Chapter 16: Lucina, Samus, and the Future

"Hello again, Lucina." The voice was distant, obscured between veils of water. Small towers of marble surrounded them, glowing under the full moon. Lucina blinked a couple of times, touching a pillar. It was cold and damp, making her recoil. The constant babbling of the water obscured her footsteps. She was under a small overhang, and slowly made her way out into the clearing. There, meditating over a small moonlit pool, floated Mewtwo. His eyes opened, and a bright purple light shown forth. "You have entered the dreamscape."

"Your dream?" Lucina was slightly confused. "I'm asleep?"

Mewtwo chuckled, floating over to the princess. "Yes. I find dreams to be the fishing net for the lost and troubled in the stream of consciousness." His face maintained it's stoic facade, a statue in living flesh. "It all seems very real, but rest assured, you're asleep in your bed."

"The stream of conscious. It's a fitting metaphor." Lucina replied. "Why do you think I'm troubled?"

"Know, Lucina." He replied. "It's not much of a mystery." Mewtwo looked amused. Lucina wasn't.

"And what of this? Is this in my head or yours?"

"Neither, in a way." Mewtwo said. "It helps not to think too hard about it."

Lucina sat on a large stone, facing Mewtwo. "I suppose I'm worried about the same things." She admitted.

"And yet, what seems the same is vastly different." Mewtwo stated. Lucina frowned. She didn't understand all humor, but she knew what she hated: riddles. "What I mean to say, is, you worry about the same person, but for different reasons." Mewtwo's body seemed to phase in and out of existence, leaving his head floating in mid-air. Lucina jumped back in alarm. "Ah, my apologies, the dream is not mine, so some strange things will happen." Mewtwo beckoned for Lucina to follow him. She slowly got up, following him behind a waterfall. After a short walk, the pair came upon a tunnel. "This dreamscape has haunted me for awhile, so forgive me for leading you around." He said to Lucina.

"Where is this?" Lucina asked. The tunnels had ancient etchings upon them, power seemingly oozing from the markings. She could feel a cold breeze coming from in front of her. No. Not a breeze. A chill.

"I wish I knew. Three different people have visualized this place over the past three days." Mewtwo admitted. "It is rather picturesque, so when Robin saw it, I didn't min-"

"Robin saw this?" Lucina blurted out. Mewtwo shot her a look of annoyance.

"-Yes, and I thought it to be a strange place of power at home." Both of them walked closer to the cold. "But Zelda saw it the next day, followed by Bowser. I found it prudent to investigate." His body manifested itself again, and Lucina gave out a unconscious gasp. "Please remain focused, child. You cannot help me if these trivial things bother you."

"I thought you were helping me!" Lucina was incredulous. What kind of game was Mewtwo playing?

"I will, but an opportunity has now presented itself." Mewtwo answered. "I would like your help, and I will … 'owe you one', as Captain Falcon would say." Lucina's brow furrowed. She finally spoke after what felt like several minutes.

"You have my assistance, for whatever it's worth." Lucina said. "What do you need me to do?"

"I need you to dissipate something for me." Mewtwo kept leading Lucina further down the tunnel. She began to see her breath. "Though I'm accustomed to seeing it much earlier."

"Dissipate?" She didn't notice Mewtwo stop next to her. As she kept walking, she found herself violently flung on the ground, the clatter of metal on stone echoed. In front of the duo was a glowing wall. "What is this sorcery?" Mewtwo seemed pleased.

"Ah, good." He said. "Zelda." Lucina looked at Mewtwo, confusion etched in her expression. "The other two only remembered a small portion of the tunnel." He explained. "Only Zelda knows this much."

"So this is Hylian?" Lucina asked.

"Perhaps." Mewtwo tapped the barrier. "Or this is a mental construct of unfulfilled feelings and desires. I mean, the difference is a matter of splitting hairs, to be honest."

Lucina tapped the barrier with Falchion. The sound was brittle and hollow. "What is this?"

"A mental barrier." Mewtwo answered. "Meant to keep prying eyes and ears out."

"Are we prying eyes?"

"Technically, but this isn't to stop just us. It's not just a subconscious barrier. This was placed here." Mewtwo's eyes glowed a moment. The barrier stretched and pulled, seemingly elastic yet equally untouchable. "Placed here so nobody could force it out of her." Lucina's eyes widened. The barrier pulsed once. Mewtwo looked at the princess. "Do you have any theories?"

