Chapter 7: Lofty Expectations

"No thanks."

Robin shot another fireball at Zelda. The princess deflected the shot with ease, shooting off fire of her own. Robin dodged the attack. Zelda had insisted in sparring Robin when he was ready. It had been four days, but Robin was adamant that he was fully healed, despite Lissa's pleas and Maribelle's admonishment.

"The idea doesn't even intrigue you?" Zelda inquired. She had spent two days trying to convince Robin to accept the invitation to the Smash Tournament. Robin had been … less than eager to join. She threw another fireball, with a little more vigor.

Robin dodged, grunting from exerting himself. "Honestly, it does. But my family is much more important to me." He flung out an Arcwind, lifting Zelda up into the air. "I just got back to them, I don't think I could handle-" He jumped over a lightning attack from the princess. "- being away from them any longer." Zelda took a swing with her leg.

"You can't handle it?" She kept prying, hoping to get a reaction. "Or they can't handle it?" Zelda didn't even notice Robin closing in and tripping her. She let out a squeak as she hit the ground. Robin offered out his hand to help her up. She graciously took it.

"You shouldn't underestimate my family." He turned towards the barracks. "They could handle me being gone, but me being without them?" Robin looked directly into Zelda's eyes. "Not exactly something I enjoy doing." As he went over the hill, Zelda frowned and stomped her foot to the ground in frustration. What a vexing man.

"Hello, Falco! How are you-a doing?"

"Yo, Luigi, it's going alright." Falco waved lazily at the green-clad man on the other side. He panned his communicator over to Lucina. He had agreed to show Lucina the basics to technology. "Meet our newest smasher!" Lucina waved, unsure of herself.

"Ah! Hello there! What's-a your name?" Luigi waved back enthusiastically.

"Um, it's Lucina, sir." She attempted to bow to the camera. "It's truly a pleasure."

"No need to be-a so formal, Lucina!" Luigi's lilt accentuated his cheerful demeanor. "I'm no 'sir'!" Lucina looked at Falco.

"Luigi's used to being 'Luigi'." Was all Falco said. Lucina seemed to relax. She turned back to the communicator.

"Well, Luigi, it is a pleasure to meet you." She smiled. "I have so many questions about this tournament."

"Well-a, for starters, I sent Falco four communicators, two for you, and two for your friend." Luigi made a glance at Falco.

"To the Arwing?" Falco asked. Luigi nodded. The pilot sighed. "I'll go check it out." As he got up, he could hear Lucina begin to pepper Luigi with multiple questions. Well, she's got the right attitude for the tournament. He thought. Hopefully Samus and Zelda are having similar luck with Robin.

"Robin, I don't want this to sound like a threat..."

"Could've fooled me, Samus."

"I'm being serious. Master Hand isn't used to …" The bounty hunter paused, looking at Zelda. The princess was engrossed in a book about Hylian history. Typical. "... being denied someone it wants." She looked back at Robin. "You have every right to say no, but all we can do is try to convince him that it's not a bad thing."

Robin frowned. "It's simple. I just came back." He stood up sharply. "From the dead, might I add, so I could be with my friends and family." He paced around the room. "And now some of the people that helped me want me to participate in a tournament-" He looked at Samus. "- and be away from said friends and family even more?"

"Well, when you put it that way, it sounds pretty bad." Samus muttered. Why wasn't Zelda helping? Even Robin had noticed, and looked slightly perturbed. As he walked around to take a peek, Samus noticed Zelda pale slightly, slamming the book shut. Robin didn't look much better. He coughed quickly.

"I hate to cut this meeting short, but I promised to take my family out to town tonight." Robin stumbled stiffly. He rushed a bow, and hurried out. Zelda was staring at the cover of her book, still pale and now breathing heavily.

"What is wrong with both of you?" Samus hissed. "Everyone looks like they've seen a ghost!" Zelda looked up and opened the book back to the page she was on.

