was or what blackmail they were under."

"Right. Well I suppose that it's a good idea we decided to limit your presence around our negotiating partners…" Chrom commented wryly.

"Oh yeah. Even I recognize that the last thing any of us want is for me to let these people know what I really think of them."

"There we are. All fixed!" Sumia announced.

"Wow. Good as new." Robin looked over his hand that now had no blood or cuts. "Thanks, Sumia. I see you've become very adept with healing magic."

"I've had a lot of practice."

"And only some of it wasn't on you," Cordelia said jokingly.

"Hey, I'd believe it. With all the nonsense that happens to me, I'm basically the best repeat subject to practice your healing skills on." Robin chuckled before clearing his throat. "Right. Well. I've showed up and made the small talk. I think it's time I call it a night."

"Didn't you just get here?" Chrom asked.

"Well, yeah, but I can't eat and drink my way through this entire thing and every time someone I don't know tries to talk to me. And who knows how long we'll be here?"

"You could probably do it if you have one of us to watch over you and intervene before you say something stupid or insulting…" Cordelia mused jokingly.

Robin raised a brow. "Do you really have that much free time this evening?"

"Oh. Right." Chrom suddenly remembered why he came over here. "Robin, I have to—"

"Greetings. You are the Ylissean delegation, I presume?" came a sultry sounding voice.

Chrom took a deep breath. He had to urgently talk to Robin but people apparently couldn't resist butting in!

"Yes, we are of the Ylissen delegation." Chrom put on his most polite smile and turned around to see a woman with long blonde hair dressed in very expensive-looking clothing.

"You must be Exalt Chrom. I am Lady Theodora of Illustria. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." The noblewoman bowed, and it was then that Chrom noticed how sizeable her bust was and the low cut of her dress.

"The, uh, pleasure is all mine, milady," Chrom said awkwardly, bowing in return.

"And this," Theodora continued, indicating to the woman next to her, "is Augustina, my retainer and right-hand woman."

"My lord." Augustina bowed respectfully.

"She is loyal, competent and oh-so indispensable. Why, I would be positively—" Theodora suddenly stopped as her eyes narrowed. "You!"

Chrom flinched, not expecting the sudden outburst.

"Me?"

Looking back, Chrom saw Robin, mouth full of snacks, pointing to himself, expression indicating that he was not expecting to be part of the conversation.

"Do you mean to tell me that you are part of the Ylissean delegation as well?" Theodora demanded.

"Last I checked. Why? Did someone kick me out while I wasn't looking?"

"Are you mocking me?"

"No. At least, not intentionally. Why do you ask?" Robin asked, popping a crab cake into his mouth.

"First the incident outside, now this. It is as if you are being purposefully disrespectful."

Chrom sighed. "Robin, what did you do?"

"Hey, your guess is as good as mine. Is this some sort of noble thing that I'm too unrefined to understand?"

"My lord, you…" Theodora looked between the two men, noting how casually they spoke to each other. "Do you know each other?"

"I will have to apologize for any disrespect displayed by my friend here," Chrom said. "Please do not hold it against him. We are new to Valm and are not versed in the land's etiquette."

"I don't think I even did anything…" Robin muttered, reaching for another crab cake. "Mm, good food here."

"I…see." Theodora said slowly, taking in this new information. "And may I inquire as to the identity of your…friend?"

"Ah, of course. Forgive me. Lady Theodora, allow me to introduce you to Robin, Grandmaster of Ylisse and tactician of our forces."

"The tactician of…" The noblewoman's eyes went wide at the new information. She then glanced again at Robin, who was at this point busy grabbing new snacks from the nearest table. "I see."

"Yes. Please allow me to apologize again on his behalf. He may not be as refined as what you might expect, but this is due to, uh—"

"Oh, you need not apologize, sire. I'm sure what we have is a simple misunderstanding, is all."

Chrom was surprised at the change in tone. The woman in front of him went from being formal, to sounding extremely insulted, and was now speaking in a sweet tone as if nothing happened.

"I see. Well, thank you for your understanding, milady."

"Of course! You are, after all, new to Valm and not accustomed to our manners and etiquette. Thank you for the kind introduction, milord. I shall leave you with your entourage and look forward to discussing matters of state when the time comes."

"I—"

Theodora and her retainer bowed respectfully and left.

"Okay. Sure." Chrom wasn't sure what just happened. The woman seemed like she wanted to talk about something when she approached him, but then walked off after a few minutes. But then Chrom supposed that was for the best. Now he could—

"Ah, Exalt Chrom of the Ylissean League, I presume?"

Chrom cursed under his breath. Maybe he should've dragged Robin off somewhere private to talk…

---

"My lady? Why did you leave so suddenly?" asked Augustina once they made their way out of earshot of the Ylisseans. "I was under the impression that you wanted to gather some intelligence from the Ylissean delegation?"

"There has been a slight change of plans." Theodora had a thoughtful look on her face. "Augustina."

"Yes, my lady?"

"I need you to gather everything you can on the Ylissean tactician. Robin, was it?"

"Of course, my lady. Do you require anything in particular?"

"Give me everything you can, but focus on relationship status. The Ylissean tactician's reputation is as impressive as it is extraordinary. If even half of the stories about him are true, then he would be a very powerful ally. And if circumstances allow, perhaps I could use my feminine charms to convince him to use his talents for us," Theodora said, a sly grin on her face.

"Right away, my lady."

---

"Well that was weird." But Robin didn't think about it too long after the two women left. At this point of his life he was used to much weirder things happening to him for this to get his attention.

Looking around, he saw Sumia, Cordelia, Lucina and others making small talk. Robin craned his head to see where the next snack tray was when he heard a voice addressing him.

"You are the Ylissean tactician Robin, are you not?"

"People sure insist on talking to me…"

Robin looked around, trying to subtly indicate either Chrom, or Cordelia, or someone to come and do the talking for him. Unfortunately, everyone seemed to be currently occupied at the moment, leaving Robin to his own devices. He should really cling to someone during this event…

"Er, yes." Robin cleared his throat and turned to whoever was talking to him, trying to say as little as possible. "I am the Ylissean tactician Robin. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I am Lord Olivier, of the Principality of Bergen," the portly man said. "We are a small yet wealthy and influential realm in the north of Valm. Perhaps you've heard of it?"

"Uh…"

"Well, no matter. I just wanted to see for myself the man behind the tactics that were used in some of the most decisive battles that eventually brought down the Conqueror himself!"

"Then you've found him," Robin said. "Please feel free to gaze upon the tactical magnificence that is me."

"You are as competent as you are witty, Sir Robin!" Olivier laughed.

"I am that and more. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Perhaps. I wanted to introduce myself partly to determine a few facts that I have heard."

"Okay…"

"I have been speaking to Exalt Chrom and, well, may I ask you a personal question?"

"That depends on how personal it is."

"I mean no offense, sire, and you are of course entitled to refrain from responding, but I wanted to inquire about your engagement."

"My…engagement?"

"Quite. Your engagement, your thoughts about it, and your partner, Princess Lucina."

Robin wasn't quite sure how talking about the last battle was a personal question or why he should be offended, but this foreign noble was asking him about it and the polite thing would be to indulge him.

"Please, ask away. I will answer to the best of my ability," Robin said, trying to remember everything Maribelle ever drilled into him about noble etiquette.

"You have my gratitude, sire. Now, permit me to ask if the union between you and Princess Lucina is one borne out of political necessity, if it was mutually agreed, or perhaps something else…?"

These people sure spoke weird.

"I suppose that my, uh, union with Lucina is mostly down to reliability, efficiency, and compatibility."

"Interesting. Would you be able to elaborate?"

"Lucina is a very able warrior, able to hold her own on the battlefield. While she is effective on her own, I've found that we are especially compatible together in the field. We each cover each other's weaknesses and complement our strengths, so I guess it's only natural that we would partner up. I'd probably have had us together again if she wasn't charged with a more important task."

"I see. So your engagement is driven by military considerations?"

"Of course. My job is first and foremost military in nature and that is the lens through which I consider things from."

"Interesting. Very interesting…" Olivier nodded thoughtfully. "I suppose it does make sense. Princess Lucina being a skilled warrior on the field, it would only make sense to unite her with the army's tactician. This ensures the tactician's continued loyalty by tying him to the royal family. At the same time, it guarantees the princess' safety as it is in his interest to keep her alive. A very clever arrangement indeed…"

Robin was only half listening as he was reaching for more snacks.

"So, Lord Robin," Olivier spoke again. "You have clarified the reasons behind your preference in Princess Lucina as your partner. I understand it is mostly a military arrangement, but does that mean you have no emotional attachment to her?"

"There is certainly an emotional attachment. After all, it'd be very hard to work with someone in a trying field such as mine if you felt apathy or active disdain for your partner."

"I see. So you have feelings for Princess Lucina, then?"

"I like her, if that's what you mean. She's dependable, loyal, competent, kind, among other things."

"You seem more to be describing a friend when you are talking about her, sire."

"She's a very good friend. It's one of the reasons we work so well together."

"A friend. I see…"

Robin munched on his snacks, watching as the man in front of him seemed to be deep in thought.

"This has been a very enlightening conversation, Lord Robin. I thank you for your time and for indulging my curiosity."

"My pleasure."

Robin watched as Lord Olivier bowed and walked away.

"Strange people in this land with strange questions…"

"H-hey, Robin!" Chrom quickly rushed over to his friend. "I couldn't help but notice that you were talking to that man over there just now."

"Yes, I was. And you can relax, Chrom, I didn't do or say anything that may embarrass you, me, Ylisse, or anyone else," Robin said rather proudly. "Guess all that time Maribelle dragged me to her noble lessons wasn't wasted after all…"

"What? Oh, right. Good for you, etc etc. Hey, Robin? What did you and that man talk about?"

"Our battle with Walhart, funnily enough."

"...Really? That's it?"

"Yeah, although he also asked a bunch of random and strange questions concerning my relationship with Lucina."

"I see…" Chrom tried to keep his cool and not freak out. "And what did you tell him?"

"That we fight well together and she's reliable and competent and things of that nature. Didn't even have to lie or anything. Don't know why he was so interested, though."

"Huh. I see. Anything else?"

"We asked if I had any 'feelings' for her."

"Oh no…"

"I know, right? What a strange question! But you don't have to worry since I didn't say anything stupid or inappropriate."

"What did you say?"

"What was I supposed to say? I told him that I like her and we get along and things of that nature. So basically I told him the truth."

"I see. I guess it could've been worse…"

"Oh yeah. Hey, no one was insulted and I didn't say anything stupid. I'd consider that a win!" Robin laughed.

"Well, that's certainly something," Chrom agreed.

"And now that I've done my duty, I am going to excuse myself and concentrate on things that matter."

"That being?"

"Getting back to my daughter to be there when she wakes up. And after that, finding her mother, finally."

"Oh, right. You said you'd do that after we were done with the war, huh?"

"Yes I did…" Robin sighed heavily.

"Still don't know where to start?"

"Well, no. Sort of."

"...What?"

"While I don't know a single thing about women or courtship or anything related to the two, I can confidently narrow down Morgan's future mother down to two characteristics based on historical and popular trends."

"That's great! …Wait, what historical—"

"So I know that Morgan's mom must…" Robin paused for dramatic effect. "Have blue hair."

"I…what?"

"OR, be a pegasus knight."

"Okay…"

"But ideally, a pegasus knight with blue hair, although I suppose green is also acceptable if blue is out of the question."

"That's really, oddly specific," Chrom remarked.

"Hey, I told you that I came to these conclusions after careful analysis of historical and popular trends, with your ancestor being the first to set one."

"My ancestor?" Chrom took a second to think about who fit Robin's criteria. "Wait a minute, don't tell me you mean—"

"Yep." Robin nodded. "Marth married blue haired pegasus knight Caeda and went on to have a long and happy marriage and kids and dynasty and all that."

"Robin, please don't tell me you're basing this purely on—"

"And he wasn't the only one!" interrupted the tactician. "From my meticulous research I have noted that the protagonist's eventual wife or heavily implied love interest had, nine times out of then, blue hair, or was a pegasus knight. So naturally I'd have to follow this precedent, given its success rate and compatibility between the participants."

"I…" Chrom didn't even know where to begin.

"And Marth wasn't the only one," Robin continued, nodding vigorously. "All of my material points to the same conclusion. While she wasn't a pegasus knight, Ninian had blue hair and was obviously meant as Eliwood's partner."

"Wasn't her hair more teal—"

"Teal is a subset of blue," Robin said definitively. "Anyway, Lilina had a more straightforward blue and was likewise positioned to be Roy's love interest, although I'd say that Shanna fits more, being a pegasus knight and all. Moving on, Eirika had the teal subset of blue hair and was basically the most desirable woman in the Magvel series, and I'm pretty sure that her co-protagonist brother Ephraim ended up with Tana, who fits my criteria exactly."

"That's…"

"And before you say anything, I know L'Arachel is popular, and I agree, but I think she'd make a better friend to have wacky misadventures with, while Eirika would make a better wife."

"...You're really committing to this as your criteria to find Morgan's mother, huh?"

"Hey, it's a start, and better than the big fat nothing I had before! Besides, it's perfect! Marth and Caeda established the precedent which was followed more or less by other works of fiction. Why? Because it works so well, that's why! This plan is basically flawless!"

There was so much to unpack there that Chrom didn't know where to begin.

"So who am I to break the successful pattern set by my fellow blue-haired main characters? Ideally my wife would be a blue haired dancer instead, but given that you already took that slot with Olivia, I have to go with pegasus knights."

"So you're the main character now?" Chrom asked tiredly. The insanity coming out of Robin's mouth was increasing with every word and Chrom didn't think he could handle it all in one go without getting a headache.

"Well duh. The story isn't called 'Chrom's Quick, Completely Straightforward and Totally Painless Search for Morgan's Mother,' now is it?"

"I suppose not, but blue hair? You?"

"Yes, me! What of it?"

Instead of answering, Chrom pointedly looked at Robin's hair.

"What?"

Robin followed Chrom's gaze before he realized what his friend meant.

"Hey, my hair may be white now, but it was originally blue, which still counts for the purposes of me being the main character and thus filling in those requirements!"

"...Right. Sure. Okay." Chrom didn't think he had enough patience to argue the many issues of Robin's so-called plan. "Then what does green have to do with it"?

"What?"

"You said that you'd take green hair if blue was unavailable? Where did that come from?"

"Oh. Right. See, as a man who plans battlefield tactics for a living, I have learned that having backup plans is very important, in both war and peace. So pursuant to this, I have created a backup plan in case my initial plan falls through for whatever reason."

"Okay…"

"And my backup plan, in case I can't get my Caeda for whatever reason, is Palla."

"...What?"

"Yep." Robin nodded thoughtfully. "You know that I think Palla is the best and most marriageable Whitewing. I think I've talked about her characteristics and why I think it was a travesty that Abel overlooked her for Est and that I'd totally go for Palla if I were him. And that led me to think that I'd need to find my own Palla in real life if the whole Caeda thing doesn't work out."

"If you know what characteristics and characters you like from your stories, why don't you just, you know, look for your future wife based on that instead of some 'precedent'? Go find your own Palla instead of looking for Caeda just because the Hero-King did it first!"

"Because I'd love to have my own Caeda. Marth married her for a reason, you know? I'm just saying that if I can't find her for whatever reason, I'd be happy if I could find a Palla."

"...Right, okay, but suppose that you do find a pegasus knight with blue or green hair, how can you guarantee that you'd have found your Caeda or Palla?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that they weren't the only women we know of that were pegasus knights and had blue/green hair. Even during the Hero-King's time, Catria was a pegasus knight with blue hair, not to mention the mercenaries of Illia in the Elibe series. If you do start courting a woman that matches your criteria, what's not to say that you'll end up with Catria or Thea instead of Caeda, or Erinys instead of Palla?"

