"I'm taking your silence as a yes." Bowser Jr. cackled, wiggling his sharp toes.
Why he wants the blue note; Lucina stared at the floor thinking of that and why these kids would go through the trouble of kidnapping and interrogating her. The tears she spent still made marbles on the floor and she wished she hadn't shown such emotion when Ness told her that Robin didn't make it to the meeting point little over an hour ago. A part of her cursed her dependence on her friend. A part of her chastised herself for taking Robin for granted. But a large part of her was annoyed with herself that she was stuck in this situation.
Robin was okay. He apologized over the noise in the small transceiver Bowser Jr. had. For what, Lucina didn't know, but hopefully it was that he didn't go to the meeting point in time. Now, he should be at the potion shop face-to-face with one of Bowser Jr.'s allies. Hopefully he's not hurt.
The blue note she gave him is perhaps the only piece of tangible evidence that the Family exists today. Not only the extremist group but it might have been written by the leader himself. So the kids are after the Family as well, for interest or maybe admiration. The Guerrillas, the kids call themselves, are a vigilante group by name but seeing the way they treated her, they clearly have certain criterions on who is "good" and "bad" that Lucina doesn't agree on.
She had her head hung low between her knees and the hip-length hair obscured her vision. The Falchion, leaning on the wall and out of her reach, seemed like it was evaluating her. The only way for her to escape without giving the whereabouts of the note is to get her sword.
"Have you ever watched someone being tortured to death?" Lucina uttered.
Bowser Jr. took an unusual pause. "Yeah."
"I saw that twice. Yesterday and today." She continued.
Lucina waited for a response, but, silence. The curtain of hair obscuring her face helped her appear more confident and also not look at the boy, but having that weight pull on her head reminded Lucina of the exposure she's giving out. If she'd been born as a man, or even had the courage to defy her father and dead mother's wish of keeping her hair long, she wouldn't have to face this humiliation of being interrogated by kids younger than herself.
Before he fell ill, her father would occasionally voice his concerns that Lucina wasn't developing as much into adulthood. The exchange was always uncomfortable and Lucina would always be angry at him, making him chuckle and apologize and that would mark the end of the conversation. In the end it helped keep her disguise as a man to join the Royal Battalion.
Remembering the baker's wife lacing her fingers with the wedding ring, seemingly comfortable with her life before the riot, and her round physique and womanly clothes, made Lucina feel something close to admiration. A life she could have pursued. But even that can be taken away by someone else in a matter of seconds.
The words came to Lucina naturally. "I imagined myself killing that baker with my sword every time I pass by and see him make those poisoned rolls." She continued. "Each time I saw someone steal one, I thought he deserved to die. I sided with the thieves, even though I think stealing is immoral.
"Then the riot happened. People surrounding one person, stomping on him, punching him, stabbing pieces of glass into him, pouring dirty water on him, all the while screaming in his ears that he deserved all of it. Only his blood spilled in the street. And then today, his wife. I didn't even know he had a family but it didn't matter. She was lynched for being married to him. Of course she deserved to die; she was closely related to him."
"Doesn't mean anything." Bowser Jr. mumbled.
She picked up on how the boy voiced his words, then asked. "Did you ever think, if those people deserved to die?"
"Nobody deserves to die."
"Then why didn't you do anything? Were they an exception?" Lucina pressed.
"Y-You don't get to ask the questions." The boy interrupted. He wasn't very good at hiding the shakes in his voice. "I still have my ally at your friend's shop. If you're going to keep on making your darn vague antics, I'll assume your buddy has that note."
Lucina looked up. Bowser Jr.'s mouth was twitching so he bit it down. She used the same statement to provoke him only minutes ago and now, Bowser Jr. is folding his arms across his body and looking away from Lucina's eyes. He has resources and skilled allies but she deduced he's hesitating to take big actions.
If Robin didn't forget the location, he should have a sword hidden in the potion shop. A very powerful one, perhaps more powerful than her Falchion. The sword that he doesn't recollect ever purchasing but was there since he started learning techniques from her father. Robin said it could have been his family's sword because now he lives alone. Anyway, he can defend himself.
Confirming that Robin has the blue note will make Bowser Jr.'s ally attack the potion shop. Denying it wouldn't work since supposedly they've seen them pick it up this morning. Lucina needed a third option, which came quickly. For once she was genuinely proud of her occupation.
"I gave it to my commander to investigate your extremist group." She answered, and tried her best to suppress her smile when Bowser Jr.'s mouth hung open in shock.
"You… son of a dog!" He screamed.
Another boy opened the door meekly, peeking in the room, but quickly shut it closed when Bowser Jr. grabbed a leg of the table and hurled it against the wall with one arm. The old plastic table made a ear-splitting crack as it bounced off and landed with its legs in the air.
The tremor it made in the thin walls made the Falchion lose balance and fall forward onto the floor. The hilt sliding out of its sheath tapped on Lucina's boots. Tension filled the room as hair pins scattered and the two cloths landed as a mess of wrinkles. Bowser Jr.'s flash of anger quickly dissipated as Lucina grabbed hold of the hilt. In one swift move, she drew the blade out of its sheath, using the speed to cut the ropes that bound her hands together. A tremor of pain made her heart skip as she cut the ropes too deep but managed to stand up.
Her own blood slithered down the blade like red strings as she pointed the sword tip to Bowser Jr. Rather than the blade, the sight of fresh blood dripping at his feet made the boy step back.
"Why did, why would you ever side with them? They destroyed everything! We were never meant to live in this pile of trash! We're better than this! Your note could have saved all of us!" The boy cried, enunciating each claim with shaking fists, but taking more steps away from the blade.