"Remember the symbol on Robin's door?" She whispered. Samus nodded. "Good, because I just found it." She flipped around the book. There was a frightening looking mask with yellow eyes piercing through the page. Samus felt her stomach drop. Why was that in a Hylian textbook? Zelda read Samus's reaction. "It's called Majora's Mask, and I have a bad feeling."

"A bad feeling."

"I don't think Robin's imprisonment was an accident. Nor was our involvement a happy coincidence." She was shaking now.

Robin was breathing heavily as he stopped. He must have gotten enough distance from them. That symbol was used to seal his cell door. It couldn't have just been an accident that Zelda just happened to have that book.

"I have to get to the bottom of this." He muttered.

"Talking to yourself really makes you endearing, you know." came a voice giggling from behind him. He spun around to find Cordelia, wearing a turquoise sundress, looking absolutely stunning. He was speechless. Cordelia walked towards him slowly. "What?" she teased. "The great Robin is speechless? What a turn of events." She gave him a small kiss on the cheek. Robin returned the kiss twofold, and held her for a moment far to short for his tastes.

"You look beautiful." He whispered in her ear. She smiled and blushed.

"I figured we could take the children out to dinner, and then, we could finish our date-" She leaned in and whispered into Robin's ear.

"Why couldn't you do that in private, you two?" Falco came from the hilltop, Severa and Morgan close behind. Robin shot Cordelia a quizzical look.

"He said he had something to give you." She said. "But Severa and Morgan insisted that they see it first."

Falco placed small devices in both Robin and Cordelia's hands. "These are video communicators. Good for long distance communication." Robin began to protest, but Falco put his wing up. "I know, you haven't accepted the invitation yet. I don't care. Consider it a gift, because technically, you shouldn't have one even if you accepted." He paused. "Severa got the receiver to Lucina's, anyways, so she can show you the basics. I know you guys have a night ahead of you." As he turned to leave, Robin cleared his throat.

"Thank you, Falco. May I ask you one question?"

"Shoot."

"Do you trust Zelda and Samus?"

Falco seemed taken aback by the question. "Samus is a bit … rough." He said sheepishly. "But both of them are trustworthy. At least, they've never done anything unseemly." He shrugged. Robin gave a small bow, and Falco walked back over the hill. Robin looked back at his smiling wife, and took her hand. Next stop: town square.

"Two whole months away from you guys? I don't think I'd really be okay with that." Robin began, when Cordelia interrupted him.

"But you just said that you think that princess was the one who captured you and tortured you!" She was shaking with anger.

"But I don't know that, and she seems like a saint." He admitted. The theory was ridiculous, but it was too good to be a coincidence. "What if it's just weird luck?"

"All the more reason to go and discover it yourself." Cordelia was firm. "I'll miss you terribly, but..." She looked at her children. "... I'd rather you do this for two months than live in fear that you or I or … any of our children are in danger." Robin scoffs.

"I'm a dad, I'll always worry." He laughed.

"But it wouldn't be so present." She countered. Robin was silent, he knew Cordelia was right. But judging by her shaking, she clearly didn't want to believe herself either. Severa chose to interrupt.

"And with these doo-hickeys, it's not like we'll be completely cut off!" Her cheerful demeanor was clearly forced, hiding her emotional turmoil. "And Falco says that families can visit often enough!" Morgan cleared her throat.

"Lucina will need someone to watch over her, too." She stated. Robin mentally cursed. Lucina was mature, but sometimes, she got carried away, much like her father and mother. He sighed.

"If I accept this." He looked at his family. "You must promise to visit me often, and call me twice as often as that. I can't accept any other terms." He smiled as Cordelia leaned across the table and gave him a kiss on the lips.

"I think we can arrange that."

The next morning came with hustle and bustle. Samus had called in her gunship, and the sight of another, larger craft had once again set the town a-titter. Falco hadn't let Samus forget her earlier words, either.

"How irresponsible, Aran."

"Bite me, Lombardi."

