Nina was often times a girl that wasn't easily convinced; it was a form of hard-headedness she developed from... She really didn't know where she got it. Perhaps it was from that shady dealer that hung around her village during her younger days in the Deeprealms, always out to grab a quick buck by cheating her out of her hard earned 'whenever-her-dad-showed-up' allowance.

Fearing she may be cheated again, Nina didn't take well to ideas that sounded too good to be true ever since, and thus made it a life's expedition to find out if the truth was really there... And if it wasn't, she would expose the fiend and rain fury on their terrible souls, all with a maniacal cackle.

So, this is why, later on that uneventful day at supper time, Nina once again got herself into something she would have to drag herself out of; an angry hornet's nest sure it sting her a few times before she got away.

Supper was good that day, just as the smoke she smelled from earlier had promised. Inside the mess hall, plenty of meat was piled on her plate, smoked to near perfection, neighbored by boiled cabbage she was less likely to enjoy.

Now, as much as she hated to admit it, Nina was a bit of a lonely thing, not having many to go to when it came to sitting at dinner with; it had been this way for as long as she could remember, even stretching to the memories of the Deeprealms, so it was something she had learned to no longer complain over. After all, it was her strange habits she had to blame for this... Like doing little puppet shows to herself, or watching people from afar... Or just flat out stalking them. She had learned not too long ago that people apparently thought stalking was weird; the more she thought about it, she wasn't as surprised to figure that out as she thought she was; after all, she always had to make sure she was well hidden, so it was apparent she knew it was unacceptable all along...

One would surely think that Nina could simply go sit with her boyfriend she so boldly proclaimed before Shura to mend this ill case of loneliness, but the solution would never be so open and shut; he was sitting at the other side of the mess hall- the rowdy side where all the men were... And Nina, being Nina, could never sit somewhere where she would be surrounded by men... She might die of a heart attack for all she knew. It was true that Nina, being young, didn't always know what was best for herself, but at least it wasn't as though she didn't ever know what was best for herself.

So, having no other choices available to her (besides the dirty floor), Nina had to sit where the women were, squished between two with whom she wasn't acquainted. Though she was a somewhat talkative person when someone got her started, Nina was quiet during meals, nibbling awkwardly on her food, listening to the conversations and gossip surrounding her. Sometimes the gossip was juicy and had her ear immediately. Other times... She just tuned it out.

Today was one of those days when something fascinating snatched her interest.

Selena, the mother of an acquaintance of hers, Soliel, was eating at her side, bumping her with her elbow on rare occasions when Mozu, sitting across from them, looked up at her. She gazed with those young brown eyes of hers with interest; being a master at reading faces from watching them for so long, Nina knew a question was bound to surface sometime sooner or later.

"Miss Selena." Mozu said at last, retiring her fork.

"What is it." Selena replied, her voice heavy with attitude.

"I found my eyes on you every now and then during our last battle and I godda say, with a sword and a shield you make quite a dandy swordsman. What's the secret to your endurance, so much so that you aren't hindered when wounded?"

Curious, Nina tuned in, continuing to nibble on a slice of meat; through the corner of her eye, she watched as Selena, obviously flattered, set down her fork as well. She released a huff as she lay her elbows in the table, stretching them out, nearly invading the personal space of her neighbors.

"My secret, mm?" she started, giving her a wink. "Here's my secret: I can't feel pain. Whether it be the slightest prick of the end of a pencil or an axe chopping my arm off- I won't feel a thing!"

Mozu's eyes widened.

"Amazing! How could you possibly get yourself not to feel pain?"

"It's simple really; it's just mind over matter. You have to condition yourself, cutting a small bit of your skin and forcing yourself to believe it doesn't hurt one bit! Take this fork for example..."

And it was after that, Nina tuned out, her eyes rolling to the side. Not being able to feel pain? Yeah right. They'll see about that really soon.