Lucina touched the barrier again, this time with her hand. The barrier was cold, like a sheet of ice. However, it bent to Lucina's touch. She bit her lip. "Why do you want my opinion?" She asked. "Wouldn't Robin or Zelda be better-"

"-Hardly. Zelda won't be able to tell me even if she wanted to. And Robin is …" Mewtwo paused. "Well, I trust you more, honestly." Lucina frowned slightly. "I know you trust Robin, little Princess." The Pokemon didn't meet her eyes. "But I must confess, a man I cannot read is a man I cannot trust."

"You cannot read his mind?"

"I cannot read his intentions." Mewtwo sounded slightly annoyed. "It's not like his mind is blank. I've seen this in his mind. I've seen memories and desires. But it's all muddled and contradictory." He looked back down the tunnel. "That's why I'm asking you. You're smart, and you have obvious and pure intent. It's admirable." The barrier pulsed again. "So I ask you, what do you think is behind this barrier?"

Lucina squinted. She felt the cold radiate from the barrier. There was … a whisper. Maybe it was intuition, but Lucina felt like she knew what to do. She closed her eyes and once again tapped the barrier. She saw flurries of white, shimmering lakes of ice, and the shadow of a large mountain. All she could hear was the howl of the wind whirling around her face. As she opened her eyes, the silence of the tunnel was back. "A mountain. Snow." Lucina stated. Mewtwo nodded quietly. As he nodded, Lucina felt a rush from her toes. It felt like she was falling. She looked back up at the Pokemon. "What's happening?" She found herself shouting.

"You're waking up, child." Mewtwo sounded amused. "That's the problem with dreams. They always end."

Mewtwo started to melt away, replaced with a horrifying vision. She could see three pairs of glowing red eyes, embers surrounding an approaching blaze. As the world faded away, Lucina started to scream.

"Wake up, kid!" Lucina almost leapt out of bed, her head slamming into Samus's. The bounty hunter grasped her head in pain. "Dammit, that hurts!" The blue haired princess was breathing heavily. Samus touched her shoulder. "Bad dream?"

"I paid Mewtwo a visit." She was short, still panting slightly. "It ended rather roughly."

"What a prick." Samus responded. "You want me to give Mewtwo a piece of my mind?" Lucina shook her head.

"He wanted help, and I gave it." She shook her head again. She felt a slight prick of pain. "I doubt he intended it to end the way it did."

"What do you remember?" Samus sat down next to Lucina, worry reflected in her eyes.

Lucina grabbed her head in a vain attempt to recall everything. "I … remember a chamber and a tunnel. It was quiet. There was water." She squinted in pain. "There was snow. Lots of snow, and a long shadow."

"Sounds like a picnic." Samus interrupted. "Don't tell me you got up screaming from that!"

Lucina shot Samus a look of annoyance. "I fell. It felt like forever, like I'd never hit solid ground. When I woke up, it felt like slamming into earth." She finished. Samus merely nodded.

"Classic 'falling forever' nightmare." The bounty hunter stretched, looking more catlike for a brief moment. "Really justifying the screaming, Lucy." Lucina rolled her eyes. Samus didn't even attempt to be subtle with the sarcasm that time. "There wasn't more?"

"No, not that I can remember." Lucina was telling a small lie, but it was silly, dreaming of monsters long gone. She slowly got out of bed. "Don't we need to be preparing for tonight?"

"Yeah, but if you need a moment, it's cool."

Lucina yawned. "No, it's alright. I need to put this behind me." She walked towards the bathroom. "I'll meet you in the training room, Ms. Aran." Samus opened her mouth, but thought better of it. As she walked out, she turned to face her teammate.

"Kid, we've had this talk before, but, you know you can talk to me, right?" Lucina nodded, hiding her face from the bounty hunter.

"When I'm ready." She replied. "When I'm ready."

"Feeling better, Lucina?" Samus asked in between sit ups. She was wearing an orange uniform that showed off her midriff. Lucina closed her eyes involuntarily, before reopening them. "Nice sweater, by the way." Lucina looked down at her outfit. She had merely removed her armor, and was wearing her blue tunic. She was befuddled. Nothing she was wearing resembled winter clothing in any way … "The long sleeves?" Samus interrupted her train of thought.

