Author's Note: Twenty-three days since last I posted!

...

Okay, that may be a problem... As you may or may not know, I am currently handling five stories, with one constantly updating and the rest sporadic, including this one! Remember to follow, so you can keep up!

All right! Time to get into a new chapter of the fatherly blues! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Fire Emblem is the property of Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. I do not claim ownership of anything pertaining to the series, nor of any related properties. Any and all other references to other works are also not owned by me. This is a nonprofit fan work. Endgame, Postgame, and SpotPass spoilers are in effect.

Rated T for: Language, suggestive themes, and the depths of a tactician's mind on a Dad high.

Original Post Date: 5/28/14

Barely shuffling out of the tent as he adjusted his tactician's robe and tied it in the center, Robin had just spent the better half of an hour with the wife, whose dark charms had been able to divert his mind from petty vengeance against the future lads, and reducing it to maybe just snooping on them. Though, that had been the plan from the start, save for enacting said fatherly vengeance should he find out that they eyed Morgan in a more than friendly manner.

"Ahh..., what a wonderful day! The sun is high in the sky, the wind is blowing at a reasonable pace, and the Shepherds are all enjoying it away from—"

"Robin?"

"Gahh!"

Robin stumbled in place as he realized that Frederick was standing right outside his tent.

"Dear gods, man, warn someone when you're standing outside one's tent!"

Good ol' Sir Frederick the Wary just stood there as Robin repeatedly pounded his chest as if trying to restart it. Clearing his throat, Frederick calmly stated his intent. "I merely wanted to know of how the plans were coming along, Robin."

Still taking a moment to settle down, Robin eventually found it in him to respond, albeit shakily. "Well, Frederick, they are coming along well, though I needn't remind you of our current situation, do I?"

"Yes, I... am reluctant to admit that perhaps you were right about this strange respite that the Gods have graced us with..." Even when he admits he had been wrong, Frederick always did so with class, so you couldn't really be angry with him.

Frederick had been among the first to question the Chief Tactician's decision to immediately back away from Naga's assistance in order to "powerlevel and stuff", a term that even Robin admits just popped into his head at the time. This was despite the overwhelming lull that incited this decision to begin with, but they don't call ol' Fred "the Wary" for no reason. There were other dissenters, but the lull effectively rendered their motivation to mush.

That was weeks ago.

"Even so," Frederick continued, "one cannot rely on such a miracle to keep for much longer. If it is not too much trouble, we shall meet with the Exalt to discuss your current plans three days on the morrow."

Robin chuckled. For all the weirdness associated with Chrom's trusted lieutenant, it's actually very admirable of Frederick to always commit order to this chaos.

"Sure, Frederick. I will have it done by th—"

He was interrupted by a sudden gust that kicked up some of the loosened dirt from Old Miner— New Min— Uh..., Future Minerva's landing, right in Robin's face. Frederick had been facing away from the dust, yet he wishes he had done the same as Robin right now...

"Agh...! That was sudden! Oh, that stings!" Robin then felt something nudge his shoulder. "Oh, thanks Frederick...!" He was handed a flask of water to douse his eyes. Always prepared. After a few moments, Robin took the time to blink before gratefully addressing his colleague, "Much better! Honestly, so prepared, thank you Freder...ick?"

The seasoned head of the Order of Ylissean Knights kept collected as he had a noticeable scrunch around his eyes, as if trying to will something into being, or in this case, out of being.

"It's... honorable that you chose to emulate Lord Chrom's example before I arrived, but I fear you may feel... a bit inadequate... Good day." With a simple, stiff bow of his head, Frederick shuffled his feet rather quickly away from Robin, faster than usual.

Robin blinked a few times, unsure of what that was all about. "Weird...," he muttered as he turned back and walked into the tent, where Tharja had been laying in his bed waiting for him.

"Hello again, Robin~," she cooed, "Are you here mayhaps to spend some more time with me?" She then shuffled around as to expose more of her body from the blanket, staring at him with come-hither eyes. As he awkwardly looked away from the invitation, she continued in a sultry tone, "You know, that Frederick couldn't be any more wrong..."

