Training Dummy


Day 3, before dawn


Corrin yawned lightly as she stirred awake, rubbing her eyes of sleep and peeking through the foggy windows to the wooded dark beyond. Next to her, Azura shifted slightly and spat unconsciously to rid her mouth of her own hair. Felicia was already up, attempting to polish her master's armor and weapons. Thankfully for the both of them, Corrin recalled that she was going to train with some of the Ylisseans and stopped the maid.

"It's alright Felicia. You should get back to sleep for now. Thank you though," Corrin whispered into the dark room, causing the maid to jolt in surprise and nearly trip over Azura. Once she regained control over herself, Felicia grinned in response, but was confused by why Corrin was awake.

"Thank you Lady Corrin! I'll... uh... sleep?"

Heralded by a loud crash, The white-haired princess flinched as her amber-haired maid knocked herself out on the cold stone floor. After a few seconds of realizing she wasn't going to move, Corrin let out a giggle as she rolled out of bed.

"...Right."

Tiptoeing over the sleeping songstress and dragging Felicia's corpse back to her mat, Corrin brandished her armor and reverently fastened her dark blue Nohrian cape. Not having a sheath for her sacred blade, she instead picked up Yato from its rack and opened up her door. Her room, along with the dozen others that were constructed rather quickly to house the Hoshidans and Nohrians for the time being, was in parallel in relation to the main Shepherd barracks. Corrin took a single step outside and was greeted with a cool, humid breeze moving gently past her. Feeling the dew and loose dirt on her bare feet, Corrin couldn't help but smile at the peaceful environment, noting the few diligent warriors who got up at this unholy hour as well as she did to train. Spotting Ryoma deep in meditation on a hillside overlooking the camp, Corrin snuck her way alongside the samurai, kneeling just as he did and exhaled deeply, a peaceful look to her face.

"Good morning, Kamui." Corrin smirked at her Hoshidan name and nodded likewise, noting how Ryoma's eyes were opened now.

"As to you, brother. Are you well?"

"I am, thank you," the crown prince replied. "And you? Did you rest well?"

"Never better, compared to the last few days," Corrin replied. "It's good to see everyone not trying to kill each other."

"I... I agree." Corrin noted the hesitation in her brother's voice and leaned in closer, a serious look in her red eyes.

"Are the Hoshidans... willing to train with the Ylisseans?" Ryoma nodded quickly, a blank expression hiding his emotions.

"Of course! I... We welcome their troops into our fold, even if it seems to be vice versa. Any Ylissean is a friend to Hoshido for the time being... along with any Nohrian," he was clear to add. Corrin's eyes widened, but she remained smiling.

"That is... great to hear. Prince Xander said likewise as well! I'm relieved to hear that peace is lasting this long..."

Ryoma sighed, slowly rising from his kneel and drew Raijinto slowly, not in a threatening way.

"While Hoshido beckons and welcomes peace... It was strange enough agreeing to Ylisse's plea for help. But our other companions? I cannot help but feel this animosity towards Nohr. But Kamui, the path you have put us on is what Mother would have wanted. She had a way with fortune, but not even she could foresee this turn of events. She'd still be proud, though. Of you."

"I doubt anyone would have predicted a third country begging us for their aid," Corrin agreed, "But... I can't let you guys down. Especially after all Hoshido has overcome to get to this point. This is what Hoshido needs. Peace. Mother would have wanted this."

Ryoma grunted his agreement, swinging Raijinto a few times to warm up his arms.

"We shall see in time how our tactician Robin leads us. Not to mention yourself, commander. In the mean time, I need to start my training. Will you join me?" Corrin shook her head, drawing Yato nonetheless.

"I was to spar with some of the Ylisseans. Perhaps another time?" Ryoma nodded, heading towards the barracks, leaving his sister on the hill.

"Good luck then, Kamui."


Lucina was up far before the crack of dawn, but was impressed when she saw others of her same ethic get up even earlier than she had. Among them was that tall samurai with the regal armor, the one who had claimed to had seen her future and promised to rid the world of its possibility.