"Oh." Lucina responded. "This is as indecent as I dare look, though!" Samus rolled her eyes, standing up. Lucina remembered a story that Kjelle told her. Apparently, Severa had gotten distracted by Kjelle's … strong features. She didn't know why the story came to mind, but she did feel rather inferior to the bounty hunter. By Naga, how can I ever hope to keep up with …

"Lucy, you can always take a picture." Samus was clearly amused by Lucina's sudden lack of focus. "Don't tell me that you're losing focus!" She quickly flung her leg at the princess. Lucina jumped back, sliding on the ground. She shouted out in surprise.

"What's the meaning of this?" She seemed more stunned than angry. Samus placed a hard palm into her shoulder. Lucina grunted in pain, attempting to roll out of the way. She received a quick elbow to the ribs as a deterrent.

"We're partners." Samus stated between attacks. "But more than that, I'm your teacher." A jab to the stomach. She felt a palm deflect it. Good.

"I have my father! He taught me all I need to know with the blade." Lucina flicked out her left leg, scraping Samus's arm.

"Well, you don't have your sword, Lucy." Lucina gritted her teeth. What was this? Samus had never shown any intention of attacking her before. Why today? Another palm, this time to the leg. "You're brilliant, kid. But you're raw. Undisciplined." Lucina flailed with her arms. A kick to the stomach stopped her forward momentum. "And you get distracted easily. It'll get you." Punch. "Or a friend." Kick. "Or a loved one." Lucina yelped in pain. "Killed one day." Samus felt a punch get past her defenses. A dull pain on her cheek.

Lucina was smiling slightly. "It seems like you're already trying for that." She said sarcastically.

Samus smiled. She patted her teammate's shoulder. "Get all that out of your system?" Lucina nodded. "Good. Now let's get healed up. You may be undisciplined, but you can hurt."

"Geez, I say! You two are worse than Vincent!" A bright, peppy voice entered the room. She was wearing shorts, and a floral printed tank top. Over all of that was a small black vest. Her short dark brown hair fell around her face, and a black headband was tied around her head. She wore long brown boots and a strange glove-like object on her left arm. Her face reminded Lucina of Cynthia. Eagerness seemed to bubble out from her body, and Lucina found it rather … infectious.

"And who are you?" Samus asked. The girl held out her right hand.

"Name's Yuffie Kisaragi! But you can call me the Great Ninja Yuffie! I'm your team's public relations guy!" Almost as a side note, she added. "Also, I'mamemberoftheboard."

"Public Relations?" Lucina was confused. "Why would we need something like that?"

"Well, to be honest, you guys don't really need one. People love you two. But-" Yuffie held up her hand before Lucina could interrupt. "I'm here to also 'polish your image', as Tifa would say."

Samus rolled her eyes. "Aw man, how could I forget Tifa!" Dripping with sarcasm. "What kind of polishing?"

Yuffie held her hands up defensively. "Hey, hey! I'm just doing what Ms. Anna and Mr. Nook suggested! I'm only here because Tifa and Cid pushed me to do it!"

"Stop saying random names like they mean anything." Samus commanded. "I'm not going to refuse your assistance, but I'd like to know what it is you're doing."

"You stop bein' a giant jerk! How about that?" Yuffie retorted. Lucina held back the bounty hunter. "Listen, you're pretty lucky to be helped by the White Rose of the Wutai! I'm just here to make sure you adhere to borin' rules I don't care about, and to help make you guys look almost as cool as me!"

"Lucina, please let me go so I can pick this Rose's petals off." Samus said through gritted teeth. Lucina held on tighter.

"I don't think that's the best idea, Samus. Let's hear her out." She replied. Samus relaxed slightly, and Lucina let go. Yuffie relaxed as well.

"Cool! Well," Yuffie began. "Y'see, this tournament is a spectator sport. People like to root for fighters here! Now, you guys are plenty popular, so our focus is to get the crowd behind you! Anna had a brilliant idea of introduction songs. Said she saw a place that did it all the time."

"Introduction songs? Like a processional?" Lucina asked. Yuffie made a face of feigned disgust.

"How about something that won't bore the paying masses?" Yuffie started gesturing, turning away from the two. "Something exciting! Mysterious! Intense! Basically, me. But in a song!" As she turned around, she flinched. " … Right. You two should get healed, we can set this up in a couple of minutes." She did a quick cartwheel out of the room. Samus groaned.