"W-well that's…! Obviously I'd…"

It seemed like an obvious question, but apparently not one that Robin thought of in any meaningful way…or at all. And so, Chrom watched in increasing alarm as Robin dealt with the fact that all his meticulously(?) thought-out plans for finding his future wife and Morgan's mother suddenly came apart at the seams.

Chrom cursed under his breath. He finally became somewhat knowledgeable about the stories they discussed in their club meetings and all that ended up doing was causing Robin to have an internal crisis. And since Chrom was a good friend and didn't want Robin to have a nervous breakdown, he scrambled to think of something to say to make Robin feel better, or change the subject, or say something.

"Uh…right. Well. That doesn't really matter! So what if you end up finding a Catria instead of a Caeda! Catria's nice too, right?"

Robin's eye twitched.

Apparently that wasn't what Chrom needed to say, so he scrambled for a new approach.

"Anyway, it's, uh, not worth thinking about that now! Because, uh, do you even know what you're going to do or say when you finally meet her?"

"I…what?"

Well at least that got Robin's attention and he no longer looked like he was going to imminently lose his mind. That was good. Less good was where Chrom had to go now that he got Robin's attention.

"Yeah! I mean…uh, so you find your Caeda. Then what? What will you say to her? Do you know?"

"I…do not."

"Well maybe it's a good thing you didn't go run off and look silly in front of the first blue/green haired woman you find. You know what you need?" Chrom asked, a rudimentary plan forming in his mind to try to turn this situation to his advantage.

"A fortune teller?"

"No, practice. And someone to practice with."

"What?"

"Let's face it, Robin, we both know that one of two things would happen if you were to look for your future wife right now. And those things being either: you'd freeze up not knowing what to say and make yourself look very silly, or you'd say something inappropriate, making yourself look silly…at best."

Robin opened his mouth to object.

"Tell me I'm wrong," Chrom said.

Robin resentfully closed his mouth.

"And in order to avoid that, you'll need someone to practice your lines with and bounce ideas around so you don't make a complete fool out of yourself when you meet Morgan's mother. And you know what? I have the perfect person in mind for this task," Chrom said confidently, veering back to why he started talking to Robin in the first place.

"Please tell me you're not going to suggest that I practice courting with your wife."

"What? No, don't be weird. I'm suggesting my daughter instead."

"So…me practicing my courting skills with your daughter is less weird than practicing with your wife?" Robin asked dubiously. "Does Lucina even know anything about romance and courtship? I'd have thought that her spending all her time trying to survive in her hellish future would've left her a bit inexperienced in the romance department."

"Which is exactly what makes her the perfect partner for you!" Chrom insisted, determined not to let this fall through.

"...How?"

"Er, because you don't know how to court women, and she doesn't know how to be courted and thus has no expectations of preconceived notions on what's romantic and what's not. It's like you're both starting from blank slates and can work out for yourselves what works and what doesn't. And if you figure out what works with Lucina, odds are that it'll work with your future wife as well."

"Hmm. I guess that makes sense."

It did make sense. And Chrom just came up with that on the spot! Sometimes he surprised himself at his quick thinking.

"Right. Okay. So, what, I'm just supposed to practice pickup lines with Lucina, and what, see what she thinks works?"

"Pretty much. Practice lines, discuss dating strategy, do all that romantic stuff you read in those novels at our meetings." And now, to loop it back and take care of Chrom's original problem. "And don't hesitate to do so in public."

"Really?"

"Yeah! Because practicing pickup lines and whatnot is one thing, but you have to be ready to do so in front of other people, so you know, you go do that. And I mean it—handholding, flowers, gifts, whatever you think you want to try out. Don't be afraid to try it out in public where everyone can see you."

"Isn't that how rumors are started?"

"So what? Who cares what some Valmese nobles say about you and Lucina? Finding Morgan's mother is much more important than some rumors spreading around here."

"Wow. You're being very cavalier about this whole thing," Robin remarked.

"I mean, really though. Who cares? We're only going to be here for as long as the negotiations last and then we'll be gone. So what if the Valmese start thinking that you and Lucina are engaged?"

"Why would they specifically say that we're en—"

"I say just go with it!" Chrom plowed on. "It's almost impossible to start a rumor once it spreads, so instead of doing that, you might as well embrace it, you know?"

"Seriously?"

"Absolutely." Chrom nodded. "Again, we're only here for as long as negotiations for the peace settlement last, and do you really want to spend that time worrying about what some Valmese nobles are saying about you and trying to put down rumors?"

"That does sound like a huge pain, but I'm more surprised that you're encouraging me to lean into the rumors and play Lucina's pretend romantic partner."

"Fiancée," Chrom corrected. "But what does it matter? What's important is that you get your practice in and don't care what the others say about you two. It'll be awkward, sure, but it doesn't matter in the end. What does matter is that you can get practice on courting and will know what to do and say when you finally meet Morgan's mother."

"You've thought this through surprisingly well," Robin remarked, nodding approvingly.

Actually not at all, but Robin didn't need to know that.

"I'm more than just a pretty face, you know," Chrom said confidently.

"You have your moments on certain occasions," Robin observed jokingly. "But I guess your logic is sound. I really do need to think about what I'm going to say to Morgan's mother and see what works before actually committing. And I guess your reasoning behind Lucina being my partner makes sense. As long as you have no objections…"

"Robin, it was my idea. You have my full permission and confidence to improve your knowledge and skills in courtship and do whatever it takes in pursuit of this goal as long as we're here. And you can do it as publicly as you want!"

"I'll keep that in mind. But please note that I take no responsibility in the event that I get so charming that I accidentally manage to make your daughter fall for me and my future charms."

"I'll keep my eyes open for any signs of that," Chrom said dryly.

"Hey, you never know. This could work out so well that I can have women throwing themselves at me once I'm done."

"If that's the goal, you can always just take pointers from Virion."

"Chrom, I said I wanted to find Morgan's mother, not get slapped across the face and then spin that into a tale I tell to my friends of how women are so into me."

"True, although you can ask Virion for pointers to know what not to do when trying to flirt with women."

"I believe that your son is still the resident expert in that field."

Chrom grimaced. "Don't remind me."

"Besides, Virion won't ever shut up if I go to him and ask him about anything involving women. He offers his tales unsolicited as it is!" Robin shook his head and smiled. "But thanks for the idea and suggestion. Feels good to know you've got my back and best interests at heart."

"I always do and have," Chrom said honestly. And it was true, even if he did have an ulterior motive this time.

"So Lucina knows about this little arrangement, then?"

"Of course she does! Let me just give her the news that you've agreed and we can get you two started. You stay here and don't say anything stupid."

"You know I can't promise that. What I can promise is that I'll stay by someone who can keep me from doing that," Robin said, turning around and walking toward where Sumia and Cordelia were.

"Okay. Good. Good…" Chrom breathed a sigh of relief. He still couldn't believe that his totally improvised idea to deal with the inevitable rumor of Robin and Lucina's fake relationship worked. And not only that, but Chrom somehow managed to convince Robin to go along with it without telling Robin the truth, and made Robin think that this whole thing was Chrom doing him a favor! Chrom may not have been the smartest or most prepared person in the room, but sometimes sheer dumb luck was all that he needed. And now that he managed to get Robin on board with this idea, it was time to talk Lucina into it.

Chrom made his way through the crowd toward his daughter, politely dodging people who looked like they wanted to talk to him.

"Lucina!"

"Father. How are you finding the celebrations?"

"They are perfectly fine. Anway, do you have a moment, Lucina?" Chrom asked, pulling his daughter to a quiet corner of the room. "I have something important I need to urgently talk to you about."

"Of course, Father." Lucina's face immediately became serious. "Is there a new threat that I should be aware of?"

"Kind of."

Chrom toyed with the idea of trying to make a poorly thought-out excuse to tell Lucina in order to get her to agree with this crazy thing, but then he decided against it. Making a story to rope Robin into this was one thing, but Chrom didn't think that he had to lie to his daughter.

"Father?"

"You see, we have a…situation in Valm that concerns you."

"Me? Am I in some sort of danger?"

"Well, yes and no." At his daughter's confused expression, Chrom continued, "You see, now that we have taken down Walhart and all of the Valmese lords have come out of the woodwork to work on the peace settlement, politics seem to have taken over. Ordinarily this wouldn't be a problem, but now that we have taken a key role in defeating Walhart, that makes us very visible and very important here in Valm. So important, in fact, that I've received inquiries already about possible alliances between Ylisse and some Valmese realms. The problem is that some of these proposals include marriage alliances between our realms."

"But both you and Aunt Lissa are already married," Lucina noted. "Who else from our family is still single?"

"Well, you and Inigo," Chrom said slowly.

Lucina's eyes widened. "M-me?"

Chrom nodded. "I've already received at least one proposition for your hand in marriage to further a political agenda."

"Father, I…" Lucina was speechless.

"Don't worry, Lucina, I have rejected that request outright." Chrom smiled at his daughter's visible relief. "Unfortunately I don't believe that will be the last one. If life at court has taught me anything, it's that nobles are a scheming, relentless bunch. I'm certain that I'll get more propositions and run into others who will try to pull any strings they can for your hand in marriage."

Lucina's eyes widened, alarm clearly written on her face.

"And to make matters worse, I think we'll need the support of at least some of the nobles here if we want to conclude the negotiations quickly. We can rule our giving you away in any circumstance, but who knows how some of these nobles will take repeated rejections? If they're especially spiteful, they can make the negotiations very difficult. But that is exactly why I have planned something to preempt all of these issues."

Lucina sighed, relieved. "I am so glad to hear that, Father."

"Yeah, um…" Chrom cleared his throat, preparing to go into the awkward part of this plan. "I hope you still feel that way when you hear my plan."

"I have faith in you, Father. Whatever it is, it can't be worse than the alternative."

"You be the judge of that."

"Father?"

"You see, in order to prevent what I have just told you from happening, I thought that the best way to nip all those issues in the bud is for you not to be available."

"I…don't understand. Are you planning to hide me somewhere for the duration of our stay in Valm?"

"No, not that way. What I meant was that you would not be available for marriage."

"And why would that be?"

"Because you would already be engaged to someone."

Lucina stared at her father blankly.

"Not really engaged!" Chrom said quickly. "What I meant was that we would start a rumor that you are already engaged to someone from Ylisse, thus making you unavailable for marriage proposals."

"I…see. I suppose that does easily solve that issue. However, would a simple rumor be enough? Surely people would see through the ruse once they observe me and notice that I am alone. Even if my 'partner' is back in Ylisse, would that stop the offers?"

"Probably not, which is why we have to have your fake partner here with you, so that everyone could see that he's real and that you two are in a relationship, even if it is fake."

"I…see."

Chrom was relieved that Lucina didn't immediately reject this plan. Now to delicately explain the second part…

"And I actually have someone in mind to play your pretend husband-to-be."

"Oh?"

"Obviously it has to be someone we can trust, someone who you know, and someone you are comfortable doing this with."

"That certainly does narrow the list of candidates down…" Lucina thought aloud. "Although I'm not sure how convincing any of my friends would be. Neither they nor I have any experience when it comes to relationships, be they real or pretend."

"Your friends? Oh, right. Your friends!"

Chrom was so focused on easing Lucina to Robin that he didn't even consider that he had alternatives. Although now that he thought about it, the alternatives weren't great. He didn't know how convincing a fake boyfriend Gerome would be (his whole "dark mask and costume and always be alone" approach didn't really scream "great fake boyfriend"), Brady has the face of a bandit and would lead to some unflattering rumors and speculation, Yarne would cause more controversy than Brady, Inigo was Lucina's brother, Owain was her cousin, and Laurent was only slightly more expressive than his mother emotionally (and only slightly above Gerome in that department). So in a weird way, Robin was maybe the best choice for this, even if he did have his own particular set of drawbacks…

"Er, anyway. Your friends. No, they actually weren't who I had in mind for this."

"That would have been a bit awkward to explain to them, regardless of our shared past," Lucina said, amused. "But then who do you know and trust enough for this task?"

And now the most delicate part…

"Robin, actually," Chrom said, deciding that the direct approach would be the best one.

Lucina looked at her father, not expecting this response.

"I know it sounds a bit weird, but it makes complete sense when you think about it!" Chrom said quickly. "You've known Robin long and well enough now to trust him and know what he's like. You also know that he's loyal and dependable and will do everything in his power to help his friends, especially in serious matters such as this."

Lucina was so stunned at this suggestion that she couldn't think of anything to say.

"I believe that your relationship with him is good and friendly enough so that you know enough about each other to realistically come across as a believable couple to others," Chrom continued making his case.

"I-I suppose that you do have a point," Lucina finally said. "But Father, is this really the best way forward?"

"It's the best way that we have. Look, I can ask your friends if you're uncomfortable with Robin," Chrom suggested, really hoping that he wouldn't have to.

"It's not that, or rather, it's not…" Lucina tried to organize her thoughts. "What I mean to say is, I suppose this plan would involve awkwardness no matter what, but I'm assuming you have no issues with putting Robin's name forward as my…pretend partner?"

"The only concern I have is to keep you out of the political scheming of the nobles here," Chrom said honestly. "And I trust Robin enough with this task to suggest him, yes. Sure, my best friend being my daughter from the future's pretend fiancée is a bit weird when I think about it, but then again that entire sentence is weird. At least you're both the same age!"

Lucina couldn't help but smile at Chrom's attempt to put her at ease.

"That is encouraging, but will this not affect Robin? I seem to recall that he said he would like to begin the search for Morgan's mother in earnest once the war with Valm has been concluded. If he is busy pretending to be my fiancée as part of this plan, will that not delay his efforts to find his future wife?"

"That's very considerate of you to think about him, but I think this actually works for him too. You see, Robin actually has no idea what to look for or how to start looking for his future wife and Morgan's mother. The best he could do is probably make an ass of himself like Virion…or get taken advantage of by some unscrupulous nobles or thieves here in Valm."

"Father?"

"As soon as they hear that Ylisse's brilliant and powerful tactician is looking for a wife and mother for his child, I imagine everyone seeing such an easy target will flock to him with whatever lies and fake charm they can muster to try and get him to commit to them. If anything, that'll delay Robin's finding Morgan's mother more than anything else!"

"That is simply unacceptable."

"I agree," Chrom said, seeing that this point actually animated Lucina. "Which is why it would be best if one of us stuck close to ensure he doesn't get himself involved in a con. And he can't do that if he's busy pretending to already be in a fake relationship."

"That does make sense…"

"Also, this gives him the time to really figure out what he wants in a woman and the chance to really discuss it, not to mention practice being in a relationship, even if it is fake."

"What do you mean?"

"Lucina, I'm going to be honest and say that you'll probably have to look like a young couple in a relationship by doing some things very publicly so that the nobles in Valm can see you. Nothing special or serious, mind you, but think like walking around together, holding hands, eating together, things like that. I promise you won't be kissing or anything."

"Oh gods…" Lucina blushed at that.

"L-like I said, nothing really serious!" Chrom said quickly. "Just doing innocent things like that in public to make your fake relationship believable. And while you do so, you can listen to Robin's ideas on how he intends to search for Morgan's mother and give him suggestions, you know? I'm sure he'll tell you he intends to approach any blue haired woman he sees on the street and start with a bad joke, and I'm sure you'll tell him not to do that and better ways to initiate conversation."

Lucina looked at her father quizzically.