Admiration, Lucina assumed. Just like how Robin would fantasize that the prince would solve all of the problems in the Citadel. Bowser Jr. and his allies believe in the Family so much that they'll go through anything to reach out to them. But what if the Family was just as a child as he was, but with a group of adults. Adults with fantasy ideals that tearing a rotten system down will make a better world.
The words escaped Lucina's mouth before she could stop to think.
"I wish I could help you."
Bowser Jr. flinched, then stared at Lucina with confused awe. Unable to stay any longer, Lucina sheathed the Falchion, grabbed her cloak and cape and shoved through the door.
A boy with yellow-blonde hair was standing in the doorway. His hands were full with a first aid kit and crumpled rolls of bandages so he just pressed against the wall for Lucina to go. A couple members of the Guerrillas noticed Lucina but did not react fast enough to stop her. They were all young boys, humans and non-human species approximately ten to twelve years old. There were beds and living spaces Lucina had to sprint through before she tore the door open to the streets again.
The Midst was silent save the gurgling, steaming water plant at the bottom. Her heart pounded against her rib cage, her breath faint, but she automatically tied her long hair with the bandage around her head and hid it with her cape and cloak. The shadows the clothes provided her helped her breath ease. Her wrist still bled a bit so she tore a piece of the bandage to wrap it around her cuts. At least it wasn't her dominant hand and didn't hit a vein. There was confused chatter going on in the hideout so Lucina took that as a cue to leave.
I wish I could help you. Her own words resonated in each step she took.
Lucina decided to walk back to the Outer Rim. Running through the streets in the Midst past midnight was just asking for trouble. Fortunately, the hideout was relatively close to the Royal Battalion station of Commander Meta Knight so she recognized her bearings. Visiting the commander seemed like a good idea but her poorly disguised hair, wounds on her head and wrist, and her terrified expression would lead to some questions she did not have the willpower to answer. Especially after the compliments Meta Knight gave her, Lucina couldn't risk facing whatever complications that may rain down on her after tonight's events.
Nighttime seemed more dangerous than day but perhaps that wasn't the case in the Midst. The streets past midnight were eerily calm and quiet. At least in the Outer Rim, there was constant noise that Lucina had grown used to as she slept. Some people just didn't sleep at night.
The difference between day and night was very minimal. The view from the caged window in the apartment room faced upwards so Lucina could see the sky and sunlight, but the sense of sleeping at night and waking up in the morning was drilled into her from her father since she was little. But hearing the never-ending noise outside the room made her question the need of day and night. If anything, she'd sleep when she was tired, but like her current occupation and her long hair, she had to keep her sleeping schedule to a routine also.
Although, tonight, Lucina gave up on sleeping on a normal time. She prayed Robin was at the potion shop as her feet automatically walked towards that street. The area around the one-person rooms were relatively more dangerous because only one person would occupy those rooms, and if they're not home, they better have good locks and sturdy doors.
There were almost no people in the streets, but her tight grip around the sword didn't relax until she approached the potion shop, another hour later. Lucina almost collapsed in the street in relief from smelling the soothing, saccharine cough syrup that came from the shop. But she traced along the damp walls to drag her feet to the entrance.
She knocked on the door with the code that she and Robin uses when he visits her apartment room. Almost instantly the door swung open, jingling from the bells attached on the top, revealing Robin. With no time to spare, he pulled Lucina in the shop by her shoulders and locked the door behind them.
The two of them stood at the doorway in relieved silence, burying their faces in each other's shoulders in a snug embrace. The clock ticked a quarter past 2 a.m. and as soon as Lucina saw that time, her eyelids and limbs slackened in Robin's arms.
"Don't fall asleep here." Robin whispered, referencing Chrom's words from last night.
"I'm awake." Lucina replied, a brief smile hung from her lips.
Robin came back a half an hour later after slipping a note underneath the door of Lucina's apartment room that said she came back and will be staying at the potion shop for the night. He reassured her that Chrom knocked, told Robin to wait, and wrote back a note before he left. Lucina didn't recall having any loose leafs in the apartment room but she guessed they did as he gave her the folded piece of paper.
In shaky writing, the note read: "You're the only true family I have left. I love you. Take care."
Without thinking she pressed the paper to her nose. The coarse material scratched at her skin but it smelled like the cotton in her father's shirt. In a corner of her mind, Lucina hoped her father would scold her for being so rash and careless. But he never scolded her. Always smiling, always reassuring, always positive.
The tub of clean water revealed Lucina's exhausted face as Robin helped wash the wound on her head and wrist. There were scratches and purple bruises on her cheeks that she didn't notice before from when the kids knocked her out and she hit the floor face first.
"…Huh, you have antibiotics rubbed in your wound here." Robin remarked as he gently dabbed at Lucina's head with a wet towel.
She remembered the first interrogator, Ness, saying that someone else took care of her wound and rubbed 'nice medicine' on her head. She slowly recollected and explained the moments from since she couldn't find Robin: waiting for him to arrive but then had a hunch and going to the bakery again, finding the wife murdered and cleaners taking care of the mess…
"Damn it, I wanted to talk her out of the shop so she wouldn't be in any trouble…" Robin added.
"You went back to the bakery?" Lucina restated.
"Yeah, I was going to the stairs to wait for you but on the way I just couldn't help it and went back to the cafeteria again. There was another big commotion and I tried to see what was going on, then blank. I woke up in the bed at the potion shop to find this kid with a green windsock hat pointing a sword to my stomach and shoving a transceiver in my face." He explained, making gestures of the windsock hat. "He told me to talk to my friend so I thought you were in trouble."