So, as Selena kept on with her explaining, Nina pulled the half-eaten slice of meat out of her mouth and placed it onto her plate, then slowly slid a hand beneath the table. The two talking, completely unaware of the fact that she had something planned, or was even listening in the first place, kept on as though nothing was going to happen anytime soon. Well, nobody could really blame them; Nina was a girl of unpredictable behavior.

Her hand gradually slithered down her leg, pulling her upper body down. Before she knew it, the bottom of her chin met the surface of the table, her tongue sticking out as her fingers fondled around her ankle, completely unnoticed by anyone. Little did anybody know; what she was doing was unsheathing a knife strapped to her calf, which she slowly brought back up to the surface, still unnoticed by anyone... Strangely.

With the tiny blade in her hand, she sat there, her braids cascading down her back casually, her lips becoming small; for just a moment more, with the most innocent of looks, she listened to the conversation, Selena still going on about her cool 'ability'...

"In truth, it really takes a strong mind to master this sort of skill; perhaps it's not quite as easy as I made it out to be."

"Impressive! Do you think you'll be able to teach me how to do that?"

"Hmm, I'm not so sure about that... Like I said, it takes a very determined mind."

Nina decided she'd heard enough; holding her hand steady, she turned to the side, bringing the tip of her blade to Selena's arm; she could have sworn it was begging her to give it a small poke. And, always a charitable soul, Nina gladly complied.

The room paused to listen to a shriek, then a tumble as Selena scrambled out of her chair, clutching the side of her arm with a tense hand. Both sides of the mess hall stood in concern, pushing their seats back urgently in hopes of being immediate help. Instead, what they saw was a perfectly fine Selena laying dramatically in the floor, shivering in surprise... And just a little ways from her sat Nina, also surprised, but for completely different reasons. She sat still, holding a small knife in her grip; it was too late for her to hide it by the time she realized everybody could see it. With nothing else to do when every pair of eyes (and the one of her father's) was on her, she grinned, feeling waves of heat rush up her body, painting her face red.

Well, at least she knew that Selena was lying... But boy did it come with a hefty price.

"What's the meaning of this?" A voice boomed, Corrin's, as he plowed through the group of men. In the meantime, Laslow rushed past him, arriving at the side of his fallen wife, laying a gentle hand over her. Before long, Nina received many nasty looks.

"This young girl here is our matter." Laslow grimaced. "Trying to harm my wife? What has she done to you to cause you to stab her?"

Nina bolted out of her seat, shoving the knife back into its sheath.

"S-Stab her? Let's not get ahead of ourselves here, I'd never-"

"You bet she stabbed me! Drove the tip of that dagger right into my skin!" Selena roared, rushing to her feet. When she furiously marched before the girl, she gave her a very, very heinous look. "I outta kill you right here, right now!"

Nervous, she held her hands up over her chest, hoping to calm her.

"Now, now, l-let's not be uncivil here, I mean, it didn't hurt that much, did it?" her hand bolted down to her back pocket, where she whipped out a string of pearls, offering it to her. "How about I just give this to you and we call off the tension, hmm?"

"Oh my." sounded her other neighbor, the tall Camilla, who stood with a finger on her chin. "That looks just like my mother's pearl necklace; it's been passed down through several generations. It's a shame to say I found it missing last week... Well slap me silly; this one has the exact same scratches and dents as mine..."

Nina reddened even more, especially as she slapped the article on the table.

"You know what I just remembered? I have important affairs to tend to!" just like that, she did one of the things a thief did best: high tailed it out of the room. She leapt over chairs, rolling over and under tables, then burst out the doors which spewed her out of the mess hall, all before anyone could catch her.

Being one with decent endurance, she rushed down camp, her eyes wide and her face growing redder; heck, she was so full of energy she probably ran the entire mile in less than a handful of minutes. Only when she drew near to where the maze of tents stood did she begin to slow, stomping her feet on the ground tiredly. She hunched over, heaving heavily, but mustered just enough energy to scramble into her tent, where she immediately went to work.