"I can almost guarantee you he'll suggest something like that," Chrom said, nodding. "Anyway, while he's with you, you can keep him from the clutches of some scheming noblewoman or cons, while at the same time giving him suggestions on how to approach women in search of Morgan's mother without getting slapped or coming off as a lunatic or a fool. Or both."

Lucina thought about it. Chrom's logic did have some sense behind it. And Robin has been frustratingly single throughout the war, despite Lucina's attempts to push him along and some very clear signals. Maybe this way she could help him and more actively point him in the right direction. Even though Lucina didn't know how his unique relationship status came to pass in the future, she could try to make it happen in the present. It would be very awkward to explain, but it would be worth it if she succeeded and managed to assuage her friends' worries. Severa has been especially agitated about her situation the longer it lasted.

"Very well," Lucina said, committing herself to her decision. "I will do my best to, uh, present a convincing fake relationship with Robin."

"I'm glad to hear it." Chrom internally sighed with relief.

"Although I'm not sure how convincing we will be together as neither of us has any idea of how to act."

"That's okay. We can explain that as a young and inexperienced couple in the early stages of their relationship," Chrom said dismissively. "You both can discuss your fake backstories when you meet."

"I suppose we have our way forward, then. What about Inigo?"

"I'll keep an eye on him, but I think the fact that you're the eldest sibling and next in the line of succession has put the focus on you instead of him."

"I see. I'll leave it to you, then." Lucina cleared her throat awkwardly. "So should I…approach Robin to discuss this plan, then?"

"If it'll make you feel better, I can talk to him first to make it less weird."

"Thank you, Father.

"Thank you for agreeing to go along with this, Lucina." Chrom smiled at his daughter and left.

Once Chrom made his way far enough, he breathed a sigh of relief. Somehow he managed to convince both Robin and Lucina to go along with this idea that he came up with on the spot. Not only that, but he even told Lucina the truth! And now that Chrom thought about it some more, the idea didn't sound so bad. Sure, Chrom may have made up the whole thing about Lucina in a moment of desperation and as an alternative to punching that noble in his stupid, arrogant face, and sure, he might have tacked on the justifications after the fact, but it turned out to be a very simple solution to the entire problem. Hopefully this would get the Valmese nobles off Lucina's back and get their attention on the peace conference. The only issue was how convincing Robin and Lucina might be as a couple, but Chrom wasn't that concerned. Any awkwardness could be explained away, as long as they were together in public looking like more than just friends. The only issue was Inigo.

Chrom frowned.

He initially didn't even think about Inigo, but now the point was raised, Chrom saw that Inigo's potential to get into some real trouble to impress girls was extremely high. Having someone keep an eye on him didn't sound like a bad idea, but the question was who would that be? It would have to be someone Chrom trusted and someone Inigo knew, so that narrowed the list down, but who among Inigo's friends…?

Chrom paused as a thought occurred.

She was so timid, but she could be aggressive when called for it. Perhaps she shared her mother's obsessive nature, but could it really….?

"Hey, Chrom!" Robin called, waving.

Inigo would have to wait. The Lucina situation had to come first.

---

"MORGAN!"

Despite all the pain in his body, Robin couldn't tear his eyes away at the scene unfolding in front of him. In slow motion, Robin watched as an extremely powerful bolt of lightning connected with his daughter. Morgan only had enough time to brace herself before she was hit and thrown back.

Robin coughed. His body was sore from both the impact he felt when the wind spell threw him back against the wall behind him, but he didn't care. The enemy was advancing, pressing their advantage caused by Walhart's last charge, but Robin didn't care. The only thing Robin cared about was making sure Morgan was okay.

"Robin!"

Gritting his teeth, Robin turned his head to see Chrom rushing to him, dragging him back until some Ylissean soldiers managed to form a line in front of them to intercept the advancing Valmese.

"You okay?" Chrom asked.

Robin grunted, pushing through the pain in his body to get up.

"Morgan…"

"Morgan? What happened to Morgan?"

Robin coughed, trying to make sense of the chaos around him. He saw the Ylissean ranks in disarray, soldiers trying to recover from the Valmese cavalry charge and close the gaps in their lines before the Valmese soldiers managed to exploit and widen them. Worryingly, Robin couldn't see where his daughter was.

"Robin! Talk to me! What happened?"

Despite the rising panic and anger, Robin kept his emotions in check long enough to bark out some orders to stabilize the situation. His forces would win this day. Walhart's last charge would only create more casualties on the Ylissean side, but it wouldn't change the outcome of the battle. But if Morgan was on the casualties list…

It wouldn't do him any good to look for her. She was knocked back beyond his visual range, behind Naga knows how many soldiers, making trying to find her an effort in futility. Robin would only be able to find her after the dust settled and the chaos of the battle subsided. No, he would have to have faith that she was okay. He would find her alive and well after the battle. Speaking of which…

Robin turned around, trying to look beyond the enemy lines. The Valmese had the momentum, although the Ylisseans were standing their ground. Beyond the Valmese heavy infantry and armored troops, Robin could see mages casting their spells. Judging by Morgan's last position and the trajectory of the spell, the mage that cast the spell was…

Robin squinted, spotting some vaguely familiar and particularly ugly mage. He recalled hearing the name somewhere, Excellent or something? It didn't really matter. Robin found who had hurt his daughter, which meant that they had to die. And no amount of Valmese troops would stand between him and his target.

Robin closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Before he kept his emotions in check to issue commands and prevent the Valmese from overwhelming the Ylissean forces. Now that the flow of battle was evening out, Robin could let go, letting his emotions flood in. He felt panic at the thought of Morgan being injured, guilt at not being able to protect her, and above all, anger at the ugly individual for daring to hurt her. Robin also felt something inside him stir, directing his emotions, letting them fester and stew until they turned into hatred.

Robin's breath hitched as he felt a surge of energy inside him the more hate he felt. Something told him to embrace it, focus it, turn it into a weapon with which to kill his target and anyone stupid enough to stand in his way.

His right hand burned, but Robin ignored the sensation, dark whispers telling him that the pain was a good thing and would help him kill more and kill faster.

Robin looked through the enemy ranks, plotting the quickest path to his target. Spotting a swordmaster, Robin grinned.

Perfect.

Taking his Levin Sword, Robin threw it directly at the swordmaster, impaling him in the chest. Robin then quickly chanted the incantation for an Arcthunder spell, casting it directly at his sword while the swordmaster was upright and staggering. The effect was that once the spell hit the sword, it was amplified and became more powerful as it shot out of the other end of the sword, shocking everyone in a wide area behind the hapless swordmaster. Robin also ensured that his spell chained, jumping to more Valmese soldiers and cutting a line deep through their ranks. Robin then focused his magic into his right hand before slamming the ground, directing his magic. Immediately, columns of purple fire burst out of the ground and spread in a wide area behind the swordmaster, creating a clearing.

Taking his chance, Robin unsheathed his other sword and ran into the opening he created, straight to the line of mages.

---

"Ngh…"

Robin grunted, slowly opening his eyes.

Rubbing his eyes and looking around, Robin realized he was still in the medical section of the castle, by Morgan's bedside.

"You're finally awake, huh?"

"I wish I wasn't. Still sore all over." Robin yawned and stretched.

"Kinda same. Head feels all sore and I feel like my ribs have been hit with a war hammer."

"That sounds bad. Why's that?" Robin asked casually.

"I dunno. I don't remember being hit with a war hammer, then again, remembering things isn't really my strong suit. Want to fill me in, Dad?"

"Fill you into what?"

"What happened after the battle, duh! I remember some things, but it gets all fuzzy for some reason…"

"Well, where do you want me to beg—" Robin paused when he realized who he was talking to. "Morgan?"

"Yeah?"

Robin blinked and rubbed his eyes.

Sure enough, there was his daughter, alive and well and sitting up and looking curiously at him.

"Morgan! You're alive! And awake!"

"Uh, yeah? Am I not supposed to—Oof!" Morgan was interrupted by Robin trapping her in a tight hug.

"Oh gods, you're awake and okay. Do you know how worried I was?"

"Dad…! Ribs…! Still hurt…!"

"Oh, whoops. Sorry, dear." Robin reluctantly let go of his daughter. "Are you okay?"

"I was before, but I'm not sure now…" Morgan said, clutching her chest. "What happened? Why am I sore all over? Did we win the battle?"

"Sorry, no. Everyone died and now you're in the afterlife," Robin deadpanned.

"Huh. I always imagined the afterlife would be brighter, you know?"

"Well at least you have me to show you around," Robin said, tousling Morgan's hair. "You're lucky to be alive, you know. It was only thanks to my totally reasonable paranoia that you didn't get turned to a crisp during the battle."

"Layers upon layers of protective spells and incantations on my coat pulling their weight, huh?"

"That and then some. Libra tells me they managed to absorb the worst of the magic damage and so all your injuries occurred when you were flung against the wall."

"Guess that explains why my head and body are sore all over…"

"I'm just glad you're okay. And hope that little bump didn't knock anything important in there," Robin said, poking Morgan's forehead.

"I'm tougher than I look, Dad. It'll take more than being hit by a Thoron spell to make me forget my tactical training!"

"A Thoron spell?"

"Yeah. That's sure what it felt like." At Robin's confused expression, Morgan continued, "Oh yeah. Guess we don't have access to those yet, do we?"

"We do not. I don't even know what that is."

"It's a tier above Arcthunder magic. Don't worry about it," Morgan waived dismissively. "I'm sure we'll get our hands on them soon enough."

"How can you be so sure?"

"The Valmese used them. And if I know you, you probably already put someone in charge of looking into it."

Robin smiled. "You do know me."

Morgan beamed. "What kind of daughter would I be if I didn't?"

"But that begs the question how you know what the spell was, and more importantly, what it felt like being hit by it."

"Probably a future thing."

"What?"

"I seem to recall bits and pieces of information here and there." Morgan closed her eyes to try and think. "Your lessons and tips and such and I think those involved magic and spell tiers. You may have also practiced those with me as part of my training."

"I practiced hitting you with this devastating magic when you could only cast El-tier spells?!" Robin exclaimed in horror.

"Maybe? Or it could've been a way to ensure that your spells on my coat worked."

"I don't see how that justifies hitting you with such powerful magic."

"Well how else were you to know how much damage my coat could absorb?"

"Well—"

"Hey, look who made a full recovery!"

Robin and Morgan turned to the door to see Owain and Cynthia running in.

"Hey, guys! What brings you over to my side of the medical section?" Morgan asked.

"What else? We're here to see how our favorite eternal rival is doing," Cynthia said. "And by the look of things, you've made a full recovery. Mostly."

"Of course she did! We expect nothing less of our eternal rival/my destined partner!" Owain declared dramatically. "It'll take much more than some puny magic to bring you down!"

"Much more," Morgan said, nodding. "My power level is such that I can shrug off everything but the most devastating attacks and come out mostly unscathed!"

"Uh, guys?" Robin spoke up. "As glad as I am that you've taken the time to visit Morgan, I was hoping that I'd have some time—"

"Now that you're back up, I thought we could talk about our characters' backstories," Owain said. "Cynthia and I thought of some really cool stuff that I think you'd like."

"Ooh, goodie! I love it when we talk about expanding our characters and powers. I've actually been meaning to update some of my powers too."

"What, again? You're already so dang powerful Owain and I had to brainstorm some ideas about how to defeat you!" Cynthia complained.

"And yet with all my power, you two still manage to live after our epic encounters. What I was thinking was…"

Robin sighed. At least Morgan seemed to be back to her normal, chipper self. So much so she immediately went to discussing her fantasy character bio with Owain and Cynthia. Robin supposed that he should be happy Morgan had friends that shared her eccentric hobby (or was it the other way around?). Either way, they seemed to be having fun and Robin would have to come visit his daughter another time.

As Robin was leaving the room, he ran into Severa standing outside.

"What the—? Severa? What're you doing here?"

"I was in the area and remembered that Morgan was somewhere around here and thought I'd drop by."

"Since when do you care?"

"Hey, I don't have to explain myself to you! What, you going to question how I spend my time or who I see?"

"No, it's just whenever you show up and open your mouth, you end up pissing off a lot of people," Robin remarked, frowning. "And I don't need my daughter getting upset just when she woke up."

"You say that as if there's anything that can bring down her mood."

"Severa, I swear that if I hear you've been deliberately trying to upset her—!"

"Relax, okay? I'm not looking for any drama here," said the redhead, raising her hands.

"Good, because I don't have time to deal with any drama right now. Stay here and do whatever, or don't. I'm not your dad. Just don't upset my daughter. She's having a good time with her friends and I don't need you ruining that."

Robin then walked past Severa without waiting for a response.

"I'm not the terrible person you think I am…" Severa muttered, watching Robin walk off.

And she wasn't…at least, not intentionally. For example, she was here to check up on Morgan to see how the junior tactician was doing. Despite all her efforts, Severa slowly, reluctantly ended up warning up to the upbeat young girl and started feeling protective of her. It was similar to the attitude Severa felt toward Cynthia (even including how infuriating it was). Severa was also here because she felt it was her fault Morgan was injured in the process.

Severa thought back to the previous battle when she was almost trampled by Walhart's charge, jumping out of their way just in time. She was confused and disoriented, and Morgan was there to pick her up (even offering her a cheeky "There are better places to take a nap than on the ground, you know," in the process). Morgan helped her up, directed the Ylissean forces, and even kept the Valmese guards away while Severa found her footing. And Severa couldn't even react fast enough when she was that spell until it hit Morgan directly. Robin entrusted Morgan's safety mostly to Lucina, but at that point when Lucina wasn't by Morgan's side, the job fell to Severa, and she failed spectacularly. It was only by Naga's grace that Morgan didn't die.

Which brought Severa's thoughts back to the present. She was good at offering cutting remarks and sarcastic commentary, but less good at showing concern. She could do it, but odds are that it would end up sounding more insulting than caring. What was she going to say, too? Not like she and Morgan knew each other that well, although Severa supposed that didn't really matter since Morgan was so upbeat and positive all the time.

Severa peeked into the room to see Morgan, Owain, and Cynthia animatedly talking about something.

Maybe she should come back. It would be embarrassing to try to check up on Morgan while Owain and Cynthia were there…

---

Now that Robin knew that Morgan was awake and well, he could focus on his other pressing matter.

"Hey, Lucina!" Robin waved, spotting the princess.

"Hello, Robin."

"Right. So are you okay to continue our discussion from the other day?"

"I…" Lucina tried to keep a straight face despite her embarrassment. "I suppose we did agree to continue our discussion, didn't we?"

"We did. Why don't we discuss this over tea?"

"Robin?"

"It'll be better to discuss this sitting down and with a snack rather than standing in the hall like this, no?"

"Ah, I see. Y-yes, I suppose it would."

"Then let's go. I have a lot of ideas I need your opinion on."

Robin led Lucina to a respectable looking establishment where the two reserved two seats and ordered some tea, along with a few snacks before getting to business.

"Okay!" Robin said enthusiastically. "Now I know that we have a lot of things to get through, but I have so many thoughts that I would appreciate your views on."

"Before we proceed with this, please let me reiterate that while I will do my best to assist you, I believe that I am not the most qualified person to advise on this particular topic," Lucina warned. "I would suggest seeking advice from those that are far more knowledgeable than I, like Cordelia, perhaps. Or Sumia."

"Your concerns are noted, Lucina. And you bet that I'm going to talk to Sumia and Cordelia about my ideas and seek their advice. However, I thought that you'd the first person I'd go to bounce ideas and suggestions off of, being my designated romantic partner and all."

"May I suggest that you call me something else, in that case? 'Romantic partner' has some implications that, well…"

"Don't worry. We'll figure out the title eventually. What's more important is that I need your thoughts on how to initially approach women."