"If I pin her down, can you please give her a quick punch to the head?" Was all she muttered as she followed suit.

After all the hubbub surrounding Robin and the new transporter, Samus decided that the trio should take it safe and use a regular portal. Yuffie said it wouldn't change anything. A confusing statement until she got sick in the portal dimension. Disgusting, but Samus did think it humorous that inevitably, someone would get a nice little souvenir from the portal.

As they exited, Lucina felt a sense of … familiarity. The walls were a dark brown brick, torches lined the walls. However, there were still some modern touches, mainly from toads and wire frames frantically running down the service halls. Lucina, now wearing her armor and holding her father's sword, took a step forward, before she heard a deep, booming voice.

"If it's not the Princess of Ylisse herself!" A large barrel-chested man, skin eternally tanned and eye covered with a patch, embraced Lucina quickly. Lucina smiled and attempted to return the embrace.

"Khan Basilio!" She cried out in joy. "Whatever are you doing here?!" The Khan laughed.

"Whaddya mean, kid?" He asked. "We're in Regna Ferox!" Lucina looked at Yuffie in shock. She merely shrugged her shoulders.

"I was gonna tell you, but you seemed to be figuring it out just fine." She said sheepishly. "Consider it a slight home court advantage, as it were!"

Lucina turned to the Khan. "Basilio! Are all the Shepherd's here? Can I see them?" Basilio held out his hands.

"Whoa there, missy." He laughed. "Yes, everyone is here to see you. But I'm already stretching enough rules here. Technically, you can't visit with contestants, and that includes me."

"Luckily, I managed to pull a couple of strings!" Yuffie interjected. "But it'll have to wait until after the match." Lucina turned around and hugged the ninja. Samus even put a hand on her shoulder.

"I take back most of what I've said." She said, smirking. "You're not a complete tool."

Yuffie smiled, but a beeping coming from a pocket in her vest quickly brought her back. "Oh shoot!" She shouted. "We've got to get you guys set up!" Basilio smiled.

"Good luck, kid!" He shouted, as the trio moved away from him. "Hope this goes better than the last time you fought here!" Lucina gave back a hearty wave. Yuffie looked back at the princess.

"You fought here before?" She asked. "I figured royalty only saw the fighting." Lucina nodded.

"Yes, I fought my father."

"Ooh, that sucks."

"I lost, but I enjoyed it."

"Educational?"

"Very."

The halls were echoing with the cheers of a full Feroxi Arena. Apparently, Marth and Corrin had just gotten past Captain Falcon and his teammate Greninja. Samus wasn't too sure what or who Greninja was, but beating Captain Falcon did take some skill. She hopped up and down, loosening up her muscles. She looked at her teammate. Lucina was kneeling on one knee, mumbling to herself. "Praying? Seems unlike you." She said.

Lucina looked up. "Normally I'm not. But anything helps, right?"

Samus shrugged. "Can't argue with that." She said to herself. As the two exited the tunnel to the roaring crowds, Samus heard the distinct booming of a bass. Samus smiled. The song was a classic in her time. On her earth. Yuffie was annoying, but she did do her research.

Or, perish the thought, she might have good taste.

The cheers themselves rose to an almost painful level, as the crowd realized what team was coming out of the tunnel. Samus turned to Lucina. She was pale, staring blankly ahead.

"What do I say, Samus? What do I do?" She asked the bounty hunter. Samus showed no emotion, but placed a reassuring hand on her back.

"Just go out there and take care of business." She replied. "Showboating is for meatheads who spend too much time trying to be great."

"Those are my people out there, though."

"Then they'll love you no matter what you do. Give them a wave and a smile. That's all they need."

The air was hot, heavy from anticipation and humidity. As they walked out the tunnel, the cheers of "Lucina!" echoed throughout the arena. Samus hopped onto a raised platform. Considering the opponent, the air may be the only advantage she'd have.

Lucina took a deep breath, slowly unsheathing her sword. Falchion glittered in the light, reflecting on the ceiling. The cheering became a frenzied cacophony, the roar overpowering the announcers. Lucina glanced over to the royal box. She caught the blue hair of her father, and a flash of red hair. Upon closer inspection, Cordelia and Severa were standing a row behind her father and mother. Lucina caught the sound of the announcer, and readied herself. Distractions could wait.

