A/N: Sorry, this is a short chapter because I am studying for finals. (I know, tired and overused excuse)
...
The following day proved to troubling for Morgan. The headaches and fatigue made it hard to pay attention and all the food she ate tasted like dried bread. It was tough for her, and dark thoughts crept into her mind more than she would have liked to admit. She was afraid that she wasn't improving at all and only forcing her parents to suffer watching her sickness stagnant as she lay on the bed unable to move. She wanted to get better as quick as possible and break free from this curse, but she had to hold strong in the meantime while she waited for a chance to break free.
Meanwhile, her parents did whatever they could to help. Including the story that seemed to take away her troubling thoughts for a while. When all else failed it was the one thing that appeared to revitalize her, and it was Robin's turn once again to revive the tale.
Unfortunately, our search at Naga's shrine turned up little results other than our three new recruits. The shrine held no real evidence of Sable and its rumors placed it in our home continent. Every other expedition in Valm equally showed little results, and it was becoming painfully obvious who held the last stone. So after two weeks of searching through the shrine and neighboring areas, Chrom and I decided that it would be best to return home and regroup from there. Most of our soldiers were homesick anyways, and we could trust Say'ri to have some of her men keep up the search in Valm just in case.
...
"Do we have everything?" Lucina asked as we loaded the last of the supplies from the harbor to the cargo hold.
"Yeah, we are all set to head home. We just need to figure out our sleeping arrangements for the trip." I said as I wiped the sweat from my brow and leaned my weight on a set of crates that I had just finished stacking.
"Hmm? Is it not the same as it was before?" She asked perplexed.
"There are a few problems. Specifically, 75,000 of them." I murmured back. "The ships were crowded enough, but now we are taking home thousands of refugees with us."
"Oh, right." Lucina nodded and looked back up at the pile of food stuffs we had just finished stacking. "Father suggested we do something for those who no longer could make a living here."
"Yep, him and that big heart of his." I mumbled as I stretched out my arms. "But I'll admit it's not a bad idea. The past few wars have taxed Ylisse and we need help to restore our country back to its former glory. At this point we can't really complain if others are willing to help us in the process."
"It sounds like a win for all sides." She replied happily.
"For now, but it will come with a large share of problems, like most things do. The first one being how we are going to find a place for everyone to sleep. I'd rather not stay down here in the cargo hold if I can help it."
"I suppose we could share rooms."
I nodded and said, "Yeah. Some people might have their complaints, but we don't have enough beds to go around. No thanks to the idiot who sunk half of our ships."
The bluenette smiled warmly and said, "He can be a handful, but I would rather lose a ship and a place to sleep than the alternative.
"As would I." I agreed as the thought of all those burning ships still made me shudder.
"... I never did get to thank you for that." Lucina replied sweetly as her gaze unsettled my heart.
"Oh, well, I was a bit preoccupied at the time." I grimaced and looked away trying not to think about that day.
"That is true." She grabbed my hand to regain my attention and said, "The moment I saw you sobbing over all of those that died changed my entire perspective of you. Even if they were our enemy, you still felt their pain.
"I didn't cry!" I quickly protested. "... I was … sweating."
"It is okay Robin. You don't need to pretend. I saw everything, and I'm glad I did."
"Well...maybe it is slightly possible that water from the ocean got in my eyes. That kind of thing can happen you know."
Lucina stared back at me in doubt and said, "So you mean to tell me that you felt no pain for them and instead were merely overwhelmed by a small amount of water?"
"Well I, uh …Okay, fine, I cried like a little baby." I pouted and lowered my head embarrassed. "Are you happy now?"
"Hehe" She closed her eyes and brushed her shoulder against mine. "I think it is very sweet for you to care so much."
"It's not very manly." I whispered back disappointed at myself, "And that was one of my worst moments."
"Sometimes it is more manly to cry, and I find it to be the mark of a great man. You know, I tried to deny it, but ever since that day I have been slowly following for you against my will." She smiled again and held my hand tighter. "It's not fair that you put this spell on me, and now you wish to tempt me further with the idea that you want to live with me someday. It's so very cruel."
"Love is a cruel thing." I commented back as her soft voice hurt my heart. "It torments you and fills your head with lies. It convinces you that you are missing something in life that can only be filled by someone else, and trust me, the spell works both ways. I have no control over it either." I shrugged and said, "The worst part though, is that it seems to get stronger over time."
"Mhm. It is terrible, and it shouldn't exist." Lucina replied as she blushed. "After all, nothing should ever have such a strong control over someone. It isn't right. It impairs your thoughts, fills you with doubts, and even makes it difficult to control your actions when you are near the other person. W-what kind of monster would do such a dreadful thing?"