She didn't know what was going on back at the mess hall, but had she known, she probably wouldn't have left in such a hurry; the rest of the army remained inside, piecing together the drama which just came about. It wasn't long, after a few people picked up some chairs and tables Nina had knocked over in her escape, Corrin clenched his fists, his shoulders knotting. He turned to the crowd, the bridge of his nose wrinkling and fury building in his blood red eyes; for all his audience knew, he may have begun morphing into a dragon.

"Niles!" he exclaimed, silencing the crowd once more. In an instant, eyes searched for the man in question. Little did Corrin know; he stood just a little ways behind him, jamming his pinky in an ear, groaning in distaste.

"What... What...? I'm right over here, do you really have to scream so loud?"

Angered, Corrin trudged up to the man; his lips seemed ready to release a tiger-like snarl. Standing before the man, he mustered calmer face for the sake of business.

"What the heck was that?" he asked harshly. "Do I need to remind you that was your daughter back there? You need to get yourself together and control her!"

"What? Like you think I haven't tried?" Niles shrugged, sighing. "She used to be such a reasonable girl... I don't know what's gotten into her. It's probably some sort of late rebel phase I bet."

"And what'll happen if she isn't taught otherwise? She'll grow up and act no different! I can't have someone this problematic in my army! Niles! Go out there, find her, and talk to her about this!"

Niles, again, groaned, running a hand through his white hair with a frown. He bobbed his head back in forth, soon setting his hands on his shoulders, which he began to rub in hopes of reliving himself.

"Like I said, she doesn't listen to a word I say. She's not like your daughter; she has no respect for me whatsoever."

Finally, Corrin's lips yielded a snarl as he turned around, his shoulders raised.

"Who does she respect then?"

"Hmm, how about nobody."

"Oh! Oh! Me! Me! She respects me!" shouted a voice, feminine and bubbly. The room paused, looking for the talker, and finally seeing her when she shoved her way out of the crowd. Exit Soleil, who stopped before her commander with a grin and a salute... Which didn't exactly come off to anybody as respectful. Upon seeing her approach him, Corrin narrowed his eyes.

"I thought the two of you were friends, Soleil. She won't take orders from a friend."

"Mmm. We're sorta friends."

"Well, I often see you talking with her."

"No no, you don't get it; what you see is us in the middle of a heated debate. People who get along don't always get along, mirght?" she set her fists in her hips. "I know all her hiding places too; I can find and set her straight in a jiffy! And she'll listen to me!"

The room paused again, looking to Corrin with a curious gaze. He stood there, staring down at Soleil with a frown, allowing his eyes to narrow further.

"I can't let you go." he murmured. "We've talked about this, haven't we? You can't control yourself when you're alone with other girls."

The next thing they all knew, she was laughing, slapping her knee and hugging her sides. In the meantime, she shook her head violently.

"Ha! No no! Nina's cute and all, but I don't think she's that cute." she sighed, wiping a bead of sweat from her brow. "She'd put an arrow in my back anyways."

Corrin sighed, allowing his shoulders to sink.

In the end, he ultimately made a mistake, for just moment afterwards, the doors to the mess hall vomited a dashing Soleil, calling out to the name of her missing acquaintance... And the moment she found her, she found her wandering suspiciously around camp with a large sack of... Something. Whatever it was, she was awfully uptight about the contents inside.

"Nina!" she set a tight hand on her shoulder.

Nina shrieked, whipping around to give her a nice whack with the bag. The force was enough to send Soleil back, landing on the ground; for just a moment, she lay still, a wide grin on her lips. Horrified, Nina's jaw dropped as she quickly ran to the girl's side, her eyes clouding with worry.

"S-Soleil! You should know better than to sneak up on me like that! What're you doing here?"

Soleil started to chuckle, shielding her face with her palms, clutching the sides of her head. Soon, her chuckles became flat-out laughs, hugging her sides again.