"No concerns about the timeline integrity, Pikachu. Write up two demerits for Ms. Aran here." Pikachu nodded in an over-offical way. Samus shot the pokemon a look, then, sighing out of exasperation, entered her gunship. As she stood in the doorway, she looked at Robin and Lucina.

"You two ready to head out?" She asked the two. Lucina had just finished hugging her friends and had moved on to her family. Cynthia and Sumia had given her a big hug, and Chrom, not to be outdone, gave her a true bear hug. Lucina stumbled into the gunship. As Zelda entered, she turned to Samus.

"I'm surprised he chose to come."

"Honestly, I'm just as surprised as you are." Zelda nodded. As she started towards the front, Samus called back. "Make sure Lucina is properly buckled in!" As she looked back down, she saw Robin and Cordelia talking to each other. Cordelia suddenly grabbed the tactician and pulled him into a deep kiss, much to the Shepherd's cheers and Severa's embarrassment. She turned to Falco, who was cheering as well.

"Falco, can you and Pikachu make sure the portal is still functional?" Falco turned around and lazily saluted before heading to his Arwing. As Robin walked up the ramp to the ship, Samus couldn't help herself.

"Ready to get going, loverboy? Or should we wait until later?" Robin looked sunburned with how bad he was blushing. "I'm kidding, get inside. We're going to go over safety procedure in a minute." As Robin hustled in, Samus took one last look at the Shepherds. She gave a thumbs up to the group. "I'll take care of them for you guys!" She called out confidently. The resulting cheer and farewell put a smile on the bounty hunter's face. Nice people. Hopefully we visit them often.

Robin was a worldly man, he knew that much. He had experienced a lot more than the average person would in their lifetime. But sitting in a large ship flying through the air at high speeds had never ventured into the realm of possibility. As he looked at Lucina, he noticed that he seemed to be the only one nervous. Lucina was laughing and smiling, almost as much as when they had finally defeated Grima. To be fair, I was too busy dying to really get a good look at people. He mused.

"Hey, Bubbles!" Samus yelled over her shoulder. Robin cringed. Samus had actually liked Gaius's nickname for him, and promised to use it when she thought it was appropriate. Gaius appreciated that. Robin didn't. "You wanted to see a spaceship portal." She motioned towards her right. "Well, there you go!" They were approaching a dark blue portal that was sat in the ocean. Robin could see another small craft approach the portal and fly through. They didn't come out the other side.

"Falco just cleared through portal 5, we're activating portal 2." Robin heard through the radio. Zelda, in the co-pilot's chair, touched her earpiece.

"Roger, Lucario." She replied. In his head, Robin imagined what this Lucario looked like. Maybe a tall armored warrior with a large axe? A spellcaster, lithe and fast on his feet? A large bump shook him from his thoughts. Lucina now looked concerned.

"Relax, just a little turbulence." Samus reassured them. "Happens all the time. Gotta get used to it." As they entered the portal, flashes of light peeked through the jelly-like substance of the portal. Samus touched several dials, and the ship seemed to slow down, though speed was relative with the non-motion of the portal. As they exited the portal, the ship made a comfortable stop in, well, Robin couldn't say. He stared, slack-jawed, at what looked to be several stories of various vehicles, both living and non-living. Hundreds of faceless creatures were doing what looked like inventory in the area. As he exited, he heard Lucina's gasp of disbelief. Robin looked around, and saw Falco. He and Pikachu were conversing with what looked to be a fox standing on hind legs. He also noticed another man, with a blue jumpsuit and red helmet, approach them. He waved at Samus frantically, Samus responding half-heartedly.

"Sammy! Don't tell you've broken the new guys already?!" To call the man bombastic was an understatement. He oozed confidence and friendliness. The new man threw out his hand to Robin. "Name's Captain Falcon, man! Pleased to meetcha!" Robin shook his hand, and felt his nearly break. The man's strength was inhuman! Falcon paused when he saw Lucina. "Sammy!" He sounded upset. "Who is this magnificent woman?" Samus passed by Captain Falcon, beckoning the others with her.

