The Grandmaster and the future princess waited patiently in the tent for their next visitors. Robin had brought out his tome and started scribbling glyphs into the pages to supplement its already fearsome power. Meanwhile, Lucina sat quietly beside him, in deep thought of the battle that was soon to come. The atmosphere was a little tense; it was clear that Lucina vehemently disagreed with the outcome of Robin's strategy. The future would be saved, yes. But a future without her husband is not a future she wants either. And after her time with the Shepherds, being selfless to a fault, can't she afford to be selfish for once, damn fate and future?
"Is it going to be worth it? Your plan, I mean." she said, maybe a little coldly.
"It better be." Robin replied, without lifting his head from his tome.
"Not for me it isn't."
Robin remained silent. It pulled at his heart to hear Lucina say that. This is probably the first big argument he'd have with his wife. But he needed his resolve to be rock solid. He reminded himself that she was the reason he was being so headstrong.
He was also reminded of the subtle threat Chrom had hinted at shortly after his wedding.
"Congratulations, to the both of you! I'm sure you'll love and cherish each other." Chrom said before quickly pulling Robin aside.
"Especially you, Robin. I trust you not to make her upset."
This was certainly another discussion he would have with Chrom. That, and also explaining why he's distributing timeless weaponry from the Ylisstol armoury.
Thankfully, Lissa and Lon'qu arrival finally broke both Robin and Lucina from their thoughts.
"You interrupted me from a spar with Gregor." Lon'qu spoke.
"Oh stop being so grumpy!" Lissa jabbed her husband on the arm. "I'm still surprised you managed to get him to fight you without 'clink of coin'!"
"That's precisely why I'm grumpy." the swordmaster replied with a slight grin.
"We might be doing that to a couple of people this afternoon." Lucina said apologetically. "But please take a seat, uncle, aunt."
While Lon'qu was here, it was a good opportunity for Robin to clear up something that was raised in the last conversation with Stahl and Sully. Obviously, Lucina had won the spar against Lon'qu over two years ago. But considering having a certain weakness, it would be interesting to know how he managed during the fight, and if they would spar again in the future; their skills being much improved since then.
"Lon'qu, how did you manage sparring with Lucina back when we met you at Arena Ferox?"
Lon'qu grimaced slightly, taken back by the question. Understandably, it wasn't his favourite memory to recall.
"It… was difficult. Back then, Lucina fought under the name 'Marth', and that was all I knew before we entered the Arena." he explained. "A khan's champion often gets challenged for their title. It was a regular occurrence for me, at least once a week. So when a new challenger called 'Marth' came along, I took it in my stride."
"So he was resting on his laurels a little!" Lissa felt it was necessary to add that statement with a cheeky grin on her face.
"I was doing no such thing!" Lon'qu quickly denied. His old Feroxi pride was well founded too. He took each and every one of his fights seriously, something which Robin learnt the hard way when he asked to him to teach him in the way of the sword. Lissa was a little irritated by the number of salves Robin had to use after a training session.
"It was a spar behind closed doors. Basilio was the only witness to the battle and as soon as I saw 'Marth', I sensed something was… not right."
"I'm sorry the circumstances didn't allow me to fight honourably back then, uncle." Lucina said remorsefully.
"What happened when you sparred?" Robin asked.
"We locked blades in the centre of the arena, and I loosened my mask." Lucina answered. "Uncle became paralysed, and I ended the battle swiftly after."
"I see. But your fear has slightly eased up, hasn't it?" Robin asked, addressing Lon'qu.
"It's not completely gone. But Lissa has been able to help me in that regard." he replied with a small smile.
Lissa grinned at her husband after that comment. "Well, it can't be helped when you married the prettiest princess in the land!" she declared matter-of-factly.
"Except for one." Robin cheekily added, turning towards a blushing Lucina.
"I would welcome the opportunity to spar with you on proper terms, uncle." Lucina said hopefully. She must still feel guilty for taking advantage of Lon'qu's weakness.
Lon'qu tensed. "I'm… not ready. I still only feel… comfortable around Lissa." he explained before quickly adding "I'm sorry Lucina."
There was a short period of silence, as everyone's memories escaped to the days in Regna Ferox. The mistaken hostility at the Longfort by Commander Raimi, the enraptured spectators in Arena Ferox, and meeting Lon'qu for the first time. It was the effectively the beginning of the multiple campaigns that Robin had orchestrated. It was interesting to see just how much they developed as warriors and as people. Robin, of course, had just begun making new memories since Chrom had found him in the field just by Southtown.
"Right," Robin sighed as he returned everyone back to the present. "Let's talk about your new weapons. Lon'qu, did I hear you once say that Chon'sin steel was among the strongest forged in the continent?"
"I might have said that." he replied casually.
Robin rose from his stool. "Follow me then."
Lon'qu and Lissa stood and walked with Robin to the two chests at the other end of the tent. But curiously, he did not open the chest for the swordmaster. Instead, he went to a nearby weapons rack, and picked a blade that was sheathed in an ornate, oriental scabbard.
"I thought about what kind of weapon was most suitable for your fighting style. Quick, aiming for the chinks in your foe's armour, and striking with utmost precision. But then I thought of when we first met you in Regna Ferox, and your weapon of choice was a Killing Edge."
"That's what I hone my fighting style around. A Killing Edge is a weapon favoured in Chon'sin."
"In that case, a weapon from this chest wouldn't be effective." Robin concluded. "So, while we were in Valm, I had this commissioned, just in case there was a need for it."