"Only one of pure evil." I whispered in dismay.
"Exactly! So it must be destroyed for tempting both of us with such terrible lies." She cried in a fury. "Especially the one about how good it feels when you say that ..." She paused and lowered her head while holding my hand so tight that it felt like it was going to break.
"When I what?"
"Never mind. It was merely that evil spell torturing me again." She gritted her teeth and looked away.
I took a step forward to get a better view of her face and said, "If that is the case, then don't you think you should tell me so we can find a way to stop it?"
… "I suppose that is sound reasoning, but-" The princess tried to wipe away her red face with no luck and hesitantly said, "Robin, surely you've known by now that I have no chest.
"Come again?" I said dumbfounded and sure I misheard her.
Her blush intensified as she said, "I, never thought about it much in the past, but in the last two years it has become very clear to me that I am lacking in … substance. I fear since I am at the end of my growth spurt that I will not appear as pleasing to you because I lack a very basic feature that I've noticed most men seem to focus on." She said lowly and looked down at her chest ashamed. "So I find it hard to believe that you find me beautiful, despite how much I wish it was true when you say it."
My eyes widened as I stood there absolutely baffled and at a lost for words. "L-lucina … you don't think that … I mean how could you ever think that I would…
Lucina frowned and said, "Don't worry Robin. It is okay. You don't have to pretend. I am flattered that you care for me and I understand that it is unappealing. So you don't need to-"
"No. You are wrong!" I cried out passionately. "You are wrong Lucina, and that is not even remotely how I feel about you. There is so much more to a person then just that, and you can't think that it makes you any less attractive."
"Please Robin, you don't have-"
"Lucina, I swear to you that your size has nothing to do with how I look at you. I still see you as incredibly beautiful and nothing could change that."
Her hands trembled and she looked back at me in doubt, "Are you saying you don't notice such things with other women?"
"Of course I notice it." I replied honestly and with care. "I am a guy and I would be lying if I said otherwise, but it isn't the crux to which I hold the highest standard."
"So what do you think is the most important?" She asked as a sliver of hope returned to her eyes.
I covered my head trying to collect my thoughts and said, "I don't think there is any one thing Lucina, because I find myself staring at many places when I look at you."
"...You do?" Her face reddened even more as she whispered in hope.
I scratched the back of my head with an equal blush as the air suddenly became much warmer. "I … find other parts of you to be just as pleasing, if not more, and I've been known to look. In truth, you should be mad at me, because I do notice your feminine figure, and it does stir some very strong emotions inside of me."
Lucina quickly covered her hand over her heart and said with a high-pitched voice. "I see." Her blush grew even more and suddenly her knees went weak. "And you do this often?" She asked with a radiant smile.
"Er, well. I don't mean to." I laughed innocently as I tried to stay calm. "But you know, sometimes the wind leaves your cape in the air and since I am a man I am biologically flawed to wonder what it might hide. I tell myself not to, but it really is one of those things out of my control."
"D-do you do this with all women?!" She asked while her legs continued to shake.
"No, just you." I took a deep breath and looked back at her with some regret, "I mean, it is hard to miss it when other women intentionally flaunt it in front of you, but I've never really made a point to look more closely. That is, until I met you."
In the next moment she cleaved her arms around mine as she breathed in and out very rapidly. "I … see. So you really are a terrible person that merely wishes to take advantage of my looks." She cried out with an accusing tone, but the wide smile on her lips sent a different message.
"Well, it helps that you have substance on the inside too. It's very attractive that I can have deep and meaningful conversations with you."
She leaned her head into my chest and said, "You act like I'm the most special person you have ever met."
"I can't help it. It's that accursed spell that's over us."
"Yes, what a terrible curse it is." She whispered happily.
...
A few minutes later we manged to recover ourselves and slowly release our grip on one another. The conversation seemed silly, but I was glad to get rid of her worry, and it was another one of those unique moments that brought us closer together.
"We better get back to the group." I hesitantly replied and looked back at my surroundings. There was nothing but boxes and crates keeping us company throughout our talk and rarely was a cargo hold a place to have such declarations. It could easily be viewed in a different light if we continued to remain out of sight and I already had enough arrows to dodge when it came to Chrom.
"Right." She nodded while never losing the grin on her face. "We have to get our room prepared for the long journey home."
"Yeah, it is a two to three-week journey depending on the weather and I want to-" My thoughts trailed off as a much more alarming thought screamed at me. "Wait. Did you say our room?!"
"Of course." She looked at me puzzled. "You mentioned how it would be best for us to share rooms to save space for the refugees."