"Is there any particular approach required? I would have thought all you need to do is initiate conversation as with all people."

"Well, yes, but I can't really open up with, 'Hi, you look like you could be the mother of my child. Are you interested in starting relations with me?' I mean, I could, but that wouldn't be the best introduction, would it?"

Lucina chuckled. "It would certainly be very honest, if anything."

"If only honesty would net me my wife!" Robin sighed dramatically. "Sadly the world isn't that simple and the honest truth is too crazy for anyone who does not know. So honesty is out of the question, which leaves…"

"Yes?"

"What I need your help with, that being how do I approach who I think may be Morgan's mother. Because after the initial introduction, I got nothing."

"Well—"

"I suppose I could ask what she does for a living after seeing her hair."

"Her…hair?"

"Yes, her hair and profession are key in helping me narrow down who I think might be Morgan's mother."

"I…see."

"Did I not tell you my totally brilliant and completely foolproof plan that I came up with?"

"You did not."

"Oh. I see. Guess that'll explain why you'd be confused. Okay, listen up and prepare to be amazed! So you see, I was thinking that…"

---

While Robin was telling Lucina all of his plans and how he planned on identifying his future partner, he wasn't the only one grappling with issues of the heart. Back in her room, Sumia thought that she had her entire plan thought out and she would put it in motion once the war was over. The only issue was that now that the war was actually over and Sumia planned on confessing to Robin, she actually had no idea how to go about doing it.

"'Robin, I think I may have feelings for you.' No, I'm way beyond just thinking it. Need to be more confident."

Sumia took a deep breath.

"'Robin, I love you.' …Yeah, go with that if you want to freak him out and give him a heart attack, Sumia. Confess your feelings and put him in shock in one go."

Sumia tried to think of another approach.

"Maybe I can start a conversation over pies and sneak my confession in while he's distracted…"

Goodness, why was this so complicated? The romance novels she read all made it seem so easy! Then again, it was mostly the male character confessing to his beloved and making a grand romantic gesture. That, or one of the main characters confessing their feelings as they lay dying to make it more dramatic. And since Sumia didn't plan on dying anytime soon or making any sort of grand gesture (it would only end up in embarrassment when she inevitably messed something up), she was stuck in this unknown territory, made worse by the fact that Robin made his feelings about romantic relationships very well known. That, and the fact that he saw Sumia as a very good friend and she didn't know how he would take it if she confessed to him, thereby irrevocably altering their relationship.

Gosh, this wasn't at all how Sumia imagined her romantic life going. For as long as she could remember, Sumia always had a picture of herself, her husband, and their children. She always imagined that they would be a typical loving family, living in their quiet little house, living their quiet little lives that would be full of love and happiness. Initially her husband and children didn't have names or faces, but Sumia always imagined that he would confess his feelings to her while they were dining alone under the stars. It would be a sweet and heartfelt confession, and Sumia's eyes would water and she would happily say that she felt the same, after which they would kiss and embrace. The scenario remained more or less the same until Sumia joined the Shepherds and met Chrom. Being a young and romantically idealistic woman, she couldn't help but develop a crush on the rugged, handsome prince. And as her life went on, her romantic scenario evolved to reflect her new reality. Her husband now had a name and a face (Chrom), and since he was a prince, the confession scene changed to a small village. Now Sumia imagined that she would walk outside her home to see Chrom dismounting off his majestic white horse after returning from a successful heroic campaign. When she would ask what he was doing at her house, he would proclaim that he could not have accomplished his heroic task without her assistance, declare that he loved her as soon as he lay his eyes on her, get down on one knee, present a ring to her, and ask for her hand in marriage. She would, of course, be delighted, cry that she loved him too but was worried it would never work out because of their ranks, accept his proposal, put on the ring, and kiss her charming prince. They would then live happily ever after in his castle.

That was Sumia's idealized romantic scene for a good long time. That is, until she met Robin. Well, the scene stayed the same well after she met Robin, but it did end up changing eventually. The change was so subtle that Sumia didn't notice it at first. At first, Robin was her superior officer, giving her orders on the battlefield and tips on how to improve off of it. He was kind, patient, and always nice to her despite her many faults. As time went on, Robin became a good friend on top of being her superior officer. They spent more time together, found some shared hobbies, and fought alongside each other on countless occasions. Sumia didn't know when her feelings for Robin developed into love, but she supposed it was inevitable, now that she thought about it. He never scolded her when she messed up (even when her messing up resulted in him getting hurt), he was there to pick her up when she fell down (figuratively and literally), but most importantly, he always believed in her even when she didn't believe in herself. Every time Sumia doubted herself or had her confidence shaken, Robin was always there to offer words of encouragement and boost her confidence so that she could keep on going without being discouraged. It was thanks to Robin's encouragement and guidance that Sumia became a better version of herself.

Sumia did think about her eventual married life and that picture of her family here and there. And while Chrom was there for a while, he started to fade and his face slowly changed to Robin's as Sumia's feelings for the tactician developed and deepened. Even the final confession changed to fit the new reality. There were several scenarios ranging from a battlefield confession to a proposal right after Gangrel's defeat, but ultimately Sumia's mind settled on something more mundane: she and Robin would be sitting together reading a book. Sumia would move to reach for something but then knock a plate from the table. They would both reach for the plate when their hands would touch. Sumia would look up to see Robin, a surprised expression on his face. She would stammer something, but then notice how close his face was to hers. He would be thinking about something, blush, hesitate, then commit himself and slowly close the distance between them. Sumia would be surprised, but she would close her eyes as his lips met hers for their first kiss. After, they would separate, both blushing, and gaze into each other's eyes. They would both whisper "I love you" and kiss again. It was a lot more lowkey than what Sumia imagined previously, but she was okay with that. What Sumia learned about herself in the past few years was that she really didn't need some grand display to accompany her confession.

The image of her future family also shifted as her feelings for Robin grew and evolved. Sumia imagined her future married life with him, now living in Ylisstol's castle. Robin would be working in his office, taking care of his important tasks as Ylisse's Grandmaster, and Sumia would be there, either waiting for him in their quarters once he was done with his duties, or visiting him in his office to bring him his favorite treats to brighten his day. Otherwise, Sumia would be tending to Ylisse's pegasi and passing on her knowledge to Morgan.

Sumia sighed blissfully.

Morgan's appearance didn't change Sumia's idealized scenario one bit. If anything, Morgan very easily slipped into the scenario because Sumia was all too willing to accept her as her daughter. Well, Sumia would accept any children that Robin may have had from the future once she confessed to him, but Morgan really made it easier since she was so friendly and enthusiastic and likable and watching Robin and Morgan really made Sumia realize how much she wanted to be a mother and how ready she was. And now that the war was over, she had no excuse!

Sumia took a deep breath to steady herself.

Right. Well she knew what her feelings for Robin were. The question was whether he felt the same way. Sumia knew that Robin liked her, but did he like her like her if she were to confess? It was hard (and a bit frustrating) to tell because Robin wasn't a man who knew his own emotions. If he was interested in Sumia romantically, he didn't show it, and Sumia figured that was mostly due to him not being aware of that interest in the first place. So whether Robin was interested in her that way was up in the air, but this situation could not stand. Sumia almost managed to confess to Robin and she would do it for real now and force the issue and resolve this whole situation once and for all! …She just had to do it in a way that wouldn't scare Robin off forever. Maybe invite him over for a pie and slowly get to the topic. However she decided to do it, Sumia knew that her pies would have to be involved.

A knock on her door interrupted Sumia's thoughts.

"Sumia, you in there?" came Cordelia's voice.

"I'm here. Oh, is it time already?"

"That it is. Are you ready?"

"Ready!"

Sumia supposed that the whole Robin situation could wait for a bit. After all, she had to plan this right and couldn't just rush such a delicate matter!

"So, where are we off to?" Sumia asked, stepping out of her room.

"I thought we'd look around Rigel and get a lay of the land while we're here. I hear that it has a very good merchant's quarter."

"That sounds exciting. Maybe we can find something interesting there to bring back to Ylisse. Do you know the way?"

"Yep. Shall we?"

"Lead the way."

---

"...And that is my brilliant plan to narrow down the list of women to find Morgan's mother," Robin concluded confidently. "Pretty good, huh?"

"...Yes. You've, uh, clearly given it a lot of thought," Lucina said. Robin looked so sure that she didn't have the heart to point out some of the very obvious flaws in his "plan."

"See, this is why I like you, Lucina. You seem to understand where I'm coming from and aren't a downer when I tell you my plans. Unlike some people, you see them for the brilliance that they are!"

"Of course, Robin. I only wish to see your plans succeed."

"Which is why we have to determine how best to approach my future wife." Robin paused as a thought occurred. "Actually, why do I have to be the one making the first step? With Morgan showing up in this time, I'm basically guaranteed to meet her mother. Given that, wouldn't it be better for me to wait for her to approach me?"

"No."

Robin was taken by surprise at the swiftness and firmness of Lucina's response.

"I, uh, what I mean to say is…" Lucina cleared her throat. "I believe that the best course of action would be to seize the momentum yourself instead of relying on the whims of fate to guide you to your mother. If you rely on Morgan's mother approaching you first, you have no way of knowing if the woman that approaches you will be Morgan's real mother or someone with ulterior motives."

"What? Who can possibly have ulterior motives approaching me? People don't do that!"

"Need I remind you of the time Inigo brought a woman to camp who then proceeded to drug him and steal as much as she could, both from him and from the camp?"

Robin frowned. "Gods, that did happen, didn't it? I swear the only reason your brother is still with us is because Chrom convinced me not to fire him on the spot."

"I'm surprised firing him is the only option you considered."

"The only reason I didn't go with something worse is because I respect Chrom too much, otherwise…" Robin shook his head and sighed. "Fine. I'll make the first step, then. And I guess keep an eye out on women accosting me out of nowhere, too."

"A healthy dose of caution never hurt anyone," Lucina said. "I will also be here to assist you in your endeavors, I only ask that you come to me if you are approached by women seeking relations with you."

"Seeking to vet my potential suitors, huh?" Robin remarked playfully.

"I only wish to determine whether the intentions of your potential suitors are genuine," Lucina replied. She also wanted to ensure that there would be no interference with Robin's developing relationship with two particular women, but he didn't have to know that.

"Hey, I'll take all the help I can get. The sooner we weed out the fakes and isolate Morgan's real mother, the better. I don't want to spend more time doing this exhausting search than I absolutely have to. And that means I need to work on my introduction and approach. And that's why I need your help, Lucina!" Robin finished desperately.

"I will do my best to help, Robin," Lucina said, laughing softly.

"Okay, good. So I walk over to Morgan's potential mother, introduce myself, and then…what?"

"Robin, I think you may be overthinking this. Just try to talk to her like you would any other person."

"It would be easier if the majority of my 'talking to other people' didn't consist of orders. Also, I need a topic to start the conversation, otherwise I'll just introduce myself and look really awkward in the ensuing silence."

"Well, perhaps you can try…"

---

"...We have to ensure we engage the enemy in an open field. This will play to their cavalry strengths, but we will use that to our advantage. All we need to do is line up our infantry in such a way so that Walhart's forces don't see what they're charging into until it's too late. We neutralize the main advantage the Valmese have over us and can then engage their infantry. If all goes well, our separate battalions will engage the remaining Valmese forces in the castle," Robin explained, walking through the camp.

"I assume that you and Father will be leading from the front as usual?" Lucina asked, walking beside him.

"He insists on doing so and I have to be there to ensure he doesn't do anything stupid and get himself killed."

"I know he will be in good hands with you watching over him."

"Yes, because I'm very good at my job. And while I'm doing my job with your Father, your job today, Lucina, will be to guard Morgan with her battalions. I'd do it myself but I can't command multiple battalions during battle, no matter how much I would like to."

"You can count on me, Robin."

"Thank you, Lucina. This is going to be our biggest, most important battle yet, so nothing can go wrong."

"We have faith in your abilities, Robin," Lucina said reassuringly, noticing how tense the tactician looked. "You have successfully seen us through countless battles and today will not be any different."

"Your words give me strength as always, Lucina. I just wish we had more time to prepare…"

"Do you not always say that before a major battle?"

"I do, but I especially mean it this time since we had to rush this whole operation to engage Walhart given our limited window…"

"Hey, you! Robin!"

The tactician frowned. That shrill voice could only belong to one person.

"This better be important, Severa. I'm busy here."

"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't," retorted the redhead. "What the hell is this I'm hearing? I'm relegated to the far back reserve battalions?"

"Yes. Problem?"

"You bet there's a problem! What the hell am I doing so far in the back? You're wasting the potential of one of your best soldiers by relegating her to rearguard duty!"

"If you're worried about not getting to see any action, don't be. I'm sure we'll be calling up our reserves in this fight, just not immediately," Robin explained in a way that indicated he thought this matter closed.

"Do you really think I'll be most useful when I'm on rearguard duty?"

"I think that you'll be a lot more tolerable when you're on rearguard duty," Robin replied curtly. "That is, being as far away from myself and the frontline troops as possible."

"Severa, perhaps it isn't the time to question—" Lucina tried to calm her friend, seeing how Robin was not in the mood.

"So you're making troop assignments based on your personal feelings instead of optimization? And here I thought you were a professional," Severa sneered.

"What I consider first and foremost is unit cohesion, and you are the single biggest factor in undoing it everywhere you are," Robin said through gritted teeth. "Be happy you're still in this army and I haven't kicked you out yet."

"Just admit that you can't keep up with me."

"Severa—"

"You're in the rearguard," Robin said, not in the mood to engage in Severa's nonsense.

"Hey, you can't just—"

"Er, Robin?" Lucina interjected, "I don't mean to question your plans, but do you not require someone of Severa's talents anywhere near the frontline? You have seen for yourself that she is a capable fighter. Is there really no need for her in any of the frontline battalions?"

"Not really, although I suppose there are spaces in Morgan's battalion, since that one will need the most capable infantry to push alongside the others and to keep the battalion commander—my daughter—safe" Robin thought aloud, before quickly adding, "But you're already there and I believe that your skills should be enough."

"Of course, Robin," Lucina said diplomatically. "But may I note that if you do decide to commit another person to guard your daughter during the battle, Severa and I have fought together countless times and are very experienced in this regard. Furthermore, I believe that Morgan has no issues fighting alongside Severa, whose talents with the sword might be useful in keeping Morgan safe while she issues her orders and casts spells."

Robin remained silent, considering Lucina's words. He then looked over at Severa.

"Don't speak. Don't whine. Don't question your orders and do as you're told. Guard Morgan with your life. Got it?"

Severa nodded.

"Good. You're lucky you have Lucina to speak up for you. Without her accumulated goodwill I'd have kicked you out a long time ago. Now don't make me regret this," Robin said sternly. He then gave Lucina a brief nod before walking off.

"Well. I'd say that went well enough," the princess announced. "I assume you have no issues with this outcome?"

Severa remained silent.

"Severa?"

When Lucina looked over, she saw her friend biting her lip, a strained expression on her face. Following Severa's gaze, Lucina saw Morgan running up to Robin with some papers, and saw how Robin's expression immediately brightened at seeing his daughter.

"Oh dear…"

Thinking back at that moment and all the times Severa tried to approach Robin only to end up ruining it and having Robin say something hurtful to her made Severa bite her lip in despair and frustration. But what really made her seethe was how visibly happy Robin was every time he was with Morgan, and how Severa couldn't hate her no matter how hard she tried!

"Ah, Severa, there you are," Lucina said, entering the room. "I've been meaning to—"

"Can you believe what he said to me?!"

"I…" Lucina was caught off-guard at the sudden outburst.

"Just before the last battle, remember what Robin said to me? You were there."

