-oOo-
The excitement of having her body back having finally worn off, she set herself to pacing. It was a waste of energy, she knew – was energy something she should worry about in this realm? – but it stilled her mind and calmed her soul and right now that was what she needed most. She still had no idea how to return to her world, but her determination brokered no room for uncertainty. Bonds. Everything has been about bonds, the invisible ties that bind us. I need to figure out how to use that to get back. Hmm…
Well, what bonds do I have?
Obviously, the strongest bond she had was to Chrom. They were best friends, lovers, and soul mates. She could scarcely imagine her life without him. The thought of him alone tore at her heart. He had given her everything when she had woken up with nothing…
His eyes met hers across the aisle and she couldn't stop the grin that plastered itself across her face. She chuckled finding Chrom facing the same predicament. Turning away from Chrom, she attempted to compose herself. She was beaming and giggly like a girl with her first crush – maybe it was - but for as silly as she was being, she decided she couldn't care less and ceased her efforts at controlling her facial features. Today was her day and she would appear as giddy as she felt, propriety be damned. Turning back to Chrom, her heart fluttered again. Dressed in his finest attire, he appeared every ounce the prince and soon-to-be Exalt he was born to be and she thought she had never seen a more handsome man. Lucky girl that she was, here in a room surrounded by those she considered her family, they would soon be joined as husband and wife.
Then there was Lissa. The young woman had taken a place in her heart akin to that of a little sister. They were partners in crime and confidantes. They shared secrets while laughing away the night. When she first discovered she was pregnant, Lissa was there with a grin spreading from ear to ear, barely able to contain her joy…
For weeks she had felt under the weather. Nothing too serious mind you to warrant an official visit to the palace physician, but now as she strolled, arms-swinging, with her best friend (who also happened to be a well-trained cleric) she thought to casually make mention of her symptoms. Lissa listened with her usual degree of attentiveness: her brows furrowed in all seriousness, eyes squinting as if focusing on something in the distance and her lips straining not to break out into a smirk or smile (her only tell), all the while nodding her head exuberantly. Once she finished detailing her illness Lissa seemed to hum with an air of excitement and immediately proceeded to drag her back to her room where she could give her a proper examination. Needless to say, Lissa would not take no for an answer. A traumatizing hour later of watching Lissa flutter about while poking and prodding with nary a word spoken, she was left with a diagnosis that left Lissa jumping and yammering about the need to plan and prepare, while she struggled to wrap her mind around it.
She was going to be a mother.
Her thoughts fell to Frederick next. Weary of her at first, they quickly forged a friendship that rivaled the strength of any other. Theirs was a friendship forged through respect and trust. He had trained her to be stronger than she had ever thought possible (while she trained his taste buds) and when she officially joined the Ylissean royal family, he pledged his life to protect hers. They were brothers in arms in the truest sense…
"Archers and mages to the back! Keep an eye on their flank and provide us with support! Chrom,Sumia, Panne and Lon'qu, take down the soldiers on the west side. Lissa, stick with them in case they need healing. Lon'qu, keep your eyes on her. Gaius, Nowi, Stahl, and Cordelia, take the soliders on the east. Be careful, they've got a dark mage on their side. If he hits you with the Nosferatu spell it'll heal himself. Take him out quickly. Maribelle, stick with them, treat any wounds, and Stahl keep her safe. Frederick, with me. We go after the commander."
Breaking apart from the rest of the Shepherds, she jumped onto the back of Frederick's horse and they galloped towards their intended target. Searching the sea of enemies, she spotted him quickly. "There! If we take down the commander, the rest of his army will fall." The few soldiers that stood in their way were felled either on the end of a lance courtesy of Frederick or a well-aimed spell of hers. They were an unstoppable team, her and Frederick. Training together, they had learned each other's fighting style forging them into a team that few could stand up to. Riding with him she realized the only place she felt safer was with Chrom.
-oOo-
And so for what easily could have been hours she continued on like this, delightfully lost in the memories of those she loved. In the back of her mind an alarm went off. It was more of a nagging feeling, but after being away from her loved ones for so long she preferred the comfort the memories brought her.
There was the first holiday she spent with the entire family…
Leaning back and looking onto the scene before her she could only think that this is what heaven must be. Ribbons and decorative paper littered the private family room and an assortment of boxes in various sizes and states of openness were strewn about. Morgan lay in front of the fireplace, his nose already buried in the no-longer-empty journal she had gifted him to write his strategies and notes into. Frederick sat comfortably in the sofa across him, a sounding board for the young man's budding ideas while he investigated his new strategy game, Lissa's newest attempt at teaching him how to relax. Lucina walked into the room for the third time, continuing the impromptu fashion show that had started for her Aunt Lissa. Looking at her animated features you would be hard pressed to think that the girl currently ecstatic over receiving several new dresses was from a place where war was her only concern. Owain sat at one end of the table, baby Lucina cradled in his left hand while his right dramatically flailed in true sword-hand fashion, regaling her with the story of his latest struggle against the uncontrollable appendage. He proudly wore the jacket his father gifted him despite the presence of the words "Daddy's Pride and Joy" stitched across the back. Her thoughts took a sullen turn when she realized that in Owain's world Frederick was dead so it didn't surprise her to find he treasured the gift.