"Out of your league is what she is, Douglas." She said mockingly. Captain Falcon laughed, but didn't attempt to follow.

"What a pleasant man." Lucina said sarcastically. She blew a stray hair from her face.

"Oh, Cap is fine, once he gets used to you." Zelda said, waving off Samus's snort of derision. "He really only cares about Sammy anyways." she stuck her tongue out at the bounty hunter. The group reached Falco and his friend. The pilot turned around and smiled.

"Ah, here they are. Lucina, Robin, I'd like you to meet Fox McCloud." The fox smiled and bowed. Lucina and Robin returned the motion. "He's the team leader for Starfox, even if he's only the second best pilot on the team..." Fox playfully punched Falco on the arm. "Samus, Zelda, and I have to report back, but Fox is going to help you guys get used to the mansion and how things work around here while I go do his job better than him!" He ran off quickly before Fox could get out a comeback. Samus and Zelda excused themselves as well, leaving the two newbies alone.

"I'll remember that when I save your butt again!" Fox managed to blurt out. "Man, how did you deal with that guy?" He asked Lucina and Robin. They looked at each other and shrugged. There was a slightly awkward silence, before Fox broke it. "Okay... Well, let's show you around, no use staying here!" He turned around, and started heading towards a strange building in the middle of the hangar. Lucina followed immediately, but Robin paused. He felt as if someone was watching him... As he turned around, he caught a glimpse of something hiding behind one of the smaller ships. He didn't get a good look, but it looked like … an angel? He shook his head. That flight messed him up worse than he thought. He heard Lucina call out his name, and he ran to her.

"Mind the gap!" The voice appeared from nowhere, startling both Lucina and Robin.

"Don't worry about it," Fox tried not to laugh. "It's just a recorded message."

"Gods, that frightened me." Lucina took a deep breath. She looked at the compartment they were in. All three of them had taken seats across from the automatic doors. More witchcraft. Lucina groaned. The rest of the compartment was filled with more faceless people and what looked like several … mushrooms?

"Ah, Ganondorf!" Lucina looked up at the sound of Fox's startled voice. Another person had entered the tram. He was large man, and his dark skin only accented his bright red hair. He cast a large shadow, and not a normal shadow. It felt sinister, like the Robin they had met in Plegia. The one who turned into Grima. She noticed that Robin had broken into a cold sweat. The man seemed to loom over them … then calmly took a seat next to Fox.

"Good afternoon, Captain McCloud." His voice was deep and slightly gravelly. "I apologize for my demeanor, I just received news that horse is sick, I've been rather-" He finally noticed Robin and Lucina. "- And who are these people I have the honor of meeting?" Fox stuttered.

"R-right! Robin, Lucina, this is Ganondorf! He-he's a vet around these parts." Ganondorf bowed to Lucina and Robin, who quickly returned the favor.

"Now, Fox, don't sell yourself short." Ganondorf chuckled. "You've won the most tournaments out of any of us!" He clapped his hand onto Fox's shoulder. "And I have no doubt you'll pull through again!" The tram called out for the "Stables". Ganondorf stood up. "This is my stop. It was a pleasure to meet you two. We'll see a lot of each other in the future." As he left, all three of them let out huge sighs of relief. Fox was the first to speak.

"Man, that guy can be really scary." He was laughing, he was so nervous. "Ganondorf isn't someone you really want to mess with, guys." The other two nodded. There was no way they were getting near that man voluntarily.

After several minutes, they had finally reached their destination. Lucina was the first to spot it.

"Robin! Look!" She almost shrieked. "It looks like home!" Robin had to agree. Smash Mansion was a misnomer. The castle was as large as Ylisse's, even though the city was definitely more impressive. Huge glass skyscrapers surrounded the area, as well as a large park. The tram entered the center of the city, and as the train emptied, Fox took the lead out of the station.

"Oh my gods. Robin! They have sweet shops! And clothing stores! And ..." Lucina kept pointing out every new thing she saw. Robin was more speechless than anything. A place like this wasn't even in fairy tales. This was otherworldly.