Lucina assumed the kid was another of Bowser Jr.'s allies. Perhaps he knocked Robin out too and brought him back to the potion shop for some reason. There could've been a team of kids who went after her and Robin separately to give the illusion that the other disappeared from both perspectives. Bowser Jr. must be desperate in getting his hands on that blue note.
"Where did you put that note?"
Robin pointed to one of the stacked books on the table. "I have it in between the pages of the blue one there. Do you still want me to keep it?"
The blue book seemed to hold a different kind of weight compared to the other similar ones scattered on the table. One mere piece of paper that shaped Lucina's past couple of days, and now seemed like the key to everything, just in between the pages of that book.
"…I'm not sure. I was kidnapped by these kids called the Guerrillas and they searched me and demanded I tell them where I put the note. They seemed like they were after the Family too."
"Whoa, back track, the Guerrillas?" Robin peered over, looking at Lucina as if she said an outrageous lie.
"Tell me what you know of them."
"Umm, you went to the Midst today, right? You didn't see their graffiti?" He asked, then shrugged when Lucina shook her head. "Well, they're a bunch of kids that do kind of the same thing that Prince Marth did yesterday, addressing problems and trying to do good."
"Trying." Lucina emphasized.
Robin scoffed. "Yeah, gee, I can't believe they kidnapped people. So that windsock kid was a member too, I'm guessing. Wow, I can't believe they did this to you. Everybody is willing to do anything to get what they want."
A soothing sensation gently pressed on Lucina's head as Robin wrapped a new set of bandages under her chin, then over her head. Her cut on her wrist was clean and straight so it wasn't a serious pain compared to the bludgeoning she received on her head. The cuts and bruises on her face were more difficult to cover up. She sighed, having to think of a story to tell her commander of her injuries.
Lucina continued, "When I told the leader I gave the note to my commander, he said if I had given him it, I could have saved all of us."
"How so?" Her friend asked, more genuinely than she expected.
Her response to Bowser Jr. reflected how she would have responded to Robin, so Lucina kept quiet. I wish I could help you, she thought. By now, to Lucina, it sounded like a curse than wishful thinking.
After minutes of silence, Robin changed the subject. "So where did your hairpins go?"
Lucina waited a bit before answering. "…I didn't have time to grab them when I escaped their hideout. They searched me thoroughly and now they know my identity. But I suppose I was lucky that I gave you the note before I went to work."
Robin turned her around in the chair so he could tend to the bruises on her face. He gave her an uplifting smile. "You are still you. It doesn't change who you are in any way. And they can't use your identity against you if they're scared of the Royal Battalion, if that's what you mean."
"They aren't scared of lowly guards like me, apparently." Lucina looked away from Robin's beaming smile.
"But you showed them up and escaped from them alone, despite being kidnapped and tied up. You are the strongest person I know, including women, men, and all non-human species." He added, dabbing a piece of cotton in some liquid.
As he reached for Lucina's cheek with the cotton ball, she instinctively leaned back in her chair, in fear of the piercing pain that would entail from the medicine touching her wound. "…Okay, so you're not the best with pain tolerance, but you probably are the strongest person I know."
"Shut it." She muttered, hiding a smile underneath her bruised cheeks.
Lucina found herself staring at the blue note as Robin cleaned his supplies and set up the bed for her. She could actually leave the note at her Royal Battalion station. It was the most secure place she could think of with the least possibility of it being broken in and stolen from her. That also means that her commander might spot it and take it away from her for investigation. Since the threat of the Family is the sole reason why the Royal Battalion has gotten so much bigger these past fifteen years, once Ganondorf gets the blue note, Lucina may never see it again.
Perhaps she could convince Ganondorf into helping her investigate the Family. But considering her tongue-tied talk with him about the baker and the poison rolls yesterday, getting that approved will definitely be a difficult task.
Although Ganondorf is considerate and caring, he is still a Royal Battalion commander who thinks Lucina is a young boy named 'Lucius' who was an excelling trainee and probably assumes she's willing to take any task without question.
'Rat Poison' looped in Lucina's head as she absentmindedly read that portion of the note over and over again.
She felt a hand tap her on the back. Somehow, she assumed a child was doing that other than the only person in the shop besides her. So when she turned around to find Robin, Lucina almost jumped out of her skin.
"Sorry, did I catch you red-handed?" Robin chuckled.
"No." She answered. "I just forgot one last thing that happened to me tonight."
As Lucina explained of the poisoned boy thanking her right before she blacked out, the smile on Robin's face faded into concern. Before he could ask if it actually was the boy that they abandoned yesterday, Lucina recalled of the yellow spots on the boys arms. Although he did appear healthy, he still had the residue of the yellow pellets in his skin.
Robin sank down in a nearby chair and rubbed his forehead. "But, that doesn't make… he had new clothes too?"
"Yes, and he thanked me for them. He almost seemed like a ghost, but that was what made me stop and think before the kids knocked me out."
"So, assuming the Guerrillas only have access to simple medicine like the antibiotics they used on your head, it must have been some outside source that gave him powerful antidotes and a new set of clothes. But why would he thank you? Was he told to thank you specifically?" Robin thought out loud.
The overwhelming presence of the Family hung over Lucina. However, after tonight, the tradeoff of delving deeper into this and the risk that comes with it was dangerous. Risking her father and best friend's life for a gang wasn't really worth it.
But even if it was a dream, if the prince wanted her to have his note, then she was the one worthy of keeping it. In some happenstance that she would hand the note to Ganondorf or to Bowser Jr., either way there would be regret that there was no personal closure. She noticed she had a protective hand over the blue note as she thought about it.
Lucina didn't want to admit to pointing every mysterious event to the dead extremist group. They definitely have her full attention if that was their goal. As much as she wanted nothing to do with the Family, she'd never been more curious about something.