Samus had warned Lucina about their opponents.

"It's the one match where we won't have a distinct speed advantage, Lucy." Samus was standing by the projector screen, a marker in hand. "We'll be playing catch up if we try to outrun him, so we should plan on forcing him into a predictable pattern."

Lucina raised her hand, tentatively. "Um … who are we talking about, exactly?" Samus pressed a button on the projector. The film flickered to life, and showed Samus in her full body armor. In one moment, she was facing the right. There was a blue flash, and she was on the ground. Lucina leaned forward, in a vain attempt to catch a glimpse of the blur. "What was that?" There was another flash, and Samus was flung across the stage. The real bounty hunter chuckled.

"I remember that punch. That one hurt pretty bad." She remarked, before turning to Lucina. "That's our opponent. Sonic the Hedgehog."

"Appropriate name." Lucina commented. "How are we to compete with that speed?"

Samus smiled. The video continued with Samus flying into the air. For the first time in the film, Lucina could see Sonic. He was … underwhelming. It seemed like a trend for small, unremarkable creatures to have great power. However, in the air, Samus was suddenly evenly matched. Well, Sonic was still faster, but Samus could now dodge some of his attacks.

"We take him to the air, Lucy." She said. "And I'm not wearing armor this time. Too slow for this match."

"How about his partner?"

Sonic looked the same as the film showed. There were some boos from the crowd, but he took in stride, smirking all the way into his spot. Behind him stood a blond haired boy, around Lucina's age. He wore a black long-sleeved shirt with red vest and shorts, all sporting strange patterns etched in blue dye and metal. In his hand was a large red sword with glowing blue accents. The sword seemed to pulse, as if it had a heart of it's own. He waved enthusiastically to Lucina, who returned the greeting with slightly less excitement. Shulk and Lucina were quite alike, children with responsibility loaded upon their backs. She hadn't talked to him much, but he seemed agreeable.

It was obvious who the crowd was rooting for, and Lucina was, in all honesty, thankful. It felt good to know the crowd was behind her. She took a deep breath. Just follow the plan, we'll be fine.

She barely heard the countdown, but as "1" blared across the stadium, she took a look at her teammate. Samus swung her whip threateningly, before crouching slightly, a cat ready to pounce.

Samus bolted forward, barely dodging Sonic's first attack. She swung out with her whip, the plasma cracking at the end. Sonic stopped himself short, and Lucina saw him step back from the attack. Lucina was surprised. It had been several seconds, and Sonic and Samus were fully engaged in their battle. However, Shulk had not yet reached Lucina. Samus had said that he was slow, but this …

"Back-slash!" He cried from across the map. Lucina saw Shulk fling himself into the air, before coming down a few feet in front of her. The shockwave pushed the swordswoman back several feet. She caught a slightly green glow coming from his sword. "Gotta be careful, mate!" Shulk said. "Your opponents can change at any moment!" He slashed forward, but Lucina caught the slash with her blade. She countered, and Shulk rolled backwards, barely dodging the counter. Now he was grinning. "That isn't gonna work with me!" He taunted. "I can see the future!" Lucina swung again, and felt her sword contact a hard surface. She felt a boot connect with her stomach, and she started sliding towards the edge. When did the edge get that close? She felt her left hand grab her sword, which oddly enough, didn't move. She heard a pop, and great waves of pain rolled over her left arm and through her brain. But she was still inbounds. Slowly, Lucina got up. Samus was holding her own against the blue blur. She had grabbed the hedgehog and flung him to the opposite side of the stage. Shulk attempted to attack, but she was too fast. Shulk dodged the onslaught before turning his attention back to Lucina. "Sorry, mate. I don't think I have a chance against your partner." Lucina blocked another slash, her sword held firm agains the now yellow Monado. Lucina knew Shulk could see the future, and with the restriction patches, Samus had figured out how much future he could see.