"...Robin, did you truly show them my memories? Is that what it took to convince this nation to help us?" Not completely agreeing with Robin's unorthodox methods, she had to admit that the scare tactic worked, seeing as two foreign nations had their troops at Ylisse's aid.

She didn't like it when others saw her train. Especially Robin. He always displayed so much generic care and pity for the princess. It almost made her feel special compared to the other troops, but she knew for a fact Robin treated every member of his army with care, no matter their relationship. Obviously, no one had much of a history with the white-haired tactician, and Lucina felt like she knew the most out of everyone regarding Robin's past, having lived with it in her own. But Lucina knew what the odds were, Robin didn't. So even before breakfast came, she trained. She wouldn't eat even after Robin offered her his own plate. Still, someone had left a nice plate of cold leftovers on a nearby log yesterday.

'No need to thank me. Good work,' came the simple note attached. That man didn't even need to put his name on it.

The fact was that her feelings of friendship and respect with the tactician were growing dangerously past ones of platonic levels... She couldn't afford that. She had just one goal. Her happiness, her future... it meant nothing if they didn't win the war.

But... must a princess of Ylisse really wager her happiness to secure-

Of course she had to. No one else knew the price of failure but her. No one could hope to know what would happen if they lost.

"It's the price we would all pay..."

With a heave, Lucina picked up another practice dummy from the barracks shed, carrying it far into the wood line away from prying eyes. Depending on her exertion, Robin would either find her sooner or later, but that still gave her at least an hour or two at best. Letting her thoughts collect themselves, she envisioned the mutilated body of a Risen in front of her, swinging its ax with wild, inhuman rage. Mimicking a parry with Falchion, Lucina deflected the notional ax and lunged deep past her normal swordfighting range. While the sword was agile enough, axes were far less able to keep up at this distance. Stabbing the dummy in the neck, she spun and swiftly beheaded it before calmly and slowly sheathing her blade.

Taking a couple of deep breaths, Lucina promptly rose, dashing forward while drawing her blade, amputating the wooden right leg of the dummy before rolling past it, stabbing the chest cleanly all the way to the hilt. Kicking the dummy off her sword, she finished it with another stab, killing it three times over at this point. Finally sheathing Falchion again, she took a deep breath before recollecting herself, dragging the mutilated wooden man back to camp in return for a cleaner one.

Perhaps her training was louder than usual, judging by the light steps on dried leaves that Lucina detected. Pretending not to notice the tactician that was looking for her, she walked towards the barracks to pick up another dummy-

"It's horribly inefficient to walk all this way just to trash a dummy in less than a minute. Unless of course you're using the walk as training as well? Ah, I see. The long marches combined with rapid dispatch of an enemy? I may have to implement that training-"

"Must you bother me at this time, tactician?" Lucina's cold response only drew a laugh from Robin, who she just realized was holding another dummy for her. His smirk, while certainly not mischievous, was more cocky than she was willing to admit was usual for the tactician.

"Only if you'll have me at this time, hero-princess. Do you remember all those times you would interrupt my daydreaming in my office? You would climb in through my windows, asking 'how Chrom was faring.' The absolute nerve of this woman. So, are you free?"

Letting a slight smile escape her lips for a few seconds, Lucina took the dummy from him swiftly and gratefully, forcing another laugh before Robin scratched his head with his hand, still bandaged from trying to forcibly erase the Grimleal emblem embedded in it a few days before.

"No. Idle chatter distracts me from honing my form." Robin appeared unfazed, merely sitting down atop another log before taking out his notes.

"You forget that I know swordsmanship too. But aside form that, I need some advice, Hero-Princess. Humor me for a few minutes, Mar- Lucina." Lucina sighed and sat down next to him, clearly showing her disdain at being interrupted but cooperating for the time being.

"...What?"

"How are you?"

Lucina immediately rose, eyebrows contorting for a split second before relaxing, their owner deciding the off-guard question wasn't worth her time.