"Lucina, let's get some sleep." Robin suggested. "We'll go to Chrom in the morning and think later. Wake me up if anything bothers you."
And with that, the following morning passed over Lucina. She rested in the small temporary bed for a couple hours until general conversation filled the street and disturbed her sleep. Before they left for the apartment room, she said her brief greetings to Dr. Mario, the first to arrive to work at the potion shop. At first he gave a knowing look to Robin, but he quickly explained of the situation.
Chrom didn't ask questions. This morning, he couldn't sit up in bed or say anything, but gave Lucina a smile and a loose handshake. Lucina couldn't meet her father's gaze as he looked over her injuries with just his eyes. After giving him his medication for the day, he mouthed the words: "I love you." And Lucina mirrored uneasily.
Before work, Robin thought of a temporary method of using the bandages to tuck her hair underneath them. It was a tight wrap so there were more bandages under her chin but it was a passing disguise.
Her commander was more concerned than she expected, so Lucina was by his side in the balcony while her companions practiced in the arena. A couple hours later, Ganondorf finally broke the tense silence.
"You're falling asleep, Lucius. Do so at home." He suggested.
"No, sir. My duty is until ten." Lucina shook her head.
Lucina knew her words were unconvincing because of her heavy eyelids and bandaged self. As much as her body wanted nothing more than to just sink into her bed, being patronized on her third day of duty was not a good start into her career.
When she clocked in this morning, her seniors teased her injuries and belittled her like she was still a newly recruited trainee. Even the companions that trained with her at Commander Meta Knight's station yesterday harassed her that she deserved the beating because she was the commanders' favorite. Normally she'd ignore these disputes, but today it stung like dull needles.
Pulling the cloak over her head seemed comfortable, but that also meant that she was succumbing to their words. So instead, she gripped the hilt of the Falchion until her nails dug into her palm.
There were other things to worry about. If there was a list of priorities, worrying about her reputation in the Royal Battalion was almost close to the bottom. Probably not even on the list. Still, her pride was in the way of letting her injuries take over her shift.
"There was a riot by the cafeteria." Ganondorf started.
Lucina was assuming he'd force her to go home, so a conversation was unexpected.
"A day before yesterday, yes." She replied.
"And then yesterday, there was another. At the same place."
Somehow, he sounded like he was choosing his words carefully. Lucina listened to each of them.
Ganondorf gazed down into the arena. "I was informed of the aftermath before you came in today. Only two people were killed in those two days: the lynched victims. Now you may think the Royal Battalion only cares about the Royals they serve, but we do forensic researches as well. Do you know why?"
"I do not, sir."
"I do not either." Her commander smiled.
His response was even more unexpected than the beginning of the conversation, so all Lucina could do was to blink. The tension within her was gone but she doubted that was what he wanted to do.
He continued. "Likewise, I don't understand why you would risk yourself in the second riot, assuming that's where you received all of these injuries from. But I heard your companions say that you deserved those, and I whole-heartedly disagree. Nobody deserves to die."
The last sentence sent chills down her spine. At that moment, her impulse was to explain that she was kidnapped after witnessing the wife's tortured body at the bakery. To straighten out the details of what actually happened to her. But as another guard approached Ganondorf for guidance, Lucina found herself glad that she didn't explain. Her eyes were wide and alert even after her commander gestured for her to go home again while he talked to the guard. This time, she did listen.
As head commander of the station in the Outer Rim, Ganondorf has access to more in-depth information about the Family. The first time Lucina heard of the prince's name was through his transceiver as well. But that doesn't mean he would share such confidential information to a low level guard like Lucina. Worst case scenario, he would take all of her information like the blue note and hand it to the research division, giving Lucina less insight than she started out with. If he suspects that she had some involvement with the prince, she needed to think of an excuse for her injuries.
I fell down the stairs? I got into a fight? I fended off some goons? Reasons popped and faded in her head as she walked down to the potion shop again.
As usual, Robin promised to pick her up after her shift so Lucina stopped by to let him know she was relieved early. The shop was relatively quiet as there was no line and Dr. Mario was reading a book from the counter. The street to the shop was always comforting as it was one of the safest places in the Outer Rim. Primarily because there was less clutter and shops around.
Dr. Mario noticed Lucina approaching the counter and set his book down, lacing his fingers. "Were you the one sleeping in the bed this morning?"
"Yes." She responded, somewhat meekly.
"So you're the Lucius that sells us the Echinacea and other stuff! Sorry for being so rude this morning. Oh, I've always wanted to meet you. Mario is me name."
Lucina shook hands with him over the counter, relieved that Robin explained to him as a boy. She noticed she'd never introduced herself to Robin's co-workers, since he always drops off her father's meds at their apartment and she sells her plants through him. And when she visits the shop, it's always after hours.
Robin called from the back of the shop. "I thought your signature greeting was 'it's a-me, Mario!', when did you change that?"
"Since I can say more than one greeting!" Dr. Mario shouted back, a bit of red painting his cheeks and plump nose. "Your friend needs to chat again, Robin!"
Lucina covered her smiles for Dr. Mario's sake.
Her father was still asleep as she came home early. Peering underneath the blanket, she saw his legs were painfully curled and almost touching his chest, as if he was forced inside a small box. After carefully repositioning his blanket, Lucina patted her father's back in soft intervals hoping that would help him relax. It didn't really soothe him as much as Lucina felt relieved to see him sleep, even though he wasn't the most comfortable.
The calendar tacked up on the wall marked that her day off was tomorrow. She saw the holiday as a day to sleep but she shook off that idea. Ganondorf gave her more than half of the day off today so sleep day should be tonight. Starting tomorrow, there was another ongoing objective that Lucina made a mental note on.