"Nina you were so cool! You were amazing! You were..." she lost her breath, struggling around on the ground as though she was dying. "Corrin told me to go talk to you both what you did to mom... So here I am!"

Nina raised a brow, scoffing as she started to walk away.

"Well tell him I don't want to hear it."

"What you did was the best thing ever!" Soleil pounced back into her feet. "Nothing looks cuter than my mom when she's scared to death! Ha! Did you see her squirming in the ground? Kudos to you. Kudos!"

Nina paused, her face puzzled.

"Corrin told you to say that?"

"No, of course not." she approached her, probing the sack over Nina's shoulders. "So what do you have in here?"

The sack hit the ground, its top easing open, soon to be violated by Nina's hands. Watching with interest, Soleil listened to rustling inside; metal clinked on metal, crunching noises shook along... They were all very curious. She couldn't help but lean in with interest, even more so when Nina yanked out a trove of... Stuff. Stuff whose variety ranged from jewelry to bottles of perfume to trinkets.

Urgently, Nina shoved a handful of the trove into Soleil's hands.

"I'm about to be under a lot of fire here soon." she said stiffly. "Everything needs to go back to where I got it before everyone gets out of the mess hall and starts checking to make sure nothing of their's is missing..." she gasped, cupping her hands over her mouth. "They'll be out any minute now! And to think of how Corrin would punish me for this... Gah! I'll never see the light of day ever again!"

Surprised, her friend observed the pile in her arms with a look of bafflement.

"You know, maybe you should just how tell him how much you've stolen from everyone; I know it sounds outrageous, but sometimes the truth really feels nice to get out." she eyed the treasure again, her lips dropping into a frown; one item stuck out to her more than others. "And another thing... What business do you have with Charlotte's..."

"Don't ask! Don't ask! Just help me put all this stuff back where it belongs!"

And so, the rest of the time the mess hall of was full, two girls were scrambling about the camp grounds, loads of stuff delivered to different tents. Every once and a while, Soleil's head would rise, giving a shout to Nina:

"Hey! Who's is this?" she held something up. "A silver pocket watch with... Um... Some sort of cool design on the front of it."

"Leo's!" Nina called back from across the camp. "Make extra sure that gets back or my father's going beat me into next year!"

"Ooh, I'd like to see that."

Luckily, thanks to her helping hand, Nina was able to finish just before the mess hall released a crowd of people, all full from a delicious, but eventful, dinner. The final step was so; Nina rushed over to the lake, the neighbor of the camp, and tossed the empty sack into the water. Calming, she watched as it sunk to the depths.

Soleil approached her then, beating one of her hands against the other tiredly.

"Whew! That was interesting."

Agreeing, Nina nodded, laying a hand on her nervous chest as she took deep, deep breaths.

"I thought my heart was going to stop..." she whispered, turning to her. "Thanks for your help."

Soleil returned her with a grin.

"I guess you're welcome." she said. "After all, it's the least I can do for the sight mom was back at the mess hall."

Relived, and having not a thing more to worry about, the two took the time to laugh beside the lake as the army soon returned to their tents. This was a good thing, seeing that Corrin happened to walk by sooner or later alongside Niles; they paused, watching the two as they smiled during their conversation.

"Well lookey there." Niles purred. "I guess she does listen to someone after all."

"Hopefully Soleil set her straight... If we're lucky, your daughter won't think about pulling off those kinds of shenanigans again..."

Niles sighed, crossing his arms.

"I've tried talking about that to her about this." he muttered. "It was the first conversation we had after you recruited her, in fact."

Corrin's lips dropped, shaking his head slowly.

"I'm sorry the two of you have problems. Someday, I'm sure, you and Nina will both be able to look back on these struggles and laugh."

Well, the two were considering to let Nina off the hook, that is until several started to find their long-lost items sitting inside their tents; it was after that, the two felt their eyes narrow, their teeth gritting as they stared at the laughing Nina and Soleil at the lakeside.

Their eyes narrowed.