"Yes…"

"I try to get along with people, you know. It's not my fault that some of them can't take some valid criticism! Also, just because some people are way too sensitive for their own good, he was going to put me way behind the action?! I can probably hold my own better than most of the soldiers here!"

Lucina nodded patiently, sensing that she wasn't going to get any words in until Severa finished her rant.

"And it's not like I'm being a jerk on purpose! I try to do something nice to try to get closer to Robin so that he has a better opinion of me, but every time that ends up with him having a dimmer view of me! I don't even know why I bother. Never had a knack for tactics, but now I have to compete with Morgan of all people! And that competition is so unfair that I might not even try. And what is with her deal? She think she can just walk in here and flash a smile and look all cute and eager and she'll have everyone eating out of her hand?"

"Severa, Morgan isn't—"

"The worst part is that it's working! With her big eyes and her sunny attitude and…and her not letting anything get her down, it's just…" Severa threw her arms up in the air in frustration. "You just can't help but like her, even me! And I tried really, really hard not to! Do you know that she brushes off my comments like it's nothing? I say something mean and other people get upset, but Morgan? She seems to either completely ignore my comment or just go on like she didn't hear it. What the hell am I supposed to do in the face of that? She's like a giant ship that plows anything and everything in its way by sheer force of enthusiasm and peppy optimism."

"So…" Lucina tried to decipher Severa's rant to get to the real meaning. "You're warming up to Morgan, then?"

"Yes…" Severa replied sullenly. "Fighting it is like fighting a tornado—you just can't win. Moreover, that tornado is made of so much cheerfulness that it rubs off on you. And I guess I owe her the benefit of the doubt during the last battle. I was supposed to keep her safe and instead fell during the charge, and had to have her keep the enemy off me until I got my bearings. And once that happened, I watched her get hit."

"We're all very lucky she wasn't hurt too badly."

"Yeah…"

"Also, about Robin…"

"What about him?"

"You said you wanted to try and improve your relationship with him? The best way to do so would be through shared hobbies and activities. Doing so through improving your tactical knowledge is admirable, but perhaps another avenue would yield better results? On top of your sparring, perhaps through board games, or that card game?"

"Yeah, right. Trying to bond through board games is a great way to ruin my relationship further since the goal is usually world domination, and you know how competitive I get."

"I know how competitive Robin gets too," Lucina commented, chuckling. "So card games, then?"

"Beating him would probably be easier than in board games because it depends on the cards you pull instead of just purely tactics…" Severa mused. "Robin's luck in packs is legendary in how bad it is, although mine aren't that much better. We're not Morgan pulling Rares every day…"

"Must everything be about winning and losing?"

"What do you mean?"

"Perhaps you can approach Robin and seek his advice on building your deck?" Lucina suggested. "It should be a non-confrontational way for you two discuss a hobby. Hopefully Robin will see it as an opportunity to use his experience to assist someone in this game he loves, and you can use the opportunity to get closer to him."

"Provided that my big mouth doesn't ruin that too…" Severa muttered. Despite her words, Severa considered Lucina's proposal.

"It's just a suggestion," Lucina added. "You don't need to follow through."

"Yeah, yeah…" Severa paused, shifting awkwardly. "Look, Lucina, I…want to thank you for listening to me constantly whine about my unusual family issues. And because you stand up for me in front of Robin. I don't need you to do any of that, but…I appreciate it all the same."

"Of course, Severa. I'm always here for you." Lucina smiled reassuringly. "By the way, I've been meaning to talk to you about my task in helping—"

"Here I am!" Morgan announced, barging into the room.

"Hello, Morgan," Lucina greeted. "Up and about already?"

"Yep! Being in bed all day is one thing when you're out cold, but it gets so boring when you're fully awake and good to go. Luckily nothing important was damaged and the healers gave me permission to go about my very important business."

"For which you're late," Severa stated flatly.

"Am I? I usually make sure I'm early for the setup…" Morgan shrugged. "Oh well! We're here now which means the setup can proceed as planned."

"Setup? Important business?" Lucina asked.

"The important business of concluding our epic saga of who will ultimately control Elibe!" Morgan explained, opening her back and getting out the Risk/Reward board.

"Ah, yes. We were still in the process of playing that game, weren't we? I feel that it's been a while…"

"A lot longer than I anticipated, mostly because you and Severa keep on interfering in my plans by fighting my armies instead of rolling over and letting me march over Owain and Cynthia!" Morgan exclaimed dramatically, setting up the game.

"It's a shame that peace is not an option. I would have much preferred if we could coexist together instead of trying to eliminate each other," Lucina said ruefully.

"You say that, but you're also the one who hoards her cards until you accumulate enough to burst out and put even me on the back foot," Morgan noted. "Besides, if you want to play something where war isn't the main point, you might want to try the Universalis series."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I hear it's a grand strategy sorta game that incorporates literally thousands of years of real history and politics and economics on a single board. The makers used some complex magic to simulate the real history of the setting. I think they recently released an Archanea board where you can take control of a country and play long enough to see it evolve to current day Ylisse."

"That sounds fascinating…"

"Oh yeah, we should totally give it a shot sometime once I beat all of you out of Elibe."

"Heh, you'll win over my dead body," Severa said. "Unlike Owain and Cynthia, I'm not letting you win without a fight!"

"And you put up a really good one!" Morgan acknowledged. "A worthy adversary indeed. You must be some sort of expert in this game with how tactically you play."

Severa scoffed. "Please, I usually wouldn't be caught dead playing these stupid nerd games. The only reason I'm here is to ensure that you play them right."

"I'm guessing that's why you came here before everyone else? To help me set up the game right?"

"I'm here so early because I have nothing else to do. Also to make sure that you don't cheat and give yourself an advantage when setting up the board."

"Who do you take me for? Cheating to win is for suckers. You either win fair or square or take your defeat with dignity and grace," Morgan declared.

"Why don't you just surrender when we play our Total Warfare games?"

"Because surrendering is for cowards! Just because your victory is inevitable doesn't mean I'll make it easy for you. I'll take down as many of your pieces as I can with me!"

"That doesn't sound very graceful or dignified…" Lucina remarked.

"I'll have you know it's very much both."

"I hope you don't command your soldiers on the battlefield as you command your pieces on the board. If we find ourselves under your command, are we supposed to fight to the death instead of surrendering to the enemy?" Severa asked.

"That'll depend on the enemy," Morgan replied absentmindedly, putting pieces on the board. "If being overwhelmed by Risen, for example, you might as well fight to the death since they don't take prisoners. If fighting slavers or bandits, on the other hand, surrendering may be a wiser option since it'll give you the opportunity to break free and kill them all later on, although you'll probably have to put up with some unpleasantness while they hold you."

"You've actually given this some thought?"

"I remember Dad saying that one has to be prepared for all scenarios, which includes what to do in case of defeat, as unlikely as that'll be. Judge your best chances of survival, and go from there."

"That is…" Lucina didn't expect the conversation to take such a dark turn. She was about to change the subject when Severa spoke up.

"Hey, the troop numbers in this area are wrong. We had two battalions each because we were fighting over it and the dice rolls were more or less even."

"Really? According to my notes—"

"What notes?"

"The ones I keep in here," Morgan said, tapping her head.

Severa rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, going off simply what you recall. Very reliable."

"Second opinion?" Morgan suggested.

"Take a look at my notes," Severa said, taking out a thick and detailed notebook, pages full of dates, moves by what player, and where everyone left off at the end of their sessions.

"Wow. Those look really detailed!" Morgan remarked, impressed.

"You bet they are! Problabay better than what you keep in that cluttered head of yours."

"So you've kept these notes for as long as we've played the game?" Lucina asked.

"You bet." At Morgan and Lucina's impressed expressions, Severa blushed and stuttered, "N-not because I want to or am enjoying myself or whatever! Just to, you know…keep everything, uh…accurate…? Y-yeah, accurate!"

"Of course, Severa," Lucina said, nodding in understanding.

"This is super detailed!" Morgan marveled, flipping through Severa's notes. "It's like you kept track of every little move and maneuver ever since we started. And…what are these notes on the side?"

"What? Th-that's nothing!" Severa said quickly, trying to grave her notebook.

"These look like your thoughts," Morgan continued, deftly dodging Severa as she read the notes. "Huh, I see you're trying to analyze my movements and strategy."

"Am not!" Severa reached over the table to try and grab her notebook.

"Heh, good luck." Morgan easily dodged Severa's effort. "You'd have better luck trying to figure out how card packs and pulls work."

"Why is that, Morgan?" Lucina asked, watching the scene before her with amusement.

"Because the inner workings of my mind are an enigma," Morgan said cryptically. "I think the only one who can understand the complicated and convoluted way my mind comes up with my plans is Dad, because that's probably als how his mind works."

"I see. How very interesting."

"Yep! These are good observations, though," Morgan commented, flipping through more of Severa's notes.

"Damn it, you're really small and nimble, you know that?" Severa said, giving up on trying to catch Morgan. "Look, I was just making observations and whatever. That's it. It's not like I was trying to learn from you or anything! So don't read too much into it."

"Okay!" Morgan nodded. "Although I might take some of these away. I think I can actually draft some plans based on these notes…"

"Are you kidding me?! Well you have to tell me what you come up with since you're basically stealing my ideas!"

"If you want. We can arrange a strategy session together sometime. Ooh, I love it when I get to brainstorm new strategies and tactics with someone. Do you know how hard it is to find someone to do what with who's not Dad? And he's always so busy!"

"I-I…" Severa was not expecting Morgan to take her up on her offer. But before Severa could answer, there was a thud outside the room.

"You okay, Cynthia?"

"Yeah, but I spilled my milk all over the floor…"

Owain and Cynthia then entered the room.

"Wow, everyone's already here, huh?" Cynthia remaked, then looked confused. "Even Severa?"

"I was just in the area and thought I'd show up," the redhead said nonchalantly.

"Really? I thought you were here to help me set up and make sure I got the setup right," Morgan said.

"Uh…that's obviously because I was in the area. Y-yeah. I was in the area and decided to help you set up because I had nothing better to do. Obviously."

"And definitely not because you really wanted to continue your quest," Cynthia said, smirking.

Severa glared.

"Anyway, is the game all set?" Owain asked. "I have a good feeling about today. My Dice Hand trembles with awesome power and good rolls!"

"Heh, you'll need more than that to resist the mighty war machine that is me," Morgan said.

"We will drive you back to the tyrannical gates from whence you came!" Cynthia declared.

Severa scoffed. "Oh yeah, you guys and your armies that you carelessly throw without any strategy whatsoever. You're lucky that I'm focusing on fighting Morgan too, or else I'd have crushed your puny forces."

"Don't make us fight you!" Cynthia warned.

"Yeah, open another front while being crushed by Morgan. Awesome idea."

"Okay, all set up!" Morgan announced. "Now come on, let's continue our epic struggle for world domination!"

As everyone sat down and started their game, Lucina looked around at her friends around the table. She observed the playful banter between Owain, Morgan, and Cynthia, but most importantly, she observed Severa. And what Lucina saw made her smile. Despite the redhead's whining and grumbling and snapping at her more enthusiastic partners, Lucina saw that she was enjoying herself, even if she did try very hard to hide it under her usual sour demeanor. The way Severa objected to certain moves and cried out at poor dice results meant that she was very invested in the game and was having a good time with her partners.

The fact that Severa was warming up to Morgan was good news. Having her be less hostile to Morgan made the next part easier, although everyone being here meant that Lucina couldn't tell Severa of the current arrangement Lucina had with Robin. Lucina would have to find another moment to have that awkward conversation with Severa, hopefully before Severa heard about it through some rumor…

---

Robin was a man of action and planning, which meant that he planned so that he knew what things to do in certain situations. But that also meant that he needed to know what not to do in order to avoid certain situations. This was true on the battlefield as it was in his real, non-battlefield life. And in his new project of finding Morgan's mother, Robin's planning went in both directions: he spoke with Lucina (and planned to speak to others) about what and how to approach women, and now he was going to research now not to approach women.

"Ah, Inigo! Just the man I wanted to—"

"R-Robin! Help me!" Inigo ran up, a panicked look in his eyes.

"Inigo, what—"

"Heeelp! N-Noire's gonna kill me!"

"I…" Robin blinked in confusion. "What?"

Just then, Robin heard some humming. Looking up, he saw Noire approaching, her bow in her hand.

"Noire…?"

"Hi, Robin," greeted the archer timidly.

"What're you doing?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just spending some quality time with Inigo."

"N-Noire! Come on, put the bow down," Inigo said nervously, seeing the archer ready her bow. "It's all fun and games until someone loses an... AAAIEEEE!"

"Oh, don't worry. Of all the weapons I use, I'm best with a bow. So it's very unlikely I'll hit you," Noire said reassuringly.

"Oh, is that so? Well, you know what? THAT DOESN'T HELP!" Inigo cried, cowering behind Robin. "And I was actually making headway with that girl until you started firing at her! ...Yes, well, you've had your fun. Now go away and let me get back to mine."

"Oh, but I am my mother's daughter, you know…"

"And what does Tharja have to do with any of this?"

"When it comes to chasing our prey, we never tire. It's in our blood. You might say I'm a bit...obsessive about stuff like this," Noire explained casually. "So you aren't going to lose me. No, sir. Noooooo, sir."

"...Someone help me! Please! Anyone!" Inigo looked up. "Robin, you see what's happening, don't you! Noire wants to kill me! Help me survive this by talking to her!"

"Uh…"

Robin was amazed at his uncanny ability to continuously find himself in the most absurd situations.

"Actually, that raises a different question," Noire said. "Why are you running in the first place? I promised not to hit you, remember? I...I promised."

Robin and Inigo looked incredulously as Noire started crying.

"Wait. Why are YOU going to cry? I'm the one being hunted!" Inigo exclaimed.

"D-don't you trust me?"

"My faith in your bow skills is REALLY not the issue here…"

"Then what's the problem? I'm just doing what I was asked. Just keeping the hyenas at bay."

"Hyenas?" Inigo asked, confused. Then a thought occurred. "Hey, wait a second! Who asked you to do that?!"

"SILENCE, FOOL! I SHALL BROOK NO FURTHER QUESTIONS!" Noire cried suddenly, before raising her bow, and notching an arrow. "Now stand veeery still."

"Wait! Stop! Just think of all the ladies who will be deprived of— Aaaaaugh! Robiiiiiiii! Help meeeeee!"

Robin sighed, deciding that this had gone far enough. He needed to get to the bottom of…whatever this was. Also he wasn't one to tolerate having an arrow pointed at him, even if he wasn't the target of said arrow.

"Okay. Noire, a moment?" Robin said, approaching Noire and beginning to drag her off to the side.

"R-Robin?"

"Thank you, Robin! You're a true friend!" Inigo cheered.

"You, stay where you are and don't leave!" Robin said sternly, turning to Noire. "If you see him run off, you have my permission to resume your little hunt, or whatever this is."

"Thank you, Robin."

"Now, tell me exactly what this is."

"Oh, umm…" Noire hesitated.

"It can't be so secret that you can't tell me, of all people," Robin said. "Even if you can't, threatening physical bodily harm to another member without approval may result in disciplinary action, which is my jurisdiction. So what's this all about?"

"There's no harm involved!" Noire said quickly. "It's just…"

"Yes…?"

"I suppose there's no harm in telling you." Noire took a deep breath. "Do you remember that time Inigo brought a woman with him back to camp?"

"What? When did this happen? I'd like to think I'd remember something as unlikely as Inigo impressing a girl enough to bring her back with him," Robin said, chuckling.

"Well, yes. In a way. It turned out that Inigo's lady friend was actually a thief."

"Really?"