Sure enough, the blade that Robin had given Lon'qu was a Killing Edge. Robin had it forged during their campaign against Walhart for House Ylisse, by a well regarded blacksmith near Fort Steiger. Unsheathed, the blade gave off a bright gleam. It was a comfortable weight, ground to a very keen edge, finely balanced. It also had a small etch of a butterfly on the blade, just above the cross-guard. It quickly earned Lon'qu's admiration.
"It's… well made." was all Lon'qu said. He made a couple of poses with the blade, standard of a swordmaster of his calibre.
"The blacksmith assured me you would be able to punish your opponent's mistakes better with it." Robin noted. He already knew of Lon'qu's fearsome skill, and that he is the best at capitalising on a Killing Edge's ability to cause some devastating injuries. "Shi'fen says hello, by the way."
"I knew it was his making as soon as I held it. I'll have to return the favour." Lon'qu grinned at the mention of his old childhood friend. He slammed the ornate blade back into its scabbard and began fastening it to his armour. "What do you have in mind for Lissa?"
Lissa stared at Robin expectantly, in her usual demeanour. It reminded Robin a little of his daughter. "Yeah, I'm sure you've got something awesome in mind for little old me!"
"Well for you Lissa, it's not a weapon per se." Lissa's face dropped hearing Robin say that. "But what I have in mind for you is something much more important." The three of them moved over to the two chests containing the historic weapons.
Robin opened a chest, and brought out a staff. It was short in length, and beautifully gilded. At the top was a small figure impression of the Divine Dragon, and it radiated power, much like the power the Shepherds experienced when they were at the top of the Mila Tree.
"This is the Goddess Staff. You'll remember we obtained this staff in that strange village the same day we met Laurent." Robin reminisced. "As our chief cleric, I give this to you with an important responsibility. The sage who gave this to us said it has the power to heal all our soldiers of even the most terrible injuries at once. So I give this to you for safekeeping, until you deem it necessary to use it."
"Holy wow! Even Emm didn't have something as pretty as this!" Lissa exclaimed. She carefully took it from Robin's hands. "And I'll be super careful for when to use it!" she added confidently.
Robin smiled. "Don't hesitate when you decide to use it; it only has enough power remaining for one cast. But I'll trust you to make that judgement."
"Tee hee, thanks Robin! Gosh, Chrom is going to be so surprised when I show him this baby!"
Robin turned his head and grimaced internally at what the Great Lord's reaction would likely be. He noticed Lucina in the corner of his eye, who the whole time, had been sat at the table silently thinking. You could almost see the dark clouds floating above her head. This didn't go unnoticed by Lon'qu and Lissa, though. Robin decided to wrap things up quickly.
"Good." He said turning back to the swordmaster and the blonde princess. "That is all. I wonder how Gregor would react to sparring with you with your new blade, Lon'qu."
"Knowing him, probably impressed before laughing it off." he grinned, before lowering his voice, smile quickly turning to a frown. "Is Lucina alright, Robin?"
"…She's fine." Robin replied in a tone that didn't want to be questioned further. "I'll talk to her after this." he added quickly.
Lissa frowned hearing this about her niece. But after a glance from Lon'qu not to poke into it further, she decided to let Robin defuse the tension.
"Let's not keep Gregor waiting then!" Lissa said pulling her husband by the arm towards the tent exit. Just before they left, she quickly turned to Lucina. "We'll talk later, ok sweetie?"
Lucina looked up and smiled slightly. "I would like that, Aunt Lissa."
Lissa smiled back endearingly, before leaving the tent proper.
Robin moved silently over to his wife, and sat beside her. He carefully put his arm over her shoulder, uncertain of her reaction.
"…Talk to me, Lucina. I know it must be difficult, but I don't want to see you looking like this." he pleaded.
She sighed. "So how do you want me to look? I came back in time to stop my future from ever happening, but a future without you is not a future I want either… My husband is going to die, and I'm going to be alone…"
"I'm not going to die. I swear to you. I believe in the bonds that I have with everyone in the Shepherds to return." He said with every ounce of his conviction. "I hope I can show you how much I believe in my bonds, especially with you, and Morgan."
"Is this why you're meeting with them here?"
"Partly. But it also gives me a last opportunity to say "see you later". Look, I don't expect anyone to take my… absence… well. But if I can have one last chat with each of them, it'll make things that tiny bit easier, and it'll strengthen my bonds with everyone that tiny bit more." Robin couldn't get the words he wanted to say, and hoped he got the message across to a sombre Lucina.
"But believe me when I say that this is not the end. I'll give you the future you deserve, and when I come back, I want to spend every moment with you."
"It's unlike you to be relying just on blind faith, my dear." Lucina said, hope once more in her voice.
"I've never relied on blind faith, princess. Every plan I've come up with has been carefully thought through, and I am confident in Naga's words." Robin reassured. He pulled Lucina in closer and rubbed her arm slowly. Lucina returned the gesture by leaning her head on his shoulder.
They both sat there at the table in silence, both comforted by each other's presence. It was moments like these that meant the most to them, where words didn't need to be exchanged to know just how much they meant to each other. The kind of love that cannot be shaken, come what may. And of all the bonds that Robin had forged in this militia, none could rival the one he shared with his wife.
Obligatory FE14 reference here.
Writing is tough, I've come to realise. Some days, the creative juices are flowing easily, and other days it feels like I'm staring at a wall. But that's not to say that I'm not enjoying the challenge. Let's see how long I can keep it up, though.
As usual, comments and critiques are always welcome.
_
R