She went back to swinging.

"Not the answer I'm looking for, Lucina." Robin's insistence made him annoying, but Lucina couldn't help but commend him for his constant efforts.

"I am training. I am making sure that at least one of us is prepared to take on Valm and Grima."

Robin didn't chuckle this time and grabbed Lucina's arm, forcing a gasp as he forcibly brought her back to her seat beside him.

"And here I am trying to make sure the other ninety-nine of us are prepared for the storm as well. I don't see the point of you trying to hide away when all of us look up to you-"

"Let them look up to someone else. I'm training. I am not here to lead," Lucina retorted, not moving.

Slowly, Robin's frown vanished and was replaced with his eyes burrowing into Lucina's, trying to look for something within the princess's gaze.

"Then let me ask again: How are you doing?" Robin repeated, no emotion present on his face. Lucina backed away, not too keen on returning his stare.

"I'm... I'm fine. Can I get back to training now?" Robin considered it, but shook his head.

"Something is nagging at you and as the Commander, I have a right to try to remedy it. And I need to know what's wrong before it starts taking its toll on you... If it hasn't already."

"You want to know my issues? Sure. Here's one. A commander who's supposedly preparing his army to be capable of taking down a military superpower and a god is working more focused on 'hanging out' with me like we're friends and- I'm sorry. I'm... Robin, I..." Lucina held her angry gaze even while Robin analyzed her face, his soft eyes slowly chipping at Lucina's grimace until it finally collapsed into a nervous frown.

"..."

"So you weren't upset. You were worried," Robin diagnosed softly. He lowered his hand and nodded to himself, crossing out a few words from his notes.

"I... I am. It's not becoming of me, and I apologize. If you would let me train, I vow to not show such weakness..." she stopped when Robin raised his hand slightly, setting aside his notepad on his lap and turning to his friend with full attention.

"Weakness? Is fear in the face of adversity weakness, Lucina, or is it humanity?"

"R-robin..."

"I'm not trying to reveal your weakness, Lucina. I'm trying to reveal your courage. Trust me."

"I..." Lucina frowned as she lowered her head. "It gets hard at times. But with Valm this close, I will not falter..."

Robin got up to stretch and walked slowly around Lucina in a loose circle. Lucina didn't budge, even as Robin escaped her periphery and only the crunch of dead leaves made his presence known.

"I know you're not scared of Valm. You're not even scared of Grima. You're scared of failure. Tell me this, Lucina. Who was I before Grima attacked Old Ylisse?"

The question caught Lucina by surprise yet again, and she forced herself to look away.

"Huh?"

"I still don't know who I am, you know. I'm a tactician, hell, maybe even a pretty darn good one. But other than that? I don't know much else. But you? You're from the future. That means, if I wasn't dead already, you knew me! Who was I in your life?" Lucina nodded at Robin's curiosity and relented, turning to face the tactician.

"You... You were our teacher. For me and some of the other kids. We looked up to you when our parents were away fighting the Valmese."

Robin took this in bitter taste, not too happy about where he was in relation to the other Shepherds.

"And I wasn't among them?"

"You were their tactician during the Plegian war... but they injured you pretty bad. You could barely walk, let alone lead an army on foot. Virion took upon the role of commander while you were placed as our ward. That was your duty."

"Why would I ever leave Chrom's side-"

"You were the only one everyone trusted with us while they were away. Some of them didn't make it back... And they were probably at peace knowing you were taking care of us. After enough of them died... you had enough. You left us and rode for Plegia the week before my father... Uncle Frederick, and Aunt Lissa died. You came back days later... broken."

Robin paused, still looking at Lucina's eyes for what he was looking for.

"Who was I to you?"

Lucina closed her eyes and smiled faintly, recalling memories of Robin carrying her on her back, sparring with her with his cane while she bashed his bad leg with her wooden sword. He always smiled though, and Lucina recalled countless nights alone when the young tactician would visit her and read a bedtime story. Then... she fell asleep on his lap, leaving him no choice but to gently stroke the young girls' hair as he gazed at the stars while his friends were fighting for their lives without him.