3 seconds. Lucina grimaced. She only had one attack that could go for longer than 3 seconds. I'd prefer to have two arms …

It had taken years for Lucina to be able to fight properly with Falchion. Years of sweat, blood, and the smell of death in her nostrils. In that time, she learned plenty of techniques from stories about her father. Stories from the past. One day, several months after arriving in the past, she found a book about the Hero King Marth. His attacks suited someone of a smaller stature. It was then Lucina decided how she would fight from then on. She felt her right arm strain to carry the full weight of Falchion, but this was the only chance. Lucina's blade struck metal, but she quickly swung again, knocking the Monado to the side. The blade whistled, carving through the air. Definitely past 3 seconds. She heard Shulk yell in surprise, jumping back from her. She grasped her ruined left shoulder. Definitely dislocated. She winced when her hand made contact. Not now. Focus on the plan. Dull it out … Lucina was brought back by a war cry from Sonic. The hedgehog had finally decided to switch opponents. Samus had done a number on him, his body covered from head to toe in bruises and cuts.

"Shulk. Hmm … says here that the Monado can change his physical strength and speed." Samus said, looking through his profile. "He's really slow, though. We can take advantage of that."

"How?" Lucina leaned over, curious.

"Sandbagging."

"Sandbagging?"

Samus nodded her head. "It's an old Earth term. Basically, going slower than you actually can to deceive your rivals." She started scribbling on a board on the wall. "Okay. So what we do is have you go slow against Shulk. Hopefully, we can convince Sonic that you're slow, and then we can switch."

"I have to fight Sonic?" Lucina was nervous. She saw how fast he was. Samus shrugged.

"If I do my job, he'll already be fighting at about fifty percent." She said.

"But …" Lucina paused. "Sandbagging?"

"Sandbagging."

Well, Samus had definitely done her job.

"Man, these grind-it-out battles are the worst!" He exclaimed, trying to hit Lucina. He managed to graze her right leg. "Huh, thought I'd actually connect." Another punch, barely dodged by Lucina. She could hear the wind coming from the speedster's fists. Getting hit would hurt. A lot. She could hear Sonic grunt in frustration. "You looked so slow fighting Shulk, how are you so fast?" Lucina caught Sonic with the hilt of her sword, knocking him over. She grabbed the hedgehog, and threw him, feeling her right arm strain with his weight. As he flew off the edge, Lucina proudly looked down.

"Sandbagging! It's called sandbagging!" She exclaimed. Giggling, she turned to face Samus. Shulk had already gone off the edge, and the bounty hunter was walking over. "It sounds funny when you say it a lot!" Lucina exclaimed. Samus smiled as the buzzer went off, signifying their victory.

The camera flashes were slightly dazing for the trio as they exited the stage. Yuffie had set Lucina's shoulder, and now she wore a sling. The ninja was now clearing a path for the slightly wounded smashers. Lucina tried to look serious, but she couldn't manage it. Hearing all of her friends fervently cheering her name after their victory, even when in a lot of pain.

"Eyes up front, slugger." Samus gave Lucina a slight push. "Looking back can be saved for later!" She smiled at her teammate. "Let's go to the interview room."

The interview room was rather large, with lots of press members from various regions already yelling over each other. Lucina sat between Samus and Yuffie at a large table with microphones. A man in a suit called for everyone's attention. "We'll take a few questions from the press now." He said.

Yuffie pointed to a what looked like a turtle in a suit. "We'll start with you." She said. The turtle stood up, his shell pushing his chair slightly backwards. He cleared his throat.

"Koop A. Troopa, Dinosaur Island Bugle." He said. "Lucina, what's the extent of your injury, and will it affect how you fight the rest of this tournament?" Lucina looked over to Yuffie, who nodded encouragingly.

"Well, I haven't been to the doctor, but I think it's just a dislocated shoulder." She stated. "I should be alright for the next battle." Next question.

"So Samus, you seemed to be on pace with Sonic for most of the match."

"I thought it was pretty lucky, to be honest. It's amazing what years of wearing a heavy metal suit will do for you."

"Speaking of the suit, is this the new fighting style for you this tournament?"

"Nah, people like it when I mindlessly blow stuff up, so I'm not abandoning anything." Samus said sarcastically. The press laughed a little bit.

"Yuffie, is it strange managing, not fighting?"

Yuffie was taken aback. "A question? For me? You from Gaia or something?" The man nodded his head. "Welp, I think it's pretty fun to watch these two work, and honestly, I wouldn't want to fight these two!" She punched Lucina on the shoulder. Thankfully the right one. "Next question?"

"Lucina, how did it feel to win in front of your people?"

Lucina paused, before moving towards the mic. "Um … It was really special. I mean, it's an honor to be here, but to have my first fight here?" She took a shake breath, she could feel tears welling up. "It's really something wonderful. It's only the first fight, but it was something I'll never forget." Lucina wiped her eyes. "Sorry, I-I don't know why this is so …" Yuffie grabbed her hand.

