1/100 - Introduction
(From the perspective of Emmeryn at age 9.)
Everyone was screaming. The Exalt screamed at the guards at the door to step aside. He screamed more when they said they wouldn't move. Behind the door, mama, and another lady, they were screaming, too. They were screaming for different reasons, though.
I wanted to cover my ears and scream with everyone else, but Chrom was holding my hand so tight I couldn't feel my fingers anymore and I knew he was going to start crying soon and then the Exalt would be angry and we'd all be in trouble.
"It's OK," I said. I sat him on my lap and hugged him. "It's OK."
Chrom leaned against me. "Emm," he said. His body was shaking. "The Exalt scares me."
I held Chrom tight. I hoped the Exalt hadn't heard him. "Shh," I said. "It's OK."
The Exalt cursed. Chrom flinched. I did, too. Chrom started to cry. I held on tight to him and told him that everything would be OK. Mama would be OK. She'd stop screaming and when she came out she'd smile at us and hold us close and tell us, yes, everything was OK.
I hoped that would happen soon. I wanted someone to hold me.
"Emmeryn!" I looked at the Exalt. He was coming at us. Chrom cried more. He stopped in front of us. I didn't know what I'd done wrong.
"Keep your brother quiet," he said. It was an order. "He makes too much noise." Chrom made a noise in his nose. I squeezed him.
"Yes, Your Grace," I answered. It was what I was supposed to say. The Exalt had told me so. "Is mama OK?
The Exalt gave me The Look. I was in trouble now.
"'Her Highness' or 'Milady'," the Exalt said. "'Mama' and 'OK' are crude expressions to be found only in peasant speech. I will not tolerate them within my home."
"But mama—"
"'Her Highness' or 'Milady'."
"—Her Highness said it was OK." I got The Look again. "Her Highness said it was all right."
The Exalt was mad. "I would wager she did. And look who she saw fit to lay with!" He spun around and his cloak spun with him. "That's the only reason why we have to deal with this," he cursed again, "spawn of Grima!" Mama was screaming louder again, and the Exalt went back to scream at the guards at the door.
"I'm scared," Chrom said. Mama and the Exalt and everyone, they were screaming so loud, I could hardly hear him. "I'm scared, Emm. I'm scared."
I held him close. "It's going to be OK." My hands were shaking as I held him. I said it for us both: "It's going to be OK."
I rocked Chrom back and forth, saying that over and over again, until mama stopped screaming. Mama stopped screaming, and the lady in the room with her stopped screaming, and soon the Exalt stopped screaming soon.
Chrom frowned. "What's that?" he asked. Someone else was screaming, and they were screaming very loudly. Then the noise stopped.
The Exalt cursed and left. I didn't know what to do, so I took Chrom to the doors. The guards let us in.
"Mama!" Chrom said. He ran to her, but she didn't pick him up. She was holding something else.
"Are you OK, mama?" I asked. She didn't look OK. Her face was white and her eyes were red and she was crying.
"I'm OK, darling," mama said. She smiled at me. She was shaking. "Come, look."
I picked up Chrom so we both could see. Mama had a tiny baby on her chest. Chrom wiggled in my arms. He was embarrassed.
"Chrom, Emmeryn," mama said, "Meet your little sister."
Chrom wasn't embarrassed anymore. "Little sister!" he said. He reached for her and petted her arm. "Ew, she's wet."
Mama laughed. "She's brand new," she said, "and she's going to need a lot of love. Will you love your sister, children?"
"Yes," Chrom said, "but not when she's gross and-and wet."
I elbowed Chrom. "We will love our sister, mama," I said. "Always."
"What's her name?" Chrom asked.
"Lissa," mama said. "My little Lissa."
I petted Lissa's face. She was sticky and very small. "Little Lissa," I said.
The Exalt was coming. I could hear his footsteps. Mama could probably see him. She did that thing with her body when she saw him, kind of like curling up. I wanted to curl up with her, but Chrom was holding onto my shirt, and there was a little baby now, too. I leaned over with Chrom so that we were both near Lissa and said, "It's OK. It's going to be OK. I love you both. Chrom. Lissa. I love you."
The screaming started again, and Chrom and I put ourselves over Lissa, and even the Exalt couldn't rip us off. Chrom held my hand and I held his. We had a promise to keep. We would love our little Lissa.