And then he died. No one knew how or why, but Robin simply stopped breathing shortly after Chrom's death, though now that she thought about it Robin probably died by his own hands. Utterly alone, Robin died broken and anguished, but still had a smile when Lucina came to visit. There was no burial. No ceremony. No one was left to do the deed. There wasn't even a body to memorialize.

"Was I kind?" Lucina woke up from her reverie and nodded at Robin. At this point in his life, he couldn't have been that much older than she was. But for her, who looked up to him as a parent figure and then suddenly having to change that relationship to one as a friend? It was mind-boggling. But past or present, he was always kind.

Always.

"The day when you lost your temper with any of us children never came. Even with your friends, my parents... dying out of your reach... you always had enough compassion to smile for us." Hearing this, Robin closed his eyes and tilted his lips upwards a bit.

"To you?"

"To everyone."

Robin nodded slowly, his smile fading.

"I see you looked up to me... the man who watched helpless as your parents died... Was I that inspiring?"

"You were my teacher, my mentor... and my best... friend, when Father and Mother were far away." Robin finally saw Lucina's armor chip before him, and she turned away as she blushed and kicked her feet along the soil. "I... looked up to you more than I realized." The tactician understood her words and remained silent, before asking another question.

"And what am I to you now?" Lucina turned at him, eyes narrow but still not hostile. Was he... asking if he was important to her? Yes. Yes he was... but the future... the future was worth more than him.

"Why does it matter? All that matters is that my Father lives long enough to stop Grima, even at the cost of my own life-"

"No."

"No?" Lucina echoed in disbelief.

"I can't have someone with such a tragic beginning have such a tragic ending."

Lucina stuttered over his care but retorted with her desperation. "You do not understand... this is more than me! This is the whole world we are talking about!"

Robin didn't back down and challenged her reactions with his own.

"I can't have the one person who saved us all die for a happiness she would never experience... Not while I have control over this situation."

Lucina froze, her lower lip quivering at the remark.

"R-robin," she murmured. "You don't... know what will happen."

Suddenly, Robin got up, smiling as he closed his now-full page in his notebook.

"I got what I came for, have fun training," Robin finished, kicking himself upright and setting off towards the camp. Lucina bolted up after him and grabbed his cloak, causing him to turn in mock annoyance.

"W-wait..." she stammered, the child in her clawing towards the surface.

"Yes?" Robin replied blankly, as if none of her emotion had pierced him. But it did, and he suddenly found himself in a tight hug from the princess.

No matter how hard she tried to convince that there was only one life that mattered in this quest to save the world... his arms around her didn't stand for that claim in the slightest.

"You've done so much, Lucina. I'm proud of you," he whispered behind her ear. She didn't smell particularly great due to the intensity and duration of training, but he let her nuzzle into his shoulder regardless.

And in that moment, the Hero-King realized that in jumping through that portal... she was living her one and only chance to feel everything she ever wanted to feel.

"Y-you know... you're still my best friend, no matter what..." she whispered back, burying her head in his shoulder... Oh, how familiar it was. "I missed you, and I hope we all get to see the world you are working to save."

She let go suddenly, her smile fading a few moments after but not from disdain.

"Thank you, Robin. I'm glad you came to check on me. I apologize for being... stubborn."

"I'm honored, Hero-Princess. Now get to work," Robin bowed, sending Lucina off with a light smile, and even as he walked off, the sounds of her determined training echoed throughout the dark forest.


"Is he always so nosy?" Lucina heard a voice ask, causing her to turn to that white-haired princess from Hoshido. Or was it Nohr?

"Pardon my manners, but who are you?"

Corrin curtsied, displaying her Nohrian cape to the Ylissean princess.

"Princess Corrin, of Nohr, or Hoshido, depending on who you ask. Also... newly-appointed commander of the Shepherds, if you'd believe it. I'm obviously not as good at the whole leading thing compared to him, but I'll figure it out in time."