"H-How's that, Tharja?" replied Robin.

Licking her lips, she responded, "You are most certainly not inadequate in my eyes, as that draft of wind had reminded me, my love. On the contrary, our very bodies know just how well-suited they are to one another! Mmmhmhm!"

...

Robin went from slowly looking confused, to shocked, and finally, to horrified when he realized just what it was Tharja and Frederick both referred to...

He had only worn his tactician's robe when he exited the tent...

"OH MY GODS...!" he frantically cried as he scrambled to put on everything that composed his usual outfit, much to the displeasure of his wife, who looked on with a scowl as she listlessly dropped the blanket from her upper half, as she too got up to dress halfheartedly. Even she knew when it wasn't apropos to seduce her husband.

"Are you really going to do this, Robin?" she asked in a dull tone, adjusting the bottom of her Dark Mage's outfit, before realizing something in her head. 'Hm, I could've sworn I had been promoted for the final time to a Sorceress a week ago, why am I somehow wearing this outfit all the time?' Shaking those strange thoughts as she finished dressing, she continued speaking, "I mean, is this goose chase worth it, you have better things to do with your time, I feel."

"There's no time, Tharja, Inigo could be advancing on Morgan as we speak!" Robin was a quick dresser out of necessity for the wars (among other things...), as he was now already dressed in the usual, he just now had to rummage through his workstation for supplies necessary for what he needs to do.

"You mean absolutely fail at wooing her, while our daughter just laughs it off? It's up to you, then..." As if on cue, Robin then ran up to her and planted a chaste kiss on her cheek, to which she ended up blushing from as she grumbled, "I'm still mad... You will make this up to me tonight, Robin! I will hold you to that..."

"Of course, Darling," he responded, smiling, "Take care, Tharja, and don't experiment on Noire again, she's still breaking out into allergies whenever she gets within 2 paces of the... silver weaponry..."

"She came to me for help with her burgeoning seasonal allergies, Robin," she shot back, aware of the issues that her and Noire experienced in the latter's timeline, as it always hung in the air whenever the subject of hexing was alluded to. Despite her constant insistence that she wouldn't do what her future self has done, it still pained her to know it could happen. Inside. I mean, anytime she's talking to someone who's not Robin, she says she will. She's kinda messed up as it is. "I just... didn't expect the allergy to be relocated to something like that..."

"Nevertheless, don't. She's our daughter, you kno—" Robin interrupted himself before he could finish, his posture stiff and his eyes wide open... for about three seconds, before nonchalantly stating, "One daughter at a time..." before he hurriedly stepping out of the tent.

Alone, Tharja found solace in talking to herself about things... Yeah, she isn't crazy or anything.

"Well, that was all very interesting... Couldn't say I liked it when he walked away from me there, but it seems that my watching him will be a lot more eventful than usual...!" She smiled, you know the one, as she swiftly grabbed her tome from the humongous stack that was still there, and promptly left after her husband. "So long as he is not stressed with the likes of all this, then he and I can spend more of this wondrous time together! This is what I want, and no one will stand in the way of our paradise!"

And so, Tharja cackled as she hurried off in the direction of town, unknowingly speaking so loud and so fevered as to disturb a passing-by Lissa as she was about to ask a now absent Robin about something.

"Sheesh, extra-creepy today! I guess Robin isn't in, then... Now what am I supposed to do with these frogs?!"

Lissa lifted her arms and from her hold dropped out a small cadre of amphibians; she didn't care anymore, it would've the best prank, too. Before the princess could walk off, she immediately took notice of a tall shadow and traced it back to Morgan's tower of books.

"Whoa...! That's tall...!"

Indeed it is, Lissa, indeed it is.