Letting out a sigh her eyes swept across the room once she realized that Chrom had seemingly disappeared. She jumped ever so slightly when she heard his voice. "Are you forgetting that I have yet to present you with my gift love?"
Her lips formed into a smile as she turned and found him waiting beside her, holding onto beautifully wrapped box with both hands. "You know, you didn't have to get me anything. Having you with me is more than enough," she answered.
"That may be, but once I saw this particular item, I just couldn't help myself. Besides, you certainly do more than enough around here to deserve even this tiny token of my undying love and appreciation." The cocky grin she had come to associate with Chrom once their relationship changed from friendship to something more slid into place and she couldn't help the grin that slid into place on her own face. Placing her hands on either side of his face, she brought him down for a kiss, just a gentle meetings of lips. She caught the twinkle in his eyes that held a promise for something later and had to stifle a giggle.
"Thank you Chrom." In that moment it meant so much more than just gratitude for the exchange of a gift. Looking up at him she could see that he understood. Leaning down he placed another kiss to her lips. "It continues to be my pleasure."
There was the first time she was seriously injured in battle which led her to wonder if Chrom might harbor feelings for her outside of friendship…
Stupid, stupid, STUPID! She had been so stupid! She had failed to notice the thief who snuck up on her right because she was too busy searching for Chrom. They had gotten separated in the chaos of the ambush and her first thoughts had been of him. Ever since he caught her in the bathing hut she couldn't help how her thoughts seemed to always lead to him. Now on the frenzied battlefield she could only think of him and it had cost her. The thief now lay dead, but the blood freely flowing from the stab wound on her right was threatening to have her join him.
She flinched as she pressed her right hand tighter against the wound, but the blood refused to be staunched. She scanned the battlefield for Lissa or Maribelle knowing she needed treatment quickly. Instead she found Chrom (finally!), his eyes wide in fear as he took in her injured form and ran towards her. Once he threw her left arm around his shoulder to support her she collapsed into his side feeling a sudden loss of strength. Her eyelids started to droop as her head lolled forward and sleep sang its siren song. "Hey, stay with me!" Chrom yelled.
She wanted to obey him so badly but as her breathing grew ragged and her limbs grew heavier, she found it harder to resist the sleep her body cried out for. He grabbed her shoulders and shook as she realized that another pair of hands held her up now and settled her into their arms like an infant. The jerkiness of the movement gave her a few moments of clarity during which she realized that she was being placed onto an unfamiliar cot, her cloak had been removed and her clothing was being cut away. Chrom held her down, firmly but tenderly, hands stained with her blood. As she looked up into his face and saw equal amounts fear, worry, sorrow and anger, she decided that if she had a life left to live that she would do everything in her power to keep that expression from ever gracing his features again.
"Chrom…" She had meant to say it confidently and clearly but instead it came out as a half-broken whisper. "Shh, don't speak," he reprimanded. No longer needing to hold her down, he moved in closer and held her left hand in both of his, his face inches away from hers. This close she could faintly make out the appearance of unshed tears. "You have to save your strength. Lissa says the blade that hit you was poisoned so you're going to have to work harder to get back up from this...I order you to get back from this." The pain in his voice was too much for her and coupled with the pain from her wound she felt her own tears fall. Looking up at him she thought he looked more like a man at the bedside of his dying wife than a lord worried over his tactician. The thought would have made her blush if her blood wasn't pooling outside her. Squeezing his hand with her own, the last thing she felt was the pressure of his lips against her temple as the darkness claimed her.
With a gasp she pulled herself out of the memory. "Just a memory…" she told herself. Some nights it was hard to distinguish the memories and nightmares from reality. All she had to do was turn to Chrom sleeping beside her to pull herself back to reality. She looked around expecting to see him except he was nowhere to be found. Her heart raced when she realized that she didn't even know where she was. It was dark and suffocating and for what she thought was the first time in a longtime, she was scared.
Looking down at herself she realized that she was fully dressed but lacked any sword or tome. An eerie glow radiated out from her which seemingly was the only source of light is entire place. The glow reminded her of that given off by Naga…wait! With a start it all came rushing back: the final battle against Grima, her subsequent "death," and the warning that Naga had given her.
How could I have forgotten already? She raged quietly at herself. Naga had warned her of the dangers of this place and still she had nearly fallen victim to them, again! She couldn't let herself be lost to the memories, but she had no other idea for how to use her bonds to get back. She needed to clear her mind and figure out another way home, so she did the only thing she could think of: she ran.
-oOo-
AN: And...we're back. Sorry for the long break there, this chapter gave me some trouble. Hopefully things will go a lot more smoothly now. Sorry if this chapter was unsatisfactory (I personally am not a huge fan) but I figured I'd waited/edited/scrapped/rewrote long enough so it was time to post. As much as I would love to get the Avatar (my headcanon says her name is Kara) back to the real world, I just can't find it in me to make this easy for her. Going back to them is supposed to be akin to a one in a million chance, so that's what I'm shooting for. She'll struggle and in the end she'll hopefully get back. I haven't decided the circumstances of her return, or frankly speaking if she'll return, so we'll see where the story goes. Any who, thanks for sticking around! :)