"But I didn't mean us specifically!" I cried out alarmed. "I meant that our army in general should share rooms."
"I still don't understand." She asked as she raised her brow. "Wouldn't that include us too?"
"Well, yeah." I gulped and said, "B-but wouldn't you feel more comfortable sharing a bed with your sister? … Or any other woman for that matter?"
"I suppose I wouldn't mind." Lucina replied in deep thought and wonder. "But I don't understand why it would be uncomfortable to share it with you."
"You don't?" I asked as the vision of Chrom and Sumia's glare burned at the back of my skull.
"No." She shook her head blissfully unaware and said. "Beds and blankets were in a short supply in my time as well. Sometimes I had to huddle next to my sister so we could stay warm at night. So it is not like I am unaccustomed to sharing a space to sleep with someone.
"But have you ever done that … with a man?" I cringed as I wasn't sure if I even wanted to know the answer.
"No, but I trust you Robin." She smiled back genuinely and hummed thinking about our earlier conversation. "I don't see why it would be wrong for us to share a bed since it is out of necessity. Plus you always say that you enjoy my company, so I thought you would like the idea."
"Er, don't get me wrong, I love the idea." I tightened my fist and gritted my teeth. "But aren't you worried about how it would look to others? I mean, usually only married couples share their beds together."
Lucina thought it over for a moment and placed her hand on her chin, "Well, you also said that we should get to know each other better so one day we could make that commitment. Wouldn't this be a great chance to do that?"
"Er, when you put it that way." For a millisecond it seemed like a great idea as the thought of holding her to stay warm at night made my heart beat significantly faster. "Wait. No!" I yelled trying to regroup and get those thoughts out of my head. "It wouldn't be right. I mean what would your father or mother think of it?"
"... Granted, my father has his reservations about us, but I am sure he would understand. We could even have my sister join us if you are worried that we might give the wrong impression sleeping alone."
In that moment, I could perfectly picture Chrom's reaction at the thought of me telling him that I wanted to spend the next two weeks sleeping in the same bed with both of his daughters. "Lucina, that is a significantly worse idea. A thousand times worse."
"Is it?" She asked confused. "Okay, then I suppose it will just be the two of us." She smiled innocently with pure eyes.
"Lucina … I didn't want to mention it." I grimaced and shrugged my shoulders. "But, there are other things that married couples do in private … So wouldn't people get the wrong idea if we shared the same bed for two or three weeks?" I replied nervously as the sweat beaded down my face.
"Other things?" Lucina whispered confused as she thought it over. "What other thi- … oh ... Oh. OH!" She immediately blushed redder than a tomato and looked away from me in horror. "T-that t-thing."
"Yeah … so maybe it wouldn't be the best idea. Especially considering how I just told you that I find you very attractive and that my intentions are not always noble." I rubbed the back of my head nervously with a dark red hue.
"Y-yes. I-I could see how that would be a problem." She whispered in terror and stared straight at the floor boards beneath us.
"So um, maybe it would be best to wait until another day for that. As much as I like the idea, I don't want to-"
"Right!" She nodded and spoke very rapidly. "We wouldn't want anyone to think that we would-" She swallowed in fear and said. "Do that."
I nodded back like an idiot and said, "So I'll bunk with Gregor. I don't think I have much to worry about with him, and you have your sister. And if we want to see each other, then we can always go above deck, or talk at meals."
"Uh huh." She replied still mostly stunned. "There will be plenty of time to see each other … outside of our quarters."
"Exactly." I sighed in relief and lowered my shoulders as that situation was avoided.
"Still I-" The princess looked back into my eyes and said very hesitantly. "I trust you wouldn't do anything Robin. You would never force me into something I wasn't comfortable with.
"It's still not a good idea to tempt either of us by putting ourselves in that position." I whispered back knowing that was the right thing to say, but not what I wanted to say.
"I suppose not." She nodded and smiled back at me. "Especially because I haven't been very honorable with you either."
"Pardon?"
"Well, it's just that I stare at you too, and I have less than decent thoughts. I'll admit, I wanted to spend the nights with you for more than just necessity." She quivered and then exclaimed. "But I really had no intention of doing anything else! I just wanted to be next to you while we slept."
"R-really?" I whispered stunned.
"Mhm." She bit her lip and looked away. "It sounded nice. You know, especially because you feel the same about me, but I guess we will have to wait a little longer." She whispered and looked back at me with a tender gaze. "Besides, like they say in those books that my mother read to me when I was a child: patience is a virtue."
"Yeah." I nodded torn and shrugged at the lost opportunity. "I am going to kill whoever came up with that idea."