"And she ended up knocking him out and stealing half of our equipment on the same day."

Robin frowned, now remembering exactly what happened.

"Yep." Noire nodded. "So after that little incident and after we entered Rigel, Chrom asked me to keep an eye on Inigo to ensure that he didn't get tricked again."

"Really?"

"Well, kind of. I mean, he let me work out the details, but…"

"...And your details include pointing your bow at every woman that shows any interest in our resident philanderer?"

"I figured it was the best way to ensure Inigo's safety. You can't get tricked if there are no girls to trick him, right?"

"...Huh."

"Robin? You're not mad, are you?"

"What? No. I'm actually impressed. I should really give Chrom more credit. It's twice now he's had some really good ideas. You aren't the first person that comes to mind when thinking about how to keep Inigo from getting suckered by a pretty girl, but I can't deny that your methods are amusingly effective."

"Oh. Um, thanks? So you're not going to stop me, then?"

"No. I actually wholeheartedly support you in this endeavor since I'm sure I'd throttle Inigo myself if we had a repeat of that little incident from before. However, I will have to ask you to pause your activities for a bit today."

"I guess I can, but why?"

"Because I'll be making sure Inigo doesn't get in any trouble today."

"Really?"

"Yep. So go off and enjoy your newfound free time! I'll be sure to bring him back somewhere you can find him and easily pick up from where you left off."

"Oh, okay. Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

"Thank you, Robin!" Noire smiled gratefully. "I don't mind my task, but it's a full-time job making sure Inigo doesn't get in trouble with girls, you know?"

"I can imagine, which is why you should enjoy your little break now while you can.

"I think I will!"

Robin watched Noire run off to do whatever it is she did in her free time. She didn't need to know the real reason he was here.

"Okay, that little problem is sorted," Robin announced, heading back to Inigo.

"Whew, thanks, Robin. I know I could count on you!" Inigo said, relieved. "I don't know what's gotten into Noire, but I was afraid she'd really use me as a pincushion back there! What was that about, anyway?"

"I don't know. Not important. What is important is what comes next. You were about to go do some of your usual philandering, weren't you?"

"I was indeed!" Inigo declared unashamedly. "Before Noire lost her mind and almost killed me, that is. Did she ever—"

"Good, because I'm coming with you."

Inigo blinked. "I…what?"

"I have some errands to run and just so happened to be heading out myself. So why don't we go together? I promise I won't get in the way of your 'work.'"

"That's awfully kind of you, Robin, but I don't think I need—"

"Nonsense! Of course you do!" Robin said, bringing an arm around Inigo's shoulder. "Besides, you still haven't shown me if you're as good as you say you are in charming girls."

"W-what? Do I really have to show you?"

"Of course you do! That was the basis of your entire joining us! Remember when we met you and I said I'd kick you out if you didn't prove that all your talk about charming the ladies wasn't just hot air? And then we got into a fight in that tavern and everything went a bit blurry after that…" Robin shook his head. "Anyway, I'm going to watch you do your thing. Show me what you do, philanderer!"

"But what about your errands?"

"My what? Oh yeah, those. I can do those at the same time. What you need to worry about is bringing your best skills if you want to impress me!"

Robin then dragged Inigo to the Rigel market to watch Inigo get to work and take notes. And Inigo provided a lot of data! For instance, among the many things Robin learned was that women generally disliked one-liners (although this could vary if the one-liners weren't terrible), were more inclined to listen if you started off with a compliment, and could sense insincerity a mile away. Robin wished he could've had Miriel with him to observe Inigo and share notes. Her sharp and analytical mind would've definitely made some very accurate observations. Still, Inigo was teaching Robin a lot when it came to what not to do when talking to women.

After Robin felt that he'd had enough data to work with, he approached Inigo, who was currently groaning after having been kicked in his groin for what felt like the hundredth time today.

"Well. I'd say today was very informative!"

"O-oh yeah?" Inigo said, wincing. "How do you figure?"

"I've managed to successfully complete my errands and watched you have your way with the ladies. It was hilarious and educational!"

"Heh, glad I could…urgh…be of service…" Inigo laughed weakly,

"Me too. Now come on, let's get back and get you a healer."

"B-but the day is still young and there are so many women—!"

"Inigo, continue as you are and I don't think you'll be giving your parents any heirs in the future…or ever."

"I…" Inigo was about to protest, but winced as he tried to move. "...Okay, maybe that'll be enough for today…"

"That Noire thing is looking like a better idea with each passing second…"

"What was that?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing. Just some idle thoughts. Now come on. You can lean on me while we make our way back to the castle."

"Th-thanks, Robin. You're a real pal, you know that?"

"I know."

Inigo probably wouldn't have said that if he knew that Noire would continue her hunt once they got him patched up, but that wasn't something that Robin concerned himself with. All that mattered to Robin was that he was hopefully one step closer to finding Morgan's mother. Or rather, he knew enough to avoid taking those steps that would've set him back. Now he had to run some tests…

---

"Heeeeey, Cordelia!"

"Robin. You're looking chipper today. Did Sumia make you some pie?"

"Gods, I wish. But no, the reason I'm so upbeat is because…wait, no. That's not the right setup for this…"

"Robin?"

"Cordelia, are you religious?"

"I don't think I'm particularly—"

"Because you're the answer to all my prayers!" Robin said, flashing her his most confident smile.

"...What?"

"Sorry about that. Trying something here. Anyway, do you like tea?"

"I suppose—"

"Because I like 'U!'" And again, that same dumb facial expression.

Despite her confusion, Cordelia instinctively cringed.

"Yeah, that's about the reaction I expected. Guess Inigo's pickup lines universally repel women."

"...Robin, are you okay? Did you hit your head today or something?"

"Only a little earlier today. Stood too long near the doorway and Morgan barged in, slamming the door right into my face. But that's neither here nor there. What is here is that I am now finally beginning my journey to find Morgan's mother!"

"Ah, I guess it's that time, isn't it?" Cordelia said, nodding. Her eyes then widened in horror. "Robin, please don't tell me you're planning to begin your journey with those lines."

"Oh gods no. I picked those up from Inigo when I was studying him to figure out what not to do when speaking to women. I have yet to see any woman react positively to those lines."

"The woman that does will be unique, that's for sure," Cordelia said. "So what brings you over to me? Hoping to use your newfound knowledge to seduce me and see if I'm your woman?"

"My knowledge is extremely limited," Robin admitted, a bit frustrated. "Of my many talents, talking to women is actually not one of them."

"Really? You seem to do well from what I can see."

"Well, yeah, but I work with you guys and get to boss you around. Also you're my longtime friends. Talking to you is a bit different from talking to a woman I think will be Morgan's mother."

"I see where you're coming from…" Cordelia nodded thoughtfully.

"But you are right in one respect."

"So you've come to seduce me after all, huh?"

"On yeah. I can tell it's working and you're falling for me right now as we discuss this sexy subject," Robin chuckled. "But being serious, I'm gathering information on the best way to talk to women without making an absolute fool of myself or coming off as some sort of creep."

"Robin, why would you—"

The tactician gave Cordelia a pointed look.

"...Okay, it's possible you could come off like that. But surely given enough time—"

"I don't have time! The war is over and we have some free time of indeterminate length. Now is the best time for me to find Morgan's mother and tell my daughter the good news. I know it's bugging her even if she acts like it doesn't."

"I see."

Yes. So I've decided to talk to women I know to try and tailor the best approach possible and make a good first impression, because those matter! Also going to consult with you and others about approach, what works and doesn't, your personal preferences, etc, to see if there's any common threads to make a template I can use."

"So you're going to, what, use the same lines on every woman you meet in order to see which one you may have feelings for or something?"

"Not every woman. I have a plan!" Robin said, proceeding to explain his strategy.

"That's…certainly a plan," Cordelia said slowly. She supposed that Robin had to start somewhere…

"Exactly. And now I just need your and others' help with roughing the edges around said plan so I can smoothly and normally talk to women to try and figure out which one of them is Morgan's mother."

"I will certainly help where I am able."

Robin had a starting point, which was good. And Cordelia supposed that she could help give him more direction and make his plan less ridiculous once he got the "make a good first impression" part right.

Gods, it was strange to think of Robin going suddenly going off and getting married. Cordelia supposed that was inevitable, given Morgan's presence and how Robin set out his plan to all of them once the war was done, but it always seemed like a distant prospect. Now it was after the war and Robin was about to go off to become a family man. What kind of woman would be his wife, Cordelia wondered? Well actually she didn't have to wonder since Robin told her who he hoped to find, but she doubted he would be able to find someone exactly like Caeda or Palla. Whoever Robin's future wife was, she'd have a handful with not only her husband, but her daughter as well. Cordelia chuckled at the thought, imagining what family life in that household would be like. Given Robin's tendency to find himself in the most bizarre situations, combined with Morgan's seemingly unlimited energy and desire to make new memories by trying new things, that household would probably be in a constant state of chaos. But it would be a merry, wonderful chaos. Robin may have been quirky and eccentric, but Cordelia saw time and again that he was a good father; he absolutely adored Morgan and spoiled her silly every chance he got. It was safe to assume that he would treat his wife with the same love and devotion that he showed Morgan. From how he showed affection to Morgan, Cordelia guessed that Robin would be equally affectionate with his wife, showering her with hugs and kisses and little compliments. It was a cute picture. For her part, Morgan looked up to Robin and had a very good relationship with him (although she could probably get along with everybody). She was also smart, eager, energetic, playful, determined, and cute as a button. Overall it was a very healthy and wholesome relationship. All it needed was a wife/mother with some sense to keep the husband and daughter grounded and from carrying out their more hairbrained schemes. In a way, it was what Cordelia's role was now, only official.

Cordelia laughed softly. That was true even if it was a joke. But thinking about it now made Cordelia focus on her own relationship status. She had put romance on hold after the whole painful and overdrawn thing with Chrom, but maybe now was a good time to start again? Robin was looking for his partner, so maybe Cordelia should too. But she was so focused on her work and the war that Cordelia completely neglected to think about what she was looking for in a man. What was she looking for, exactly? She was still partial to having a prince on a white horse carry her off into the sunset, but that was maybe all those romantic novels talking. What Cordelia wanted…was probably a normal man. Cordelia didn't mind if he was scatterbrained or overly excited, since she had more than enough experience at dealing with that and actually found that charming, in a way, although having intelligence wouldn't hurt. It would probably help if he was strong, since then he could lift her in both hands and romantically carry her to their bedroom. Knowing how to fight would be a plus. Cordelia didn't have any particular physical traits in mind, but she found herself partial to white hair for some reason. But probably most important of all was that he would have to be good with kids since Cordelia knew she wanted a family someday.

Unprompted, Cordelia's mind conjured a picture of Robin and Morgan sitting at their dinner table, cutlery in hand, looking off somewhere in anticipation. Then a woman enters the room and lays down a plate with a giant piece of bear meat. Robin and Morgan's faces light up with pure joy. As they eagerly dig into their dinner, Robin rants about his latest office misadventure, Morgan tells of her heroic adventures, there is laughter, joy, and merriment. After dinner, Robin gets up and walks up to his wife to thank her for the delicious meal. Morgan too, comes to hug her mother while proclaiming that it was the best thing she ever ate. As as she feels her daughter's arms around her waist and her husband kiss her cheeks, Cordelia couldn't feel happi—

"W—Argh!"

The revelation that she is the woman in that scenario caused Cordelia to trip over her feet.

"Whoa, you okay, Cordelia?" Robin asked, helping her up.

"Y-yeah. I just…yeah."

"You sure? You look shaken."

"No, I'm fine. Really. Just…feet got caught over something."

"Okay…" Robin looked unsure but didn't probe further. "Anyway, I was saying that…"

Cordelia shook her head. Gods, maybe she needed to spend less time around Robin. All this talk about romance was getting to her head! Cordelia wanted something like the scenario she imagined (a happy, loving family), not exactly that scenario! Robin was nice and all and Morgan was absolutely lovely, but Cordelia couldn't see herself as Robin's wife and Morgan's mother! …Actually, that wasn't true since she literally just saw it in her mind's eye and it was…pleasant. But wait, no! That was just Cordelia putting her idealized situation and just placing Robin and Morgan there as examples. It had to be! Because in order for her to really be there, she'd have to have feelings for Robin, and Cordelia was pretty sure she didn't like Robin that way. She liked Robin…a way, but not that way, because Cordelia knew what liking someone that way felt like, and her feelings for Robin definitely weren't that. What she felt for Robin was…a very reassuring comfort. Yes, she felt comfortable enough around him to be herself without having to worry that he had any ulterior motives. Robin was kind of a reassuring, constant presence in her life who she could talk to, joke with, and help and she really liked spending time with him. Naga knew that there was never a dull moment with Robin around, doubly so when that included Morgan. So yes. Cordelia knew how love felt, and she didn't feel that way about Robin, and that little mishap in her mind was just some idealized picture that just so happened to include Robin and Morgan and, even though she thought that Robin would make an excellent husband and she wanted someone like him for herself, that didn't mean anything, and her having lewd dreams about Robin—

Oh gods.

Cordelia frantically tried to steer her mind away from that line of thought. She just got over those thoughts and was not going back to being awkward around Robin!

---

Theodora sat at her table by the window, sipping her tea, when she heard a knock at her door.

"Enter."

"My lady," Augustina said, bowing.

"Ah, if it isn't my most faithful servant. What news?"

"I have looked into the tactician from Ylisse, as ordered."

"And what have you found?"

"I have heard rumors that Robin of Ylisse is engaged to Lucina, eldest princess of Ylisse and sister of the current exalt."

"Of course…" Theodora sighed. "I should've known better than to get my hopes up."

"There is more, my lady."

"Go on."

"I understand that their proposed union is based on political calculations rather than love."

"Oh, now that is interesting! So Sir Robin has no romantic feelings for Lady Lucina and is to wed her out of political convenience? Obligation?"

"That is uncertain. I have followed and observed them and can report that their relationship appears cordial. They act and speak to each other as old friends."

"Old friends is a far cry from a young couple in love," Theodora observed, taking another sip of her tea, thinking about what she has been told. "Is there anything else?"

"Yes, my lady. When not spending time with Lady Lucina, Sir Robin has been spotted with Sir Inigo, Lady Lucina's younger brother." At Theodora's questioning gaze, Augustina continued, "He has not been here long yet has already established himself a reputation for…accosting women."

"Ah, yet another royal philanderer. If I had a copper for every one of those…" Theodora chuckled. "But being Lady Lucina's younger brother, given his habits, and the fact that Sir Robin has been spending time with her means…"

"He has also been spending time with some other Shepherds, most notably the Commander and Captain of the Ylissean pegasus knights," Augustina informed.

"Interesting. And how are their relations with him?"

"It is difficult to tell. Evidently they are very close, but I cannot determine whether this is a robust friendship between a man and a woman, or something more…subtle."

"Interesting…" Theodora considered everything she heard. "So there is a chance to entice him to my service."

"My lady?"

"Political marriages are always fickle and prone to the whims of human emotion. Only immense pressure will ensure their success, but I understand that Sir Robin and Lady Lucina are not under such pressure. This means he can still be enticed to my service."

"Will that not antagonize the Ylisseans?"

"It will not be my fault if their dear tactician discovers he has feelings for someone else and voluntarily cancels their engagement. And given Sir Robin's company and womanizing nature, he should be easy to persuade of the benefits of working for me. These philanderers are all the same, and I've dealt with my fair share of them. A few compliments here, a few coy smiles there, and I should have him eating out of the palm of my hand in no time. It will just take some of my feminine charm," Theodora said, emphasizing her chest.

"Of course, my lady."