By the time Robin arrived at the nearby town of L'Arachel, named after a famous Magvelian princess of legend, the hustle and bustle of the afternoon rush had gone, and the streets were now pretty open to walk through. It wasn't difficult for him to find where Morgan and Inigo had made off to: a quaint, but high-class restaurant known for its succulent mouthwatering steak and exorbitant, mouth-drying prices.

Ducking behind a bush on the opposite side of the road, Robin can clearly see what they were doing, even if passersby would stop and notice the otherwise conspicuous tactician. Seriously, people could cleanly walk behind him, he didn't hide well at all.

"Well, at least Morgan knows to take him for all he's got." Robin smiled at his own mutterings. "That money would have been frittered away on pointless ventures and/or stolen again. And they say Severa is bad with money..."

Ignoring the funny stares the civilians would give him, Robin situated himself enough to be able to pick up the future kids' conversation, and looking like an idiot at the same time.

Inigo sighed as his "date" went on; Morgan was much more interested in sampling the meals and looking every which way in wonderment. 'Amnesia will do that to someone...,' he sullenly thought. "So, Morgan, how lucky do you feel to be on a date with the one and only?" Inigo's thoughts and words are often disconnected to one another when it came to women.

"Hmm..." Morgan put down her utensils and swallowed some 1750-gold steak as she held a hand up to her mouth, thinking on it. "Won't that be rendered not true when Virion and Olivia decide to try for a child?" Her eyes shot up in realization, gasping as she said, "Then you won't be as unique as you claim, and then you will have nothing! Aww, isn't that sad, Inigo?"

The ladychaser's spirits quickly deflated in hearing Morgan's blunt observation, sulking as he somewhat yelled, "Oh, come on! You are making me out to be a pathetic shell of a man here! Can't we just enjoy each other's company for about an hour?" Pleading the last part, he looked rather rejected to the innocently innocuous Morgan.

"Aww..., that's rather sweet of you...," she started , her tone abruptly changing from accepting to mockery as she continued, "...or rather it would be if you hadn't been staring at the waitress's backside for almost the entirety of this date!"

"It is proportioned well, and I so happen to be an enthusiast!"

Morgan's smile never faltered as she went on, instilling a bit of fear in the future Casanova. "Is that why you were checking out my mother ever since the first time we all went to the beach? I gotta say, you are hilarious at times, but that is monumentally absentminded of you!"

Inigo blanched at the very true accusation. Only one way to save face... He laid himself facedown on the table (easy to do when all of the food was on Morgan's side! Girl is quite the eater) and sobbed as he pleaded, "Yes, it's true, it's all true! The women, they call out to me, and I am never one to not answer them! I am a man who needs help, Morgan, because I don't know what to do without you-hoo-hoo!"

Morgan was a bit flustered with hearing Inigo's fevered plea, she didn't know whether to feel touched or disturbed..., or cheerful! That last option was always present to her, and Morgan would use it...

She lifted a finger up to her chin, tapping it in a rhythm as she stated with uncertainty, "Uh..., I don't know much about hitting on girls like you do, but... I guess if you need help with that, I can certainly try!"

Inigo looked up from his sob, a little perplexed. "Um, that's not exactly what I meant when I said—"

"All right!" Morgan stood up from her seat with her hands propped up, determined. "I'm here to help! Tell me your lady problems, and I will tell you the strategies to success!" Her little declaration garnered a bit of attention from some people close by, but most of all Inigo and her father.

"W-What...," muttered Robin, still under the best camouflage ever.

"W-What...," Inigo unknowingly said at the same time.

Morgan was now cheerfully smiling as she began digging through her bag and pulling out all manner of scrollery and books, filling up Inigo's side and preventing him from actually having a place to eat...

"The way I see it," she started, "us ladies are a varied sort, and the key to winning someone over would be the ability to roll with the punches. I. E: Being a flexible guy emotionally and all that jazz!"

Inigo raised a brow at her advice. "Huh? I thought I was always very accommodating as a gentleman..."