"Princess Lucina of Ylisse," Lucina responded in turn, relaxing as she examined the Nohrian. "And yes, he makes it his business to know how everyone is feeling. Even the less... willing among us. It is his job. He finds a way to get to even the most stalwart people in his army. It is not his most endearing trait, but a good leader is persistent and humble. You would be surprised how effective a leader you would be just by learning from him. Even if... he gets incredibly singular to people at times."

"So you?" Corrin asked innocently.

There was no hiding it from Corrin it seemed.

"...So me."

Corrin grinned, and drew Yato excitedly, the gold glimmering against the sunlight of dawn.

"I'm glad I found you first, you wouldn't mind sparring, would you?" Lucina raised an eyebrow, still wondering how Corrin had found her in the first place, not to mention why she was so eager to fight her.

"W-what? Why me?"

"Robin says you're a swordsman on par with me! I wanted to test that, but... I don't think I'm as great. Plus, you look kinda tired so-"

"I will accept your challenge," Lucina said boldly, wiping away her sweat and drawing Falchion.

"G-great! I mean... are you sure?" Corrin asked, genuine concern for her new companion making itself apparent.

"If Robin says that you would be a good challenge for me... then who am I to disagree?" Corrin raised an eyebrow.

"I suppose Robin holds you in a high regard?"

Lucina smiled slightly, and Corrin grinned. "That's awesome! Alright! So, I'm still new to this whole 'sparring' thing, so is there like a procedure or-" Corrin's voice dragged as her gaze shifted to the treeline, where Lucina had suddenly sprang nimbly into.

Lucina leaped skyward, bringing her blade in an arcing strike, causing Corrin's eyes to widen as she barely deflected Falchion even when it made a whistling sound past her ear.

"Straight to the point, huh..."

'I cannot disappoint Father, losing to these new soldiers! And Robin... does he really believe in me that much?'

Corrin dashed with a flourish of chicanery and unorthodox acrobatic maneuvers, keeping Lucina on her toes as either Princess tried reading the other's pattern of attack.

"Quite the -Hya!- tough one, aren't you?" Corrin grunted, comparing Lucina's flowing but precise sword style to a mix of Xander's and Ryoma's. Stepping back with her off-foot, Corrin suddenly spiraled into Lucina with Yato outstretched, forcing the Princess to sidestep the blur of silver and brace the part of her that was bound to get hit. However, Corrin seemed to swing her blade mid-spin and caught Falchion, sending it off-balance and opening up Lucina's footing for another attack. Seeing this, Lucina instead charged forward, nearly running Corrin through if she hadn't used her momentum to fall to the ground.

"Oof. Geez, Robin wasn't kidding."

"...He planned this," Lucina muttered under her breath. 'Father... Robin... I'll keep you safe! If you think training with Corrin will make me stronger, then so be it!'

Recovering quickly, The Nohrian sprang up from her prone position into a swirling arc of golden blade and blue cape, nicking Lucina's arm before she parried the rest of the blade with her bare hand, guiding the flat of the sword away from her with utmost precision. With the same hand, she grabbed Corrin by the neck and lunged in with her foot, tripping the Nohrian who promptly kicked Lucina's legs from under, causing the Ylissean to join her on the ground.

"Call it a draw?"

"Not a chance," Lucina grunted, springing back up and taking a leaping bound backwards, allowing Corrin room to get up. Readying her blade, Lucina made ready to execute her father's move to finish the spar in her favor...

Leaping skyward once again, Lucina somersaulted rapidly towards Corrin, knocking Yato out of her hands and sending both of them tumbling into the treeline, Corrin significantly higher than her counterpart.

"You won't stop me..." Corrin whispered mid-flight, shifting her left arm into its dragon form and impaling Lucina's cape to the ground, suspending her entire body in midair as Lucina could only gape, a half... dragon towering over her with a razor sharp appendage skewering her into the dirt like a tent.

"W-what?"