After setting the Falchion on the wall and changing into her nightclothes, she finally realized the numb pain that enclosed her body. From her head, wrist, face, and the mental damage deep in her lungs, the noises coming from outside the room slurred into quiet, incoherent voices until she shook her head.
Bowser Jr. was a vivid image as Lucina laid face down on her mattress. She could have easily imagined killing the baker, but she couldn't even think about killing him. Just pointing her sword to him felt wrong at that moment. His young age wasn't an obstacle, considering she could have died last night by their hands. But in some aspects he and Robin were alike.
Come tomorrow, things will be more different.
A headache woke her up six hours later. The antibiotics plus pain reliever gel that Dr. Mario gave Lucina sat at the dresser, but thinking of undoing the bandages and looking at the bashing on her head made her discouraged. Apparently Robin explained her incident to Dr. Mario since he just made her take the small bottle of gel with a finger to his lips as if it was a big secret. He even wished her father good health so Lucina considered to visit the shop more often.
Her father was still asleep. Sometimes he'll sleep through the entire day. It happened occasionally, and Lucina would need to remember to shift his position to avoid blood clots. But Lucina was relieved that he had a more relaxed position now. The wrinkles between his eyebrows were less severe as the night passed.
So Lucina sat in the kitchen, looking out the caged window to a square night sky with her father's broth in hand. In the back of her mind, she wished for Robin's company but they already agreed on meeting tomorrow morning at the stairs to search for the poisoned boy.
Many thoughts crossed her mind, but for tonight, she sipped on the warm soup and listened to her father snore lightly from his room. After three cups, Lucina crawled back into her bed again and closed her eyes.
"You look well rested." Robin remarked.
"I slept for thirteen hours. I even woke up later than my father this morning."
Robin smiled a mile wide. He had his brown bag crossed over him with a couple books in its pockets. Lucina could read basic writing but a lot of the books Robin read were in arcane medical terms so even though the language was the same, to her, the words seem to float and swirl around the pages.
She did recognize the blue book, the one that held the blue note.
"Are you off work too?"
"I switched shifts with another person, so I'm free."
"Sorry." Lucina apologized. She felt guilty explaining her plans to search for the poisoned boy without consulting Robin's schedule, though he gave her a straight yes.
"Don't be sorry. Didn't we agree on being a team to find the prince?" Robin leaned in and whispered 'prince'; while it was silly, Lucina understood.
"…I have the objective view and you have the resources?" She recalled.
"Exactly."
Without defining a destination, Lucina found herself walking toward the bakery again. Robin was a bit hesitant and falling behind, but started to walk up to the empty shop himself as they saw the street was cleaned like nothing had happened. Bits of glass still shone from the cracks in the ceiling but the pastries, blood, garbage, and the wrecked store was wiped off.
The cleaners must have painted the walls, since the pasty color was strangely and exceptionally white. The only detail that felt like a part of the street was the terrible handwritten sign 'Available Space' that appeared as if each letter was written simultaneously by three inept people then dipped in oil. After a quick inspection, the two avoided staying in that area for too long by sitting at the tables in the cafeteria.
"Squeaky clean." Robin muttered. "I don't think anybody will be willing to fill its space anytime soon though."
"Probably not."
Robin absently scraped the residue on the metal table with an unattended spoon. He wrinkled his nose as he scratched a tacky portion of the old food. Conversations and noise filled the hall but Lucina was nowhere close to feeling comfortable being there. Still, she needed to investigate further.
In one of the shops, a cook let out a shriek, making a pot full of tomato bisque tumble out the kitchen. As the two cooks started to grab each other's aprons for some angry reason, the people sitting in the tables rolled their eyes and scooted away from the commotion. The red broth spread across the tile like thick blood.
Lucina could see Robin trying not to pay attention to the fight, but his head was tilting toward the noise. She started recapping her experience to redirect his attention.
"The boy found me at the corner where we were peeking into the riot. It was right in front of the wife's body so I wondered if he was waiting there for me."
He stared at his laced fingers. "I don't know. And again, it seems so weird that he sought you out and thanked you, even though you obviously weren't the one that helped him."
"The Guerrillas didn't know, so I don't think the boy was part of their plan."
"Yeah. I doubt they have stronger antidotes than what I have at the shop. And they could have easily calculated you would be at the bakery considering what happened to the wife."
A guttural roar ripped through the cafeteria. The people who were slightly annoyed now started to voice their concern as more pots and ceramics stormed through the kitchen.
Lucina caught a glimpse of one person in the kitchen. She was surprised with her retention but it was the man who poured dirty water onto the baker during the riot. She was disgusted by the display, or the lack there of since the action was in the back of the kitchen, but as they both fell silent, Lucina couldn't help but stare at the source of the noise.
It took her a while to realize Robin was patting her arm to get her attention. In the end, he had to grab her shoulders and turn her head.
"Look!" He cried.
Within the many heads peering into the fight, was a familiar boy with the same clothes as he wore last night. An ugly yellow patch shone on the boy's cheek when he disappeared from the corner after noticing the two people staring back at him. Lucina didn't miss the boy smiling before he slipped away.
"Why is he running?" Robin groaned as he grabbed his bag and started after him.
Granted it might have been the fight that brought the attention, Lucina couldn't shake the feeling that finding the boy was too easy. Like he wanted to be found again. But having no time to process her suspicions, she pushed through the opposing stream of people trying to catch a glimpse of the fight between two cooks.