"Yeah, well, your attempts at connecting with women are about as subtle as Basilio's enthusiasm at beating out most of the others at camp in arm-wrestling that night." Morgan's assessment brought some sweat trickling down the back of Inigo's neck. That hadn't been a fine moment for him, because he had not only lost so handily to him, but made a laughingstock of himself by struggling against Ricken! Granted, that was after pulling his muscles very hard against the former Khan. "Surprised to see Tiki be the first one to make him lose... I thought either Sully or Kjelle would've done the trick! Gregor and Priam sure gave him a hard time, and only Walhart was able to do it afterwards! Then again, as the Voice—"

"All right, I get it...!" The periwinkle-haired youth sank into his chair. "I'm... not exactly subtle with my advances, and that usually entails either rejection, a body blow, or petty larceny being inflicted upon me..."

"That's the spirit, Inigo," chirped the junior tactician, not taking into account (or perhaps ignoring) Inigo's downtrodden mood, "One must know their own weaknesses before committing to a plan of action!" Morgan then gestured for him to huddle up in the center of the table, causing the future lad to turn a little pink in the cheeks.

"Um..., M-Morgan? I'm not sure if I am comfortable—"

"Huh? What's wrong? Hey, I'm not scary! Get over here and plan with me!"

Inigo jumped in his seat at the scary girl's scary command. "Y-Yes, Ma'am!"

"I'm not a Ma'am, I'm too young for that!"

As Robin listened on to their conversation, a sense of relief washed over him as Morgan either deflected or thought nothing of Inigo's advances on her. Though, that is not to say he wasn't wary of the future lad's own feelings...

"What is your aim, Inigo...," he said to himself as he silently gnashed his teeth, "You may be able to hit on every woman you see, but I saw how you acted just now... Also, I won't forget your observance of my wife in her bathing suit anytime soon..."

"Robin? Is that you?"

"Ga—Mmph!"

Robin quickly covered his own mouth as he about to yelp, looking over his shoulder to find a confused-looking Cynthia staring down at him.

"C-Cynthia...," he hoarsely whispered, "what are you doing here...?!"

"My Mom and I are out on the town, shopping for food and other nice things," she cheerfully replied, "Why are you hiding in the bushes like that...? Is there something wrong?" The future Pegasus Knight then had a deluded look in her eye as she gasped out, "Is this a spying mission? Are you gathering Intel on the enemy?! Maybe there's a— MMmph!" Robin quickly covered her mouth too as he dragged her down to his level. Everyone's favorite tactician at work.

"Keep quiet, Cynthia, or they'll hear you!" Robin shushed the wannabe hero. Cynthia was always among the most hyper of the future children, and that tends to spill into her everyday routine. The blue-haired girl nodded in understanding and looked in the direction where the tactician was looking... only to be sourly disappointed with what she found.

"Why are you spying on Morgan and Inigo? This doesn't seem very heroic to me."

"I didn't ask you of what you thought, I just didn't want you to yell..."

Robin's blunt reply offended her. She huffed, "How rude! It just looks a little crazy what you're doing, is all!" The Chief Tactician frantically 'shh'ed at her, not pleased with how loud she was and with the attention she was garnering. He then put his hands together as if he were pleading, and to this, Cynthia frowned as she crossed her arms, yelling "What is it?" at him.

"Uh..., please don't tell them I'm doing this," he whispered, "or anyone at all. I'll put you in the frontlines in the Outrealm where we fought all the villains in a fort if you don't!" A seemingly terrible punishment for some, but for this flighty, heroic girl...

"Really?! You'd go and do that for little old me?!"

...it was golden. Her eyes sparkled as she bunched her clenched hands towards her face and looked at him.

Robin vigorously nodded yes. The noise that came out of Cynthia was akin to a pissed off Minerva, or Yarne during everyday conversation. In other words, a high pitched screech, as she gave him a crushing hug. The tactician quickly turned as blue as the hair of the future girl before him. She sure was Chrom's daughter, down to the recklessness of her actions.

THWOCK!