"Lucina, you'll get time to shop later!" Fox called out. "Stick with me! You don't want to get lost!"

After what felt like hours of sightseeing the city, and getting food recommendations from Fox, the group finally reached the Mansion. Just past the front doors sat a young woman with red hair. In fact, Lucina could have sworn she looked just like...

"Anna?!" Robin cried out incredulously. The woman squealed and gave Robin a big hug, and then focused her attention onto Lucina. Lucina could barely move as the Secret Seller squeezed the life out of her.

"ROBIN AND LUCINA!" Anna cried out. "I am sooo glad to see you two! What are you doing-" she hit her forehead. "-silly me! We're registering you guys for the tournament!" She pulled out a clipboard. "Lucky for you I already took care of most of it, you just need to look it over!" She handed over the clipboard to Lucina, and grabbed another from the registration table. She looked at Fox. "Showing them everything?" She asked. Fox nodded.

"I wouldn't be a good host if I didn't!" Fox smiled. Lucina handed back the clipboard.

"Everything seems to be in order, Anna." She stated. "Though nicknames seem strange."

"Whatever, as long as it's not Bubbles." Robin declared dryly.

"Don't you worry, you two. I'm also your PR and image consultant, so you'll see a lot of me!" Anna winked. "But I still have 5 people left to register, so shoo!" She swung her clipboard at Robin. "Shoo!" Robin, Lucina, and Fox ran off into the foyer.

"Image consultant?" Robin muttered.

"Well, yeah. We have interviews, and represent our worlds." Fox said nonchalantly. "It's a nice thing to have. And Anna's pretty capable." Lucina froze.

"Interviews?" Lucina sounded hushed.

"Yeah? I mean, we all have to do it. They throw some easy questions out, and we answer." Fox turned to Lucina.

"Interviews." She looked frightened. Robin looked at Lucina, concerned.

"Lucina, you've convinced entire armies to fight an impossible war. I don't think this will be as hard." He said calmly. Lucina looked at Robin.

"It's much different, Robin! I've never talked about me!" She started stuttering. "W-what if they don't l-like me?! What if I come across as an i-idiot?!"

"That goes away pretty quickly. Don't worry, we're all here to help." Another voice from behind reassured Lucina. The group spun around. Two blue haired swordsmen and a man clad in green stood behind them. The middle man bowed to the group. "I am Marth, it's a pleasure to make your aquaintance."

Lucina stood for a second in shock. She slowly looked at Robin, and let out a scream of pure joy.

"Yep, you're definitely Sumia's daughter and Cynthia's sister." Robin groaned as Lucina began badgering her descendant while Fox rolled on the ground laughing.

"Dark Pit, reporting."

"Go ahead, Fairy Two"

"Seriously?"

"Yes, only code names, Fairy Two."

"Alright, Waddles the Wide."

"THAT'S NOT MY CODE NAME"

"I'm reporting in contact with Robin." Dark Pit sat in the hangar. He'd been in Smash mansion for three days, and he'd already been roped into doing stuff for the "Guild of Nefarity." or whatever. "Guy's got a nasty aura, but he looks like a goody-two-shoes."

"Well, it's a start." Growled a new voice. Obviously Bowser. "As long as Ganondorf isn't trying to get to him."

"Well, that too." Dark Pit said, wincing.

"What." Bowser's voice was low.

"Ganondorf already met him in the tram."

Dedede spluttered. "Unacceptable! We need to get him first, before those sissy do-gooders and that crazy madman do! The Guild needs a man with his talents!"

Dark Pit sighed. While he preferred their company to others, the most evil thing these guys did was drink milk from the carton. Anyways, with that other girl and the Zelda brigade and Starfox with him, he wasn't gonna be an easy one to get to.

"He better be worth it, and we better make his time worthwhile." Dark Pit said grumpily, and hung up.

Time to meet other Smashers! Next up: Chapter 8: Practice for the Presser!