"Thank you for your time, ladies and gents!" The ninja escorted the two out of the room. "Have a good day!"

Robin sat in his hospital bed. The doctors refused to let him leave the room, much less go to Regna Ferox. He sat in his room, eating popcorn and calling Cordelia periodically. Lucina's match was a little stressful, but it quickly became clear why her team was rated the third strongest team. Despite her injuries, Lucina fought well and inevitably, Robin found himself cheering them as they left the arena. As he finally settled down, he heard a knock on the door. Anna walked in, smirking at the tactician.

"Having fun, are we?" She asked. Robin rolled his eyes. "Don't worry, I saw the match too. Chrom's kid is pretty good." She sat down next to the bed, grabbing a handful of popcorn. "So … how are you feeling?"

Robin squeezed his hand, flexing slightly. "Good. I'm under observation until tonight, then they'll let me go." He paused. "What have you learned?"

"Not much. Zelda's not the talkative type." Anna tossed a piece of popcorn in her mouth. "I sent a courier to Cordelia. Maybe she can get Tharja and Miriel's help."

Robin cringed. "You … know that Cordelia didn't know anything about this, right?" Robin asked.

Anna laughed. "Not until I told her. She was pretty upset, Robby." Robin squirmed a little bit. "You can't have me keep a secret if she doesn't know. I'm friend number ten or eleven on your list!" Now Robin was smirking.

"You were, before you started dating Stahl." Anna choked on her popcorn, furiously grabbing at and chugging a glass of water.

"How did you figure that out, officer?" She hissed. "Spying on me?"

Robin laughed. "No, you're just not the most subtle person." He took a handful of popcorn out of the bowl. "And yeah, now that nobody will accuse you of trying to seduce me, you're a solid four or five. Sorry, still can't beat out Cordy or Chrom, though."

Anna pouted. "Who else is above me?" She asked. Robin shrugged.

"Probably Gaius. He and I know quite a bit more about each other than you can imagine." Anna smiled.

"I don't know about that, I can imagine quite a bit." She joked. She stood up and moved to the TV. "Zelda and Cloud are having a match. It should be over by now, if you want to check it out." Robin nodded, and Anna changed the channel.

The screen was glowing gold, and Anna stepped back, covering her eyes. Robin could make out a figure aiming an arrow at another figure. As the arrow left the bow, the figure flew off the edge of the stadium. There was silence, then the crowd began to cheer. The announcer finally spoke up.

"I can't believe it! For the first time, a number 1 seed has fallen to an 8 seed! Despite Cloud and Ryu taking each other out, Zelda has managed to defeat Fox! The winner is … ZELDA!"

Robin and Anna looked at each other in shock.

Thank you all for your patience! These last couple of weeks have been crazy busy!

I want to thank all of the reviewers for all of your comments, it really helps me out and keeps me motivated! There were only a couple questions, but I'll answer them here.

Robotortoise: I've always been a fan of the idea of Palutena being really into 'being human', which in turn makes her sarcastic. It helps that she's very much like that in the new Kid Icarus.

Guests:

Chapter 10: Robin's kinda aware of Lucina's feelings, but Robin also has a tendency, much like Chrom, to be kinda oblivious. Part of him thought that she was just messing around. Severa, however, is ... well ... Severa. Even if she reciprocated feelings, I don't think she'd be willing to admit it.

Chapter 13: Thanks! Yeah, there was a saxophone conference. Very classical oriented, but fun and interesting! I imagine Robin as one of the friends I went to the conference with; he tends to just lose himself in his work once someone mentions it, but is rather silly otherwise.

Chapter 14: Yeah, Twilight Princess has one of my favorite worlds, even though it's not my favorite Zelda game. The Faron Woods, Arbiter's Grounds, and Snowpeak are such cool places, and that Link is actually a pretty good character for a mute character with no backstory.

Chapter 15: The members of the board are all side characters from games that I felt strongly about and had the proper motivation to be members of an executive board of a company. Anna was one of my favorite Shepherds, despite being rather one-dimensional at first glance. She's enjoyable to write.

Reviews, comments, and questions are always loved and appreciated! Thank you for listening!

Next Chapter: Robin and Samus meet the Werepenguin