"You have done well, Augustina, as always. Pray tell, is there anything more you have discovered?"

"Yes, I have…"

---

"Okay, I think I'm coming to a decision," Sumia announced. "At least when it comes to the proposal."

Her partner remained silent.

"It definitely has to include pie," Sumia said thoughtfully. "And probably has to take place somewhere where we can be alone and uninterrupted. Someone coming in while I'm in the middle of confessing would be beyond embarrassing."

A soft grunt.

"I know Robin's looking for the woman who will be Morgan's mother and his wife. That can be me, right? I-I know my feelings for him are true and we get along so well together and I think I can be Morgan's mother, right? I like her a lot and I really think I can be a good mother!"

Another grunt.

"I…I feel now is the right time. We're at peace, negotiations are ongoing and who knows how long they'll take? And since we're not at war, Robin's usual objections will fall away. I mean, he's looking for romance himself! And if I can make his task easier by confessing, that'll solve a lot of problems, right?"

A neigh this time.

"I know, we still have Grima to deal with and this can all go terribly wrong, but I don't think I can go on like this. I've had feelings for him for so long that I feel I may explode if I keep them bottled any longer! I think…I think this is a good idea. You think this is a good idea too, right?"

A nod.

"Thank you, Daisy. You're always such a good listener," Sumia cooed. She didn't know what Daisy was actually saying or if Daisy could understand her, but it was always good to have someone to just talk to…or at, for that matter.

"There's a good girl…" Sumia brushed Daisy's mane. "You're cleaner than I remember, all things considered. Did I wash you and forget about it?"

It would certainly be better than those times Sumia did the opposite!

"Oh my, poor girl. Look at all these scars…" Sumia ran her hands over the various scars on Daisy's neck. "War is such a terrible business. You're such a good girl for staying with me despite all the danger to yourself. I promise that you'll be free to go wherever you want after all this ugly business is over and done with…"

Daisy neighed quietly and nuzzled Sumia's cheek.

"Thank you, girl. You're too kind to me…"

Sumia looked at all the scars on her pegasus. They have been through so much, and although Sumia had her share of near-death experiences, she was never as injured as Daisy apparently was. Sumia recognized some scars from the battles they fought together, although there were a lot more of them than Sumia remembered. In fact…

Sumia examined her pegasus more closely. There were definitely more scars here than there should have been. It was as if someone took Daisy and went off to fight a dozen battles with her, which was, of course, preposterous. Why would anyone even do that? But then how…?

Sumia's investigation was interrupted by someone entering the stables, humming a heroic theme song.

"Hiya, Sumia!" Cynthia greeted enthusiastically.

"Hello, Cynthia. You seem in a good mood," Sumia remarked.

"Well how can I not be? I came up with a really awesome theme song for myself that I can hum wherever I go to make my life more heroic. That alone will brighten anyone's day, I'd say!"

"I can see." Sumia giggled. Cynthia sure had enthusiasm to spare. "So what brings you over to the stables?"

"I'm meeting Morgan here. We agreed to do a little flyover of Rigel to get a lay of the land to scout for some dramatic places for our eternal fight of good vs evil."

"A noble endeavor."

"Indeed! Oh, thanks for the tip before, by the way."

"Oh?"

"You know, about my pegasus and why I wouldn't be admitted to the knights?"

"Ah, of course."

"Yep. After you posed the question, I thought and thought and thought... But I couldn't think of anything, so I did what you said and bathed in the nearest spring. That's when I noticed my poor pegasus was as dirty as a farm hog! I'd been so busy making MYSELF look grand, I neglected my faithful mount!"

It also took some sarcastic remarks from Severa, but Cynthia got there mostly due to Sumia's advice.

"Ah, good. You understand at last." Sumia nodded approvingly. "A knight's pegasus isn't some beast of burden or a farmer's mule. She is a partner and ally, and must be cared for as much as a knight cares for herself."

"Oh, yes! I've started washing and brushing her every day now. I want her to look as fine and proud as your pegasus, Sumia!"

"Oh wow, high praise indeed." Sumia was still not used to someone looking up to her as much as Cynthia. "Are you sure you should be focusing on me, though? I mean, Cordelia probably has much more she could offer you in terms of advice and tips."

"Don't get me wrong, Cordelia has lots of useful tips and stuff, but come on. Do I need to remind you of your legendary exploits in the future? They were certainly a lot more exciting than Cordelia's!"

"Really? I can't imagine myself doing anything more amazing than Cordelia…"

"Oh, but you did soooo much! At least from what I heard. Like the time—"

"I…don't think I need to hear about all my future exploits just yet," Sumia said, giggling.

"Aw, really? Retelling them is my favorite part…"

"Another time, perhaps. At least you now know the importance of not neglecting your mount and keeping her happy and healthy! More importantly, you didn't make the same mistakes I did."

"Oh? Did you forget to clean your pegasus too?"

"Among other things. Heavens, there were times I forgot to FEED her! Once I even tried to pluck out some wing feathers to make myself a fancy hat."

"...Wow."

"Yes, well." Sumia cleared her throat to try to fight her embarrassment. "My point is, you still deserve to be her friend, even if you forget to wash her. She loves you far too much to desert you just for that. I've seen how happy she looks, swooping across the sky with you on her back."

"Truly? I'm so relieved to hear it. I promise I'll take good care of you, Daisy," Cynthia said, approaching and stroking the pegasus next to Sumia.

"You… Daisy…?" Sumia looked at Cynthia, shock and confusion on her face.

"What? Oh, right! Uh…I mean, of course I'd name my pegasus after yours. You were a legendary hero and stuff in my time, you know? It's not like my Daisy is exactly the same as yours, just from the future or anything! That would sure be crazy, ha ha ha…!"

Sumia was too stunned to speak.

"Heeeeey, Cynthia!" Morgan barged into the stables. "I'm ready for our Rigel flyover. Let's hit the air!"

"All right!" The younger pegasus knight mounted her steed. "Hop on, Morgan."

"Thanks!" Morgan grabbed Cynthia's arm and hopped behind her. "Let us be off into the clouds! Oh, hi, Sumia!"

"Yeah!" Cynthia spurred her pegasus into a trot. "Thanks for the talk, Sumia. We should do more of that."

"Bye, Sumia!" Morgan waved as they exited the stables.

Sumia waved passively, but otherwise remained still. She remained in her place even after she was alone in the stables, mind racing through what she just saw and heard.

Sumia was sure she was talking to Daisy, and she was sure that was her Daisy. Sumia examined the scars on the pegasus and they were identical to the scars Daisy had, albeit there were a lot of additional ones Sumia didn't recognize. And Cynthia called her pegasus Daisy too, giving a reasonable explanation for it, but still. Cynthia was from the future and so was her pegasus, which would explain the extra scars. But if that was Sumia's Daisy, what was she doing with Cynthia? That Daisy obviously had a close bond with her rider, that much was obvious, but Daisy was only close like that with Sumia. If Daisy trusted Cynthia that much, it meant Cynthia was close to Sumia. But for that level of trust, she would have to be very, very close, like…like…

Sumia tried to steady her increasingly frantic breathing.

She had to calm down. None of this meant anything…or it meant everything, she couldn't decide. She didn't know! It was too much and all the implications were too overwhelming and Sumia just needed a moment to…

A soft rubbing on her arm snapped Sumia out of her turmoil. Looking over, Sumia saw…

"D-Daisy?"

The pegasus neighed.

"G…good girl."

Sumia ran her hand over Daisy's face. Examining the pegasus, Sumia saw familiar scars, and no additional ones that she did not remember. That meant the Daisy (who looked and acted exactly like her Daisy!) she was talking to earlier was her Daisy, only from the future. And given that she was Cynthia's pegasus and partner for so long, that meant… She had… Cynthia was…her…her…

"Oh Naga, I…I think I need to sit down…"

---

Although the entire purpose of their current stay in Valm was political, Robin decided his time would be best spent sorting out his romantic life (or lack thereof), which is why he focused on that part and decided to leave the boring political parts to Chrom and the others to sort out. However, Robin still wanted to keep himself at least aware of the goings on while he was otherwise engaged with more important matters. That is why he gathered all the Shepherds in the biggest room of their inn.

"Hello, friends and colleagues. It's been a while since we've all gathered like this, huh?"

"Uh, Bubbles?" Gaius raised his hand. "Why did you call us here to this boring meeting? Some of us have more important things to do, you know."

"Actually, that reminds me. Gaius, stop stealing confectionery from the kitchen."

"Wha—? Bubbles, I am shocked and offended that you would even—"

"Why are you stealing things, anyway? We're basically the most important and honored guests here. Just ask for whatever you want and they'll bring it to you!"

"Yeah, but where's the fun in that? A thief's gotta keep his skills sharp, you know? Even if it is by sneaking past waiters and servants."

"Well stop it. You're making us all look bad."

"But Bubbles—"

"You steal from our enemies, Gaius, not our hosts. Do it again and I'll—"

"You'll what, hand me over to the authorities?"

"As funny as that would be, no. I'll just ask Tharja to curse you so that every time you eat something sweet, it'll taste like broccoli."

The smug smirk on Gaius' face was replaced by one of abject horror.

"Ah, Robin-approved hexing. It's been so long…" Tharja said, grinning darkly.

"It's always special when we get permission," Henry agreed. "No dismemberment makes it a bit less fun, though…"

"So. Are we clear?" Robin asked, looking pointedly at Gaius.

"...Fine. Guess I'll ask like some kind of chump…" grumbled the thief.

"A fine way to handle things, Robin." Maribelle nodded approvingly. "Theft is an act that is beneath us and should not be tolerated."

"We only tolerate it when we steal from our enemies, because then it's 'aggressive procurement' instead of theft, which makes it totally different. Anyway," Robin shook his head. "The reason that I called you all here today was because it's been a while since we all gathered like this and just talked about things and stuff. The second is that I thought it'd be helpful for all of us to have an update on how the negotiations are going, since not all of us are participating. Chrom, Say'ri, Virion, as the ones most intimately familiar with the whole thing, want to give us a status update?"

"Putting me on the spot here, huh? Okay." Chrom cleared his throat. "The negotiations are…slow. We have various different leaders here with competing objectives and interests, which makes finding a solution acceptable to all a bit…"

"Sumia?" Cordelia whispered, looking at her friend with concern. "Are you okay?"

"...Huh? What?" Sumia blinked as if she just snapped out of a stupor.

"I was just wondering if all is well with you. You seem…distracted today. Is something on your mind?"

"Oh, you have no idea…"

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I…maybe? Later? Until I can wrap my head around and understand it, I mean."

"I don't know what 'it' is, but I'm always here for you," Cordelia said reassuringly.

"Th-thanks, Cordelia. I appreciate it." Sumia smiled. "Just…stumbled upon something major today…I think, and I just need some time for my mind to process it and everything that it means."

"Must be pretty important if it's got you all acting like…this."

"Oh, it's…definitely…it's…" Sumia took a deep breath. "Yeah."

"...We'll be here for a while yet," Chrom concluded.

Robin scoffed. "I'd love it if we could just tell everyone there the settlement terms and dare them to start a war by rejecting our terms. I mean, we just came back from burying Walhart six feet under. Who are they to challenge us?"

"And that is why you are not involved in the negotiations," Virion chuckled.

"My way would've got things solved a lot faster…"

"And created a lot of ill will."

"We're not here to make friends, guys. We're here to make sure we don't have another incident like in Plegia where we leave a power vacuum for some crazy fanatics worshiping an omnicidal deity to fill. But what do I know? I'm just the guy that plans tactics and wins wars. But now that we got that out of the way, does anyone have any announcements they would like to make while we're all here?"

Cherche raised her hand. "We are firmly in the post-war period, are we not?"

Robin looked around as if this was a trick question. "Last I checked."

"And in this period of peace, we are allowed more freedom to do things that we would otherwise not be able to do during wartime, yes?"

"Yes…" Robin said, not liking where this was going.

"Then in that case, if you do not mind, Sir Frederick?" Cherche asked, turning to the man in question.

"By wall means."

"I would like to formally announce that Frederick and I are engaged!"

The assembled Shepherds all clapped and congratulated the pair.

"You what?!"

All except one.

"This is completely unacceptable!" Robin exclaimed. "How many times have I told you people—!"

"That romantic interpersonal relationships are strictly prohibited during wartime," Cherche recited. "Yes, Robin, we are all aware."

"Then why do you all actively break the rules that I so painstakingly drafted?!"

"But Robin, we broke no such rules."

"Don't give me that! Your employment contracts clearly state—"

"The prohibition, yes. During wartime," Cherche emphasized the last word. "But we are at peace now, are we not?"

"You—!"

"I believe that you have confirmed this yourself just now."

"I—"

"And as we are announcing our relationship in this period of peace, we have not broken any of our obligations under our contracts and are acting according to the terms," Frederick finished.

"You—! That's—!"

"Wow. I haven't seen Robin this angry in a looooong time," Lissa snickered.

"Yeah, no kidding. Remember to breathe, Dad!" Morgan called out from her seat next to Lissa.

"I…" Robin took a few deep breaths to steady himself. "I think that you two are sneaky little liars."

"Who? We?" Cherche asked innocently.

"Yes, you! What, during that entire war you two had no feelings for each other, and now that the war is over, suddenly you're all full of love and feelings? I should fire you two right now!"

"That's a bit dramatic, is it not?"

"Do you two really expect me to believe that you had no feelings for each other prior to the war ending?"

"It would not be the first time feelings of love and affection were so strong that they ignited a relationship from nothing."

"What?"

Instead of responding, Cherche looked back. Following her gaze, Robin's eyes narrowed.

"It always comes back to you, doesn't it?"

"This isn't even my fault!" Chrom protested.

"But the precedent has been set by your exalt and best friend, of all people," Cherche pointed out. "Surely it's not too unreasonable to see it happening again?"

Robin's eye twitched.

"Breathe, Dad!" Morgan reminded.

"Oy! If we are all making with happy announcements, then Gregor have announcement too! Much like Cherche and Frederick, Gregor and Panne are also in love and will be marrying! Oh, and is happening after war and with quickness like Chrom."

More clapping and congratulations.

Robin gripped his podium so hard that his knuckles were white.

"Uh…I suppose this isn't a good time to make our announcement…?" came a voice that Robin recognized as Kellam's.

"Kellam and I are also engaged," Miriel said.

Yet more clapping and congratulations.

Robin thought he was going to have a brain aneurysm.

"You are all just…just…lousy…lawless…no-good…!"

"Breathe, Robin. Besides, you can't be too harsh on everyone," Cordelia said.

"What the hell do you mean?"

"Aren't you yourself looking for your wife, now?"

Morgan, Cynthia, and Severa snapped to attention at this.

"That is completely different!"

"Is it? What will happen if you meet her tomorrow and will be so taken that you'll ask for her hand in marriage?" Chrom asked. "Then you'll be just like the rest of us."

Robin was definitely going to have a brain aneurysm.

There was only one thing to do in the face of this infuriating course of action from his so-called friends…

---

"Barkeep! Another one!" Robin gloomily took the tankard offered to him and downed it in one go. "Keep 'em coming."

"Tough day?" asked the barkeep, passing Robin another drink.

"You have no idea…"

"So this is where you ran off too, huh?" asked a familiar voice.

"I didn't 'run off' anywhere," Robin grumbled. "Also, go away."

"Come now, Robin, you can't be that upset," Cordelia said, ordering herself a drink too.

"I am much more than just upset, Cordelia. Also, how did you even find me?"

"This was the most obvious place you could go after you stormed out of the meeting, being in our inn and all."

"Am I really that predictable?"

"You're much more predictable off the battlefield than on it, sadly."