Beyond the streets where the cafeteria and the bakery lies, were the processing plants and small factories. Most seemed family owned since rarely did the people ever come in or leave the shop. They seemed like objects, moving their hands around on a piece of cloth or food in a set pattern for the next person to do a different pattern. It wasn't necessarily happy, but it was a quiet district. So in a way, this street was more safe to pass through.
Robin made tight corners to run after the boy. Every once in a while he'd look back to see if Lucina was keeping up but the boy was surprisingly quick. After going down a flight of stairs and running up a couple slopes, Lucina lost track of her bearings and even whether if it was still the Outer Rim or not. She hoped it was, since the water dripping down the walls were becoming more dry and crusty.
The noise from a machine operated upholstery factory vibrated Lucina's insides. Robin had his hand to a wall and was bent over. As she went up to him, she noticed the area was void of people. The boy was nowhere to be found.
"I lost him." Robin said between breaths. "He's gotten some running practice these past two days."
"Perhaps it wasn't him…"
"No, it's him alright. I'll never forget his face." Robin looked up at Lucina. He had such determination in his eyes, her immediate response was to apologize so she looked away. She thought of how if Robin was there last night when she met the boy again, he would have followed him instead of standing there.
An elderly man emerged from the factory with a book in hand. He didn't particularly seem angry or even annoyed but had a certain squint in his eyes like the dark street was too bright for him. Lucina placed a hand on the Falchion's hilt instinctively.
"What are you boys doing? Playing tag?" He cried out.
Lucina stayed quiet but Robin put a smile on his face. "Yes, sir! I just lost track of my friend that passed by here."
"He probably went to the orphanage down them stairs!" The man pointed down a street with a painted yellow sign. The writing was nice and relatively new but it didn't say it was an orphanage. In curvy letters the stairs lead to the 'Society of Smiles'.
"Take one home! Do more good in your life!" The man laughed as he pulled out a chair.
The factory was overpowering but Lucina could hear more voices coming from downstairs. Bright fluorescent light spilled from the open door. Robin tapped on her shoulder to usher her down as he laughed back at the old man.
"Did you find that funny?" Lucina said.
"Nah. I just felt like matching his tone. He kind of looked like a nice man though. But I don't like how the acronym spells out SOS."
She looked back at the sign again. "I'm not sure if they intended that…"
There were a couple of orphanages in the Outer Rim but most were unsanitary and scarce on supplies. People would rarely adopt or even pass by the facilities since some children are desperate enough to follow people and on occasion rob or attack them for any goods they can take. But the 'Society of Smiles' seemed unusually happy.
A head poked from the room. Lucina took a step back but behind her, Robin recognized him and raised his pace down the stairs. When the boy withdrew again, Lucina grabbed her friend's coat. Robin made a quick gagging sound and rubbed his neck but had an understanding look on his face. He leaned on the wall to motion he's not advancing so Lucina let go.
"You have a bad feeling about this?" He asked under his breath.
Lucina nodded.
"We didn't actually help him, I abandoned him." She enunciated. Voicing her concerns made her heart pound harder.
"How about I take the first peek? Look, I even brought my Levin Sword today." Robin said, revealing the hilt of his sword from his coat. Seeing the hilt did bring a degree of relief to Lucina but it wasn't enough for her to let her friend go down the stairs.
"I think it's an unnecessary risk."
Robin turned to face her. "I tried to stop you when we went to see the riot, again when you wanted the blue note, and look at how far we got. If you're not interested anymore, that's fine. We can go home. But if you are even a little bit interested, I think we should see what's in that room. I'll always be with you."
"I can't lose you again." Lucina blurted out. As she said it, she felt her face flush from Robin blinking and staring back at her in surprise.
At that moment, another head poked out from the orphanage. A man with bright red hair wearing a yellow apron found Lucina and Robin and stepped out. When he met eyes with the two of them, he gave them a grin.
"Am I interrupting something?"
It took Robin a second to answer him. "We're… looking for a boy with a blue shirt."
The man stifled a laugh. "Um, that's very broad, but there are a couple boys with blue shirts. Do you guys want to come in?"
His frank demeanor and appearance was unlike any other worker at an orphanage Lucina had seen. While that added to the suspicion, she found herself pulling on Robin's arm down the stairs with bravado. And as Robin said, she was more than a little interested at what was beyond the open door.
The Society of Smiles wasn't a large place, but the common room was filled with color and kids playing with each other. The only entertainment available to them were pencil and paper and some cardboard boxes, but they did have one luxury: crayons. They were used liberally across the painted walls.
"Roy, by the way." The man pointed at his name tag then shook their hands. Under the fluorescent light now, he didn't look much older than Lucina and Robin.
"I'm Robin, this is my friend Lucius. The boy we're looking for should have just come back in. We followed him here."
Roy tilted his head. "Why were you following him?"
His question must have taken Robin aback since he got caught up in his words. Another caregiver walked up to the three of them, covered in clinging, giggling children. Although he wore the same yellow apron Roy had on, the dark blue skintight suit and muscular body was a bit out of place in an orphanage.
"You guys here to adopt? I don't mind any sexual orientation and family structure but I am concerned if you two are old enough to handle these rascals." The other man laughed, raising his arms in the air to make the kids dangle off of him.
"These guys followed one of the boys in." Roy told him.
"Oh? I'm glad he came back. No venturing outside unless you're accompanied by one of us, okay?" The muscular man told the children, which they responded formally with a 'Yes, Captain' as if they were a part of the Royal Battalion.
"He, uh, should have yellow patches on his arms and legs." Robin faltered.
The Captain snapped his fingers. "I know who you're talking about. He's the new shy guy. He must be hiding somewhere."