"OW...!" Cynthia rubbed the back of her head, where a small pebble had hit her. "What was that? Who threw that, I was in the middle of a very appreciative—"

"Robin?"

"Gah!"

Word of the day, his name was.

Robin and Cynthia both looked up from their bush to find a puzzled-looking Sumia, who was holding up a variety of bags filled with breads, clothing, books, whatnot. Her head kinked to the side as she tried to make sense of the scene before her.

"Wwwhat are you two doing," she asked with her eyes trained on them both.

"Hi, Mom!" Cynthia exclaimed, still keeping an iron grip on Robin as she spoke. "Robin just gave me a neato position for keeping quiet aroun— MMPH!" Robin threw a hand up to her mouth, silencing her.

"It's nothing, we're doing nothing, Sumia. Please don't judge us..."

Robin's plea just threw another wrench of confusion to the future mother, causing her to intensify her gaze until she came up with a shocking realization. She gasped, horrified, "Robin, you're married...! And with my daughter, how could you?!" She's kind of imaginative...

Both of the bush Shepherds blanched at the accusation, the two of them losing balance and looking a bit more incriminating as they tried to scramble to their feet.

"Th-That was judging right there! No, Sumia!" Robin yelled, turning red in embarrassment.

"Mo~oom! Th-that's not it at all! I'd never do that, why would you think that!?" Cynthia was similarly affected; this guy was just a hero to her, despite his quirks.

Sumia was immediately taken aback by their adamant claim otherwise, as they both managed to stand up to her figuratively and literally. Of course Robin would never cheat, he's a good man..., maybe. Sometimes he's a bit of a jerk.

"Oh my...! Are you serious?" she asked honestly, wanting to believe in them and earning fevered nodding from the two. The usually clumsy, first-generation young lady held her hands by her face in disbelief. "How... How could I even jump to such a conclusion?! Oh, I am a horrible, horrible person for even thinking so— OW!"

Sumia had been hit square in the forehead with a pebble, causing her to stagger backwards and then slipping on Cynthia's pebble and vaulting feet-first in the air! She spun a few times before landing flat on her face on the cobblestone below. It truly was a spectacle, so much so that Robin and Cynthia were stunned silent as the minutes passed with Sumia still on the ground, only getting up after a gentle nudging with their feet.

A quick glance back at the projected trajectory of the second pebble, Robin could barely see the headdress of a certain raven-haired temptress peeking out from behind a barrel.

"Tharja..."

...

"Tharja...?"

"Hmm..., you called, Robin?" Sure enough, Robin's beloved got up from behind her hiding place, a much more better one than Robin's, but don't tell her that. "Like I have said, I am your shadow; I will always be close by...!"

Robin had to resist sighing as she unrepentantly stepped out and walked toward the group, with obscuring tome in hand and pebbles scattering from under her feet.

'If Frederick needed any more reason to be paranoid around pebbles...' he thought as Tharja smiled back at him, before she turned to scowl at the clumsy pair of time-and-space-seperated mother and daughter besides him. "Was that really necessary, Tharja?"

"Yes," she bluntly replied back, scaring the daylights out of Sumia and Cynthia (mostly Sumia) with just her regularly sadistic expression, "I simply couldn't control myself as those two got to acting... improperly towards you, my love." Her eyes were then almost completely covered in shadow as she imposingly said, "And the baseless accusations of being unfaithful had been too much for me to stand, mmmhmhm...!" Her dark, subdued laughter definitely brought terror to the first-gen Pegasus Knight, clutching her future daughter tightly as if it were her last.

"Mom... Mom..., you're crushing me..."

"Tharja, stop scaring them."

"Fine. By your command..."

The dark mage playfully smiled as she reached over to Robin and puller her away from the bush and closer to her, continuing to glare at a frightened Sumia.

Said frightened Sumia began shaking in place, fully aware of Tharja's reputation of hex-slinging. "I-I..., I'm sorry! I won't do that again, just, please don't hex me...!"