Corrin appeared lost in thought for a moment, before shifting her arm back to human form and helping Lucina up.

"So sorry! Ah, I got carried away there! Did I hurt you?" Checking Lucina front and back, Corrin breathed a sigh of relief when she appeared fine, aside from her distraught nature.

"W-what was that?!" Lucina cried, her breathing calm for the moment, despite her fears being triggered by the dragon manifestation that nearly killed her.

"I can turn into a dragon!"


Lucina hunched over, countless splinters and twigs scattered at her feet: what remained of the forest was out of her immediate vicinity. Wiping the sweat and dirt off her face, she fell to her knees and dry heaved, leaning on Falchion which was embedded into the dirt to provide her support.

"C-cannot stop now... Corrin... Too strong... I have to beat her."

"She technically cheated," A voice responded, and Lucina recognized Robin walking towards her with two plates of food. "Care for breakfast? It's only four hours late. Look at that, we're already making progress from yesterday. You didn't touch breakfast until sunset!"

"W-why are... why are you here?" Lucina panted, clamoring her way to Robin's side nonetheless.

"I come and go like the whispers on the waves," Robin replied mystically, to which Lucina rolled her eyes. "And... you look hungry." Lucina looked at her miserable self, and after a ragged breath, agreed. "Also, to report that you are the subject of our new Commander's stream of compliments."

"She was strong."

Robin nodded sadly, recalling his own annihilation at the dragon princess' hands just the day before.

"She wiped the floor with me yesterday. That 'Dragon Fang' as she calls it really caught me by surprise." Lucina chuckled as she took her plate silently.

"..."

"..."

"Thank you, Robin."

"Oh?"

"Even though I was not a Shepherd... You still showed genuine care for me every time I was at the castle. And now... now that I am here with Father and everyone else? I feel like you are the only one who truly understands not just the situation... but me as well."

"Oh, I'm sure Chrom would say likewise. He's still getting over the fact that he has a daughter and a son."

"Yes... 'Laslow' as he calls himself now spoke to me yesterday. He really has grown up."

Robin placed his hand on Lucina's shoulder and ruffled her hair playfully.

"And how about you, Lucina. Have you grown up?" Lucina looked back at him with pained eyes, thanking the gods for his innocence. Flinching at his touch, she sighed.

'You have no idea how much I would like to have had a childhood again...'

"Yes. But I still have a ways to go."

"So does everyone else. But you are one of my dearest friends and best soldiers. Always have been, actually. Not to mention... Corrin can't stop babbling about how you beat her, and how much of a good swordsman you are. Now everyone wants a shot with the Hero-Princess. You've certainly come a long way since we fought the Hero-King in Ferox."

"Do you really think so?" Lucina asked hopefully, not easily forgetting her defeat at Robin's hand at the Feroxian tourney.

"I wouldn't have given Corrin the suggestion if I didn't," Robin laughed, smiling as he ate his eggs quietly. Looks like even he delayed breakfast. Lucina was surely a bad influence.

"Well, if you insist on making a training dummy of me... I will make sure to beat her for sure next time," Lucina responded in a youthful show of arrogance and excitement.

"I'll be rooting for you, Lucina," Robin laughed, just as hopeful. In an instant, Lucina flinched, realizing just how comfortable she just got with Robin.

"Something the matter?" Lucina shook her head rapidly, drawing Falchion just as she finished her meal.

"I should get back to training..."

"So soon? Ah, sometimes I forget who I'm talking to. You probably prefer eating while you train, huh?"

The joke flew over Lucina's head, leaving Robin to grin nervously for a few seconds before it was clear he wasn't getting a reaction.

"Come on, that was a good one," Robin sighed, getting her plate and heading back to the barracks. "I'll bring you lunch if you want," he offered.

"I appreciate your aid, but I shall be fine by myself, thank you," Lucina insisted.

"...Right." Robin nodded, his frown appearing as soon as he turned his head away from the princess.

And as he walked further on, he could sense the tone of worry in her cries.