He scanned the room for the boy but with the cardboard forts and curtains, the boy could have gone back into hiding. All of the children appeared healthy and energetic, thus none of them seemed to have yellow phosphorus poisoning. Lucina felt like walking across the room and looking at each kid's face to find the boy, but the happy energy in the room planted her in place.
"Do you two mind waiting a couple days before adoption so he can be more comfortable with this place?" The Captain asked.
"Actually, we weren't looking to adopt." Robin answered. "We just saw him in the riot that happened at the cafeteria the other day and we were worried that he was hurt."
The Captain gasped, gesturing to Lucina's bandages. "Is that why you're hurt? Thank you guys so much for saving one of our kids. Roy, these guys are awesome!"
Roy blinked from the Captain's enthusiasm. "Yeah, of course."
After gently placing the clinging children on the ground, the Captain rushed to the office-like room and rummaged through the items. Lucina, Robin, and Roy stood around the entrance, shifting their weight and scanning the room as the Captain continued to dig for whatever he was trying to find.
"He's Captain Falcon." Roy started. "Kind of like a founder of this place after he lost his job in the entertainment business, racing cars. You guys ever seen a car?"
"I know they're transportation machines with engines and wheels, but I've never seen one." Robin replied.
"Yeah, he's older than he acts. But I guess it was a big gig at the time since he used his retirement money to build this place. He has good friends named Fox and Falco that helped him finance this place too. They both lost jobs under similar circumstances so they had that 'extra money' also. Although I think neither of them drove cars… You guys might see them the next time you come by."
"Are there more workers here?" Lucina asked.
"Obviously. I can't handle the kids and Captain by myself. Fox and Falco help out too, and there's another guy but he's off today." Roy laughed, eyeing Captain Falcon as he finally surfaced from the office.
In his hands were two devices that Lucina recognized.
"I want you guys to keep in touch with us and the shy guy. You can use your own channels too and communicate with each other." Captain Falcon placed a transceiver in both of their hands.
A small part of her didn't want to accept it out of courtesy but she was planning to buy one with her upcoming paychecks. And after these past couple of days, she needed the comfort of always being able to communicate with Robin or her father.
"But I don't have anything to offer you." Lucina uttered.
She noticed she was staring down at the ground as Captain Falcon placed a warm hand on her shoulder. "You saved one of our boys risking your life. That is priceless compared to this gadget."
The Captain had a long scar across his forehead and down his eyebrow. Lucina could almost see the years he lived through in making the orphanage. Something about him reminded her of her father and commander. Friendly, but intimidating. The children's playful laughter numbed her senses.
"How did the boy come to this place?" Robin asked, which enlightened Lucina.
If Captain Falcon or Roy didn't know about the boy before the riot, then someone else had provided him with the antidote and told him to thank Lucina. Unless they were lying and wanted to provide Lucina and Robin with transceivers for some reason. If that was the case, then the device weighed like an explosive in Lucina's hands.
"He was a unique one." Captain Falcon began. "He came in here yesterday morning twiddling his fingers saying that a person with blue hair and a blue cape told him to come here. He said that person helped him and he wanted to say thanks back. Ah, everything makes sense now, since you helped the shy guy and you have the blue hair and cape! I'm so glad I got to match a face with the name now. Lucius, right?"
"Yes…" Lucina couldn't understand but felt Captain Falcon's genuine appreciation as he shook her hand vigorously.
After another beat of silence, Robin feigned looking at the clock and told Roy and Captain Falcon they had to leave. As the two waved to them and some of the children good-bye, Lucina scanned the room again, and then left the Society of Smiles as the boy was still nowhere to be found.
As soon as they reached the top of the stairs, Robin turned back to Lucina excitedly. He stammered like he was ready to let out an outburst, but seeing the open door to the orphanage, he pulled Lucina's hand until they turned one corner. Robin even checked their new transceivers to see if they were turned off before he started to talk.
He appeared as if he was trying his best to suppress his voice, which came out into something like a whisper and a shout. "I had my suspicions, but I'm sure now."
"A person with blue hair and a blue cape helped him." Lucina guessed.
"Precisely. The prince was said to have a blue cape!" He said, waiting for Lucina's response, but then frowned when she just kept her stern expression.
"Does he have blue hair too?"
The excitement seemed to evaporate off of Robin's shoulders. "Well, he was said to be dressed in blue so he could have blue hair…"
"You have a black coat but white hair." Lucina deadpanned.
"I know I know… damn it, I thought I had it. Damn your objective thinking." Robin laughed and scratched his head.
"I don't mean to discourage you. I thought the answers would be in that place but it wasn't as clear as I thought so… I want to get my facts straight."
"I know. We are making one step at a time though. We now know where the boy is and I think we can trust the caregivers, but what do you think?"
Lucina couldn't completely discard the possibility that this was still a trap of some sort. The Society of Smiles seemed so genuine and innocent but that made her even more suspicious. If they had visited the orphanage before Lucina's abrupt meeting with the Guerrillas, she might have trusted them. But after knowing there were skilled kids capable of terrible antics, nothing seemed genuine anymore.
So, she let Robin know of her honest response: "I'm not sure."
Five days passed by without notable events.
Lucina kept her routine of going to the station, training, coming home and tending to her father, and going to sleep. She did add one more thing to her schedule of stopping by the potion shop to say hi to Dr. Mario and have Robin tend to her wounds before she went to work. She did meet the one other worker, Lucario, who was a non-human species and was very reserved and calm. It was difficult to get a word out of him but Lucina caught him smiling while he ate a chocolate bar during his break.