"Cheer up, Robin. This is no time to be moping!" Chrom said, pulling up a seat beside them. "If anything, we should be celebrating the good news!"

"You are the last person I want to talk to!"

"Are you still blaming me for this?"

"I will always blame you and your ridiculous precedent-setting nonsense!" Robin downed his drink.

"Hey, all right! Looks like we're going to have a fun time over here!"

Robin turned around to see Gaius and the other Shepherds entering the room.

"And look! Bubbles has already started drinking. That means we're well underway for Funtime Bubbles to appear!"

"Ho ho! Gregor is much liking when Funtime Robin showing up. Is much more laying back than regular Robin."

Robin turned back, sulking while his friends spread throughout the bar and started ordering themselves food and drinks."

"Hey, Dad," Morgan said, pulling a seat next to her father.

"Hi, Morgan."

"Why the long face? I thought all the engagements would be good news."

"It would be if they didn't try to be all cheeky about it."

"Does it matter? I mean, this gives us an excuse to party!"

Robin couldn't help but laugh at his daughter's attitude. She always did make him feel better. He was about to say something else when Sumia sat down at their table, a full glass in hand and a thoughtful look on her face.

"Hey, Sumia."

"Hello." Sumia looked like she was deep in thought. She then drank the drink in her glass in one go.

"...Something on your mind?" Robin ventured.

"Something."

"She's been like that today," Cordelia informed hopefully.

"Huh."

"I don't think she wants to talk about it yet."

"Oh. Well maybe the alcohol will make you feel better, then."

"I still don't know how you can drink this stuff, Dad. It's really bitter and stuff," Morgan said, scrunching her face as she looked at Robin's tankard.

"It is and you should remember the taste and never try it yourself. Let me order something nice for you." Robin motioned to the staff, pointing at his daughter. "I do it because of life's pressures and because some people really want to make my life difficult."

"You know, I won't always be here for you to blame," Chrom said.

"And in the meantime, I'll do my job and ensure to prolong your life on this earth and allocate the appropriate amount of blame on you."

"Hey, looks like this is the fun table!"

Sumia looked up in alarm as Cynthia approached, followed by Severa, Lucina, and Olivia.

"It's probably because I'm here," Morgan said casually.

"Certainly can't argue with that," Robin chuckled, ruffling his daughter's hair.

"So this is our impromptu 'a bunch of people are getting engaged suddenly' party, huh?" Cynthia asked.

"This wasn't supposed to be anything! I just wanted to have a quiet moment to sulk and curse some of my so-called friends, and apparently I can't even have that!"

"I'll just say that the party sounds a lot better than what you were initially here for," Cordelia said playfully.

Robin grunted.

"Relax, Robin!" Chrom put his arm around his friend's shoulder. "It's a party! With friends!"

"With friends like these…"

"We get an excuse to pig out on food!" Morgan said excitedly.

"I love friends that give me excuses to pig out on food!" Cynthia was as excited as Morgan.

"Gods, you idiots…" Severa shook her head.

As his friends started chatting, laughing, drinking and eating, Robin turned to Lucina.

"I have a favor to ask," he whispered.

"Of course."

"I am assigning you the role of designated adult while I drink myself into a blissful stupor. Can I trust you to take care of Morgan while I'm, uh, otherwise occupied? You know, keep an eye on her, make sure she doesn't get into trouble, doesn't drink, get her to bed, maybe keep her away from all the drunk adults doing dumb things so she doesn't get any ideas, etc?"

"I…of course, but why—"

"Because you have a good head on your shoulders and probably don't drink, do you?"

"I admit I've never developed a taste for alcohol."

"Good. As funny as it would be to see you drunk, I have to entrust my daughter's wellbeing to you for now since I think everyone else is going to be enjoying themselves too much."

"Thank you for your trust, Robin, but surely—"

"What're you two whispering about over here?" Cordelia asked, leaning over, drink in hand.

"Our evil shadowy conspiracy," Robin said, keeping his face straight. "You planning to drink yourself under the table?"

"I think it's about time I loosened up, even if just for a little bit. It's well deserved, is it not? Oh! We can use this as our proper celebration of our victory over Walhart!"

"I see the alcohol is already taking effect," Robin remarked dryly.

"Come on, Robin, you can't sulk forever," Olivia said, leaning over to their side of the table, wine glass in hand.

"Not with all of you trying to cheer me up!"

"I think you could use a drink," Gaius said, handing Robin a tankard of ale. "The sooner we can get Funtime Robin, the sooner we can all start having a good time!"

"See what I mean?" Robin looked at Lucina pointedly. "Bad influences all around. You're the only one I can trust to keep her sense and keep an eye on my daughter."

Lucina grinned wryly. "Of course, Robin. I won't let you down."

"Thank you." Robin smiled gratefully.

Lucina watched as Robin downed his drink and sat near Sumia, no doubt asking why she looked so perplexed and drank so much and so aggressively.

"So." Severa sat down. "That happened? We're apparently having a party now."

"There are worse things to happen."

"And everyone's getting engaged suddenly, except…"

"I believe it'll happen soon."

"You sound sure."

"I have a good feeling. There are no distractions now, after all. In the meantime, I have some things I need to keep an eye on…" Lucina said, seeing Morgan and Cynthia chatting animatedly.

"Let me help you. Not like I have anything better to do…" Severa grumbled.

— Some moments later —

"...Unbelievable!" Robin exclaimed, taking a swig from his tankard.

"Come now, Robin, it wasn't that bad!" Chrom laughed beside him.

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one stuck dealing with the consequences!"

"Consequences, schmonsequences. You have to live a little!"

"We have rules—!"

"Which are mean to be—"

"Cordelia, I swear I will lose my mind if you finish that sentence!"

"With how inflexible you are, I wonder how you'll find a woman who can tolerate you," Gaius said.

"I'll have you know there are plenty of women who can tolerate me and my perfectly normal attitude towards life and rules."

"Your daughter and subordinates don't count, Bubbles."

"If we're talking toleration, remind me why I tolerate having you around."

"Aside from my roguish looks and charm? Let me…"

— Some more moments later —

"Drink! Drink! Drink! Drink!"

"Ha!" Sully slammed her tankard down on the table. "Finally beat you, Gregor!"

"Oy. Is Gregor losing edge? Gregor is usually second to none in drinking…"

"Hey, the king can't hog the crown forever. And it's about time I took it from you, you damn drinking demon."

"Oof. Gregor's pride is going to be needing some time to heal from such a defeat…"

"Then let's start the healin' now!" Vaike said, handing Gregor another drink.

On the other side of the room, Robin was swaying, busy trying to concentrate on Sumia as she explained her dilemma.

"...I think she's my d…daugh…daughter!"

"Whoaaaaa. That's…a thing…"

"Robiiiiiiiin. This is serious! I'm serious!"

"And I'm Robin!"

After a moment, both Robin and Sumia burst out in drunken laughter.

"Heeeey, guuuuuuys…!" Cordelia walked unsteadily to where her two friends were seated.

"Hey, Corrrrrrdelia! Guess what? Sumia's pregnant!"

Cordelia's only reaction was to blink unevenly.

"No, Robin! I'm not pregnant!" Sumia made to slap Robin on his shoulder, but completely missed and ended up falling from her chair.

"Sumia! You fell right on your face!"

Now it was Robin and Cordelia's turn to laugh, with Sumia joining in shortly after.

"Gods. It's embarrassing watching this," Severa said, observing the scene from a distance.

"The legends of our parents from the future certainly didn't account for this," Lucina agreed. "But I suppose they are human, after all."

"I think I preferred it when they were legendary heroes."

"Well I think that—Morgan, no!"

Severa watched as Lucina rushed to prevent Morgan from putting a flame in front of Virion's mouth while the clearly drunk noble was busy telling one of his usual tales.

"But Lucina! Cynthia said…"

— Yet more moments later —

"I lo…lov…I love you, Robin!"

"I love me too, Sumia!"

"And I love ALL of you!"

Cordelia wrapped her arms around her friends.

"Here's to love!"

The three toasted and drank.

Gaius pouted. "Heeeey, what about me?"

"What about you?"

"Who doesn't love charming ol' Gaius?"

"Fruits and vegetables."

"Bah!"

Robin and Cordelia laughed while Gaius took a swig from his tankard.

"You guys, I'm—" Sumia hiccuped. "Serious!"

"Serious about what?" Robin asked.

"Y-you don't take me seriously. No one takes me seriously!" Sumia wailed and began to cry.

"Oh boy, you done goofed, Bubbles. Better apo…apollo…say sorry!"

"Kiss and make up!" Cordelia agreed.

"K-kiss?" Sumia looked up.

"...Okay."

Robin got up and stook a few steps before tripping over his feet and knocking both himself and Sumia on the ground.

Gaius laughed hysterically. "Bubbles pulled a Stumbles!"

"H-here, let me—" Cordelia made her way to help, but in her drunken state, she only ended up falling head-first into Gaius.

"This sure is something…" Lucina observed.

She expected Severa to make a snide comment. When none was forthcoming, Lucina turned to see Severa sitting with Morgan and Cynthia, each stuffing themselves with food, with Owain and some others shouting words of encouragement.

---

"Archers! Focus your fire on the soldiers below! Mages, burn those siege towers down! I don't want them near these walls!"

Over the sounds of men shouting, arrows whizzing, and boulders flying overhead, Robin walked on the Ylissean walls, barking orders.

"Grandmaster! The—"

"Incoming!"

Robin cursed as a giant boulder from a catapult hit a section of the wall nearby, causing it to crumble.

"Soldier, report!"

"Grandmaster, the Valmese have managed to bring their ram to the gates! They are ramming the gate as we speak!"

"Then we shall give them the appropriate reception. Release the oil!"

"Sir!"

War was a grim business, but it was Robin's business, for good or for ill. Robin heard the surprised shouts of men below, which meant that the Valmese were covered in oil. He grimaced at the next part.

"Mages! Ignite!"

If the Valmese wanted to come and conquer Ylisstol, they would certainly die trying.

"Incoming!"

Robin didn't see what was coming, but suddenly he found himself flying, a crushing pain in his chest. The sky and the besieged Ylissean landscape made way for stone walls.

Before Robin knew what happened, his back hit the wall, knocking all the air out of him. Taking in his surroundings, Robin saw a hole in the wall in front of him. Gods, did he make that? Was he blasted so hard that he went through a wall right into another room?

Robin's thoughts were interrupted when he suddenly felt the familiar feeling of death creeping upon him. Robin suddenly realized that he was weak, he was injured, and he was in pain. Gods, what the hell happened?

As Robin's vision was fading, he saw a light in front of him, followed by the appearance of an ugly figure Robin felt like he should've recognized.

"Well, so much for the famed Ylissean tactician," Excellus(?) sneered. "Human after all, which means that you fall with the appropriate level of force like any other man."

Excellus was probably gloating, but Robin stopped paying attention, focused more on the pressing matter of his current dying. Was this really how it was going to end? Fighting here in Rigel, taking down Walhart only to end up being killed by some ugly nobody? What of his friends and his daughter and—

Robin's eyes snapped open.

Morgan!

Now he remembered. These bastards had the gall to try and kill his daughter! And Robin was going to make them all pay! So he couldn't die now. He wouldn't! Not when there was so much left to do.

Robin's desperate desire to cling to life caused something inside him to stir. It was something…dark. Much like when he singularity focused on killing as many Valmese as he could for daring to hurt his daughter, this force awakened to ensure his survival. Since Robin had no energy or healing potions left, he needed to find a source of life to sustain him elsewhere. Luckily, one was standing right in front of him.

Excellus watched, amused as Robin slowly and weakly raised his hand.

"What is it now, little Ylissean? Do you see the light? Is your maker calling to you?"

Ignoring the taunts, Robin slowly placed his hand on Excellus' chest and whispered something.

"Okay, enough of this. Since you're taking so long to die, I'll just finish you off myself."

"Nos…"

"What was that?"

"...fer…"

"Say your last words louder, you miserable ingrate!"

"...a…"

"Hmph. Why do I even bother?"

"..tu."

"You will di—"

Excellus never got to finish his sentence. Suddenly Robin's hand glowed purple with power and, to Excellus' horror, started sinking into his chest.

"What the—?!"

Excellus suddenly felt searing, excruciating pain spread from his chest to the rest of his body. He raised his hands to push Robin away, only to look in horror as they burned in purple energy. Excellus' entire body was consumed in the purple energy, skin becoming pale and shrinking as his life was quickly sucked from his body. He managed only one, final, agonized scream before the purple energy consumed him.

Robin inhaled sharply, feeling that his body was fully healed. Looking to where Excellus was, Robin only saw a pile of bones. Not giving it a second thought, Robin quickly made his way back to the fray.

"Whoa, there. Not so fast, son!"

Now that was a familiar voice.

"Basilio? What the hell are you doing here? You're dead!"

"Really, Robin? Are we really doing this again?"

"Doing what again? Have we met in the afterlife before?"

Basilio sighed. "Honestly, why is it that you're drunk every time I come to see you…"

"Can you be drunk when you're dead?"

Basilio facepalmed. "Look, we don't have time for this. I've got news since last we met."

Robin decided to humor the dead man. "Sure. Tell me this 'news' that you have."

"Here is what we have agreed since last time," Basilio said, getting a piece of paper from his pocket.

"This somehow rings a bell…" Robin muttered, looking at what was written.

"I damn well hope so! So I did a bit of intelligence gathering, and looks like the gemstones…"

---

Cordelia groaned as the light hit her eyes. And as her consciousness returned, she groaned even harder when she realized her head was pounding. Gods, now she knew why Robin swore off drinking the morning after a good night out.

Cordelia tried to move and lift her arm to block out the sun when she felt the fabric of the bed against her skin. Now, that wasn't anything unusual, but Cordelia usually had her underclothes or nightwear between her skin and the bed linen. Not feeling this current layer meant that she was sleeping without any of her clothes, which was not something she tended to do unless it was summer and that summer was very hot. And as far as she could remember, it wasn't that hot, so why…?

Movement next to her caught Cordelia's attention. Was someone in her bed…?

Using all her effort, Cordelia slowly pried one eye open.

"...Sumia?"

The woman in question groaned, burying her face in her pillow.

---

Lucina slowly opened her eyes, having slept surprisingly well. As she regained her higher cognitive functions, she remembered what happened last night, and her eyes shot open.

"Oh gods…"

Lucina was about to get up when she realized that she wasn't in her room. Why wasn't she in her room? And if not her room, whose room was it?

The events of the previous night started to pour in.

Oh. Right. She was keeping her promise to Robin by leading Morgan to her room and ensuring the aspiring tactician got to her bed. So that explained why Lucina wasn't in her room, but then raised another: why was she still in Morgan's room?

Lucina looked down.

And why was she still fully clothed in bed?

It was then that Lucina realized that there was something clinging to her arm. Instincts from her ruined future kicking in, Lucina slowly turned her head, preparing herself from the worst and ready to try to yank her arm away, or use her other to attack whatever or whoever was clinging to her arm. She then saw a familiar shade of blue.

"What the…? Morgan?"

The young tactician snored and tightened her grip on Lucina's arm.

---

Robin felt himself being unwillingly pulled from his blissful unconsciousness, which meant that he felt the inevitable hangover kicking in.

"Oh…gods…"

It somehow felt worse every time he experienced it.

Robin flailed his arms, trying to reach for his pillow or blanket or anything to cover his eyes from the sun. After coming up empty, Robin sighed, realizing that he had to crack his eyes open, no matter how much he didn't want to. So, fighting through the pounding in his head, Robin slowly opened his eyes and tried to examine his surroundings.

"Urgh…where am I…?

Robin looked down.

"And where the hell is my coat?!"