Robin smiled gently to calm her down. "Don't worry, she won't—"

"I have a cooking hex that would be perfect for—"

"No."

"Huh." Tharja wilted, having been cut off from doing something she loves. Well..., other than her husband! Ha-HAH! With a dull tone, she turned to the direction of the restaurant and said, "Well, in other news, our daughter and the philanderer have already left..."

"Wait, seriously?!" The tactician jerked his neck back towards the restaurant, where the table that Morgan and Inigo sat in was already vacated. "Wonderful..."

"If it helps, they had left shortly after the boy was almost given a concussion from flirting with the waitress." Tharja couldn't look or sound more disinterested in her future daughter's shenanigans if she tried.

Robin rubbed his face with his open palms, frustrated. He really wanted something done now about the situation with Morgan, or at least come up with something to accomplish that. "All right, it looks like I still have work to do then... Let's go, Tharja."

"Wait!" Before they could walk off, however, a slender hand gripped Robin's shoulder. Sumia looked much more resolute as she stared down Robin, only backing off when his unorthodox wife did the same back to her. "Robin, just what is the meaning of this?! You don't just spy on your child and bribe someone else's without a reason!"

"Y-Yeah, what's your deal?" Cynthia spoke up, now free from the motherly embrace, "You were being all crazy just now, I want answers!"

Taking a moment to think on it (Well, Robin was, Tharja just kept trying to pull him away), the Chief Tactician hesitantly nodded. "Fine, I'll tell you," he sternly concluded, "But what I will confer onto you... will change your li—"

"He's being all 'protective father' when it comes to Morgan and the future boys... It's a wonderful feeling, seeing Robin act like this~."

Robin slapped a palm to his face, a facepalm, if you would. "Gods damn it, Tharja, I was trying to come off as less insane than that...!"

"I... think you're doing a good job of that on your own, Robin..." snarked Sumia, still a little uncertain about anything now. Cynthia stuck close to her mother, similarly weirded out.

The tactician paused for a second, mulling over the possibilities and hopefully not having to restart and reload his save.

"Very well then, I think its a good idea to induct you two into our little fold... Come with me, if you wish to learn..."

With that, he immediately turned back around, in the direction of the Shepherd's camp... and ran. He ran with the swiftness of Anna whenever one of her usually airtight get-rich-quick schemes utterly backfires on her, like that time with Tiki, except with an actual chance to escape here.

Tharja was much less willing to run, being unenthusiastic when it came to such activity. When it came to her husband, though...

"Bye."

ZOOM!

She could go as fast as Gaius during a sugar rush. This left the Pegasus riders... without a clue as to what's going on, dumbfounded.

"H-Huh?"

"What... was that...?"

Needless to say, Robin better get ready to fess up, or he's liable to mess up!

A/N: So, another chapter down! Let's take a look at what's known here and some trivia...

Robin: Type 1 body build, Type 2 black hair, and Type 3 voice. Obviously, my Avatar... Yes, I know the implications... I chose Type 3 for the voice because he sounds the coolest, and so that I don't have to hear David Vincent's (Type 1) other similarly voiced characters every time Robin spoke. Nothing personal, but that's just how it is.

Robin/Tharja, meaning Morgan and Noire are siblings. I frickin' love how weird Tharja is; I think it's safe to say that she is one of the main reasons I bought Awakening! Yes, I know. Stop staring at me like that, everyone... I also grew incredibly attached to Morgan and Noire, and I loved their sisterly conversations... even though Morgan's sibling supports almost always play out the same.

Chrom/Sumia, meaning Lucina and Cynthia are siblings. It... seemed like the obvious choice! Despite some shared grumblings I have with her thing for pies, I found Sumia's character sweet and pleasant!

Virion/Olivia, because Inigo's ladychasing and chauvinistic behavior HAD to have come from more than just a ruined future and Olivia's advice being taken way too far. I never liked Inigo all that much, but don't worry, he won't get the shaft here! ... Much.

Always put down those reviews! See ya next time!