The transceiver was left on Lucina's dresser, powered on, but unattended. One night, Lucina had a nightmare that the orphanage was in fact a trap and she was unable to escape the room full of crayon graffiti. Her anxiety worsened when Robin told her that the caregivers might be able to tap into their conversation if they synced their channels. Many times, she tried to turn the transceiver off, but every time she went for the switch, some thought stopped her from turning it off. It sat in her room like it had a pair of eyes.
On the fifth day, a week had passed since Robin had dropped off her father's medication. A familiar coded knock hit against the metal door that morning.
As Lucina opened the door, she put a finger to her lips. "He's sleeping."
Robin nodded and quietly stepped in. Her father was relaxed this morning but he's been spending more hours asleep. Lucina clipped pieces from the aloe planter sitting near the window as this week's payment and looked up through the glass. Thick black clouds tumbled through the square sky.
It hadn't rained for a week, a rare occasion but a pleasant surprise. When it rains, the water won't settle for a couple hours until it sinks through the cracks to the floors below. So for a good part of the day, the streets are filled with ankle-deep stagnant water. Plus the perpetual musty smell was nauseating and hard to get used to.
When it came time to take the medication, Lucina gently shook her father's arm to wake him up.
"Five more minutes." He slurred, but used his elbows to sit up in bed.
As he swallowed the pills, his eyes were mostly closed and was nodding off into his dreams. Still, Lucina peeled his eyelids to use the eye drops so the pink in his eyes will go away.
"What do you want for dinner tonight, Lucina?" Her father asked as she and Robin help him lie down again.
"I'll make something for us." She promised.
"Do you want the broth again? Because I can…" He trailed off as his head touched the pillow again. Lucina smiled, imagining her father dreaming that he was in the kitchen fixing some more soup.
An image of the boy running through the corridors appeared in her mind. How he sprinted through those streets, even outrunning Robin and her in the end. If the prince had in fact given the boy a strong antidote, a remedy that resuscitated a child dying from yellow phosphorus poisoning until he could run and play again, then why didn't that happen to her father? If the prince actually wanted to reach out to Lucina, wouldn't he want to help her to gain her trust?
Was his purpose different?
Snapping static made both Lucina and Robin jump out of their skin. From Lucina's room, a foreign voice was cutting in and out. Robin was lighter on his feet as he reached for the transceiver. He gestured Lucina, still blinking in surprise, to go to the kitchen. She pulled the blanket over her father's shoulders and stepped out of his room.
"Geez, that scared the crap out of me." He muttered. "I know you can make it so it's not as loud…"
"Robin, Lucius? Say something, please." The voice said. The noise was still strong and they couldn't recognize who was talking but the words were just clear enough.
Robin squeezed the square "Talk" button and spoke into the metal netting. "This is Robin. Lucius is here next to me."
"H-Hi." Lucina greeted, clearing her throat when she realized her voice was faint.
"Loud and clear. Please come by the Society of Smiles again. This is an emergency."
Lucina looked at Robin. For saying it was an emergency, the voice was surprisingly calm. Before he could say a response back, there was an abrupt sound that indicated the end of the transmission. Robin placed the device back into Lucina's hands.
"Do you have time before you go to the station?"
"Yes, it's still morning…" Lucina murmured. She placed her thumb on the off switch as if she was afraid that the static would start again.
Robin's tone was soft. "Do you want to go?"
The answer was right at the tip of her tongue. As her father tells her, the gut instinct is right for most situations. Hearing Robin's understanding tone made her want to lean toward the rational thought. Hesitate to take action. But as Robin said, every time she stepped out of her comfort zone, she learned more.
"Get your Levin Sword."
Without the boy's guidance, getting to the orphanage again was a bit of a trip. Lucina thanked Robin's remarkable retention. He said he only wants to visit the orphanage with the two of them together since they are a 'team', but he remembered the path straightaway. Even after five days, he didn't once stop to think of which street to take.
The upholstery factory facing the orphanage was still running. No chair was set up for the old man so it left the street even more lifeless. Beside the Royal Battalion stations, Lucina had never seen such an empty street.
As the two headed down the stairs to the Society of Smiles again, the red-haired worker, Roy, was at the entrance, pacing the area nervously. He seemed relieved seeing Lucina and Robin coming down the stairs, but his hand that welcomed them in felt more forced than comfort.
In Captain Falcon's hands was a small being wrapped in a blanket. A feeble pink arm stretched from the cloth and grabbed at the Captain's scarf. He had a sympathetic smile on his face as if Lucina should already know what the situation was. As one of the orphans bumped into the Captain, the being in his arms started to cry and throw its arms in the air.
"A baby…?" Lucina guessed.
"Look guys, I appreciate your concern for kids, but we can't really take care of a newborn." Captain Falcon chuckled.
"Where did you guys find him anyway?" Roy added.
Lucina's ears hummed from the laughter and screaming filling up the common room. The baby still wailed in Captain Falcon's arms but it felt as foreign and cold as the poisoned boy had when he cupped his face and sobbed.
"Come here." Robin called from the round table.
A woven cradle overflowing with new blankets was placed on the table. Her hand reached out to the cloth unconsciously and withdrew immediately when she felt the remnants of the baby's warmth. Robin was staring at a blue note, and at first, Lucina thought it was the note from the riot at the bakery, but this note was smaller.
As Robin gave her the note, she moved her thumb across the smooth blue sheet and familiar beautiful print. Lucina read the two lines over and over and over again, still couldn't believe the paper was a tangible item in her hands, applied pressure and wrinkled it slightly, and read it again:
"New Arrival of a Baby Boy!
Happy Parents, Lucina and Robin"
Author's Note: I was planning on uploading this on the 25th of last month but I only got to upload my other story. But Happy New Years! I'm always open for questions and stuff, but if not, I'll see you next chapter!