"You're serious!?" shouted Frederick.

Gaius nodded, grinning at the bag of sweets Chrom had given him. "The weapon doesn't lie. If you got chosen, that means you're Blue's super distant cousin. Royal bloodlines don't fade away over time nor do they diminish in potency by mixing with more 'common' blood."

"I can't believe this," Chrom said in awe. "This is…unbelievable! I'm not even sure how to process this."

"Blue, you've spent WAY too many nights sleeping in dust in that royal library of yours. I thought you would've figured it out right away when Siegfried chose him."

Chrom beamed eagerly, ignoring the slight jab at his intellect. "So which Nohrian royal is he descended from?"

"…If I had to guess, I would say Ol' Frederickson would be next in line for the Nohrian throne if it still existed, not you."

Frederick blinked in confusion. "I beg your pardon?"

"See, the Nohrian royal family was kinda…messed up," the thief explained with a slight wince, trying to find the right words. "Let's just say King Garon couldn't settle with one woman and ended up with a bunch of kids with different mothers; women that all pined for his power. What resulted from that was what was known as the Concubine Wars, where all of the mothers tried to 'impress' Garon by targeting the children of other mistresses. By the time the issue resolved itself, only four kids managed to survive into adulthood; one of which was Blue's ancestor: Prince Leo."

"Gods…Why would King Garon—"

"Despair," Gaius continued. "His first love and wife, Queen Katerina, died at some point after she birthed her first—and only—child. When he married again, that queen eventually died too. After that, he completely fell apart emotionally. I think that played a big part in his decision to conquer Hoshido besides Nohr's bad climate."

"I see…" Chrom muttered, feeling his initial hatred of the Nohrian king wane just a bit. "That child of Queen Katerina's…Are you saying he or she was Frederick's ancestor?"

"Yep, and he wasn't just any normal kid. He was Xander, Crown Prince of Nohr. Judging by what I do know about the guy, it's very likely. The man was Siegfried's former master and he was a no-nonsense, all-business type of guy just like Freddy Bear. To be honest, Xander makes the most sense when compared to the other royals. While Frederick is overprotective and coddling, he does respect your wishes and personal boundaries to the best of his ability. And he's neither bookish nor the bubbliest person you've ever met."

Frederick bristled at the accusation, but remained silent. Chrom let out a light chuckle at the reaction before turning back to Gaius. "I think we get the idea, but I doubt our ancestors have that much of an influence on our personalities today. I mean, I don't exactly fit the description of who Prince Leo was, do I?"

The thief smirked. "I beg to differ. Considering the fact that you willingly spent the past week living in a library, I think your foot fits inside Prince Leo's footsteps rather well."

Chrom's face flushed red. "Okay, I'll admit you got me there. But I doubt I share any other qualities with him."

"Yeah. Keep deluding yourself if it glazes your cupcakes."

"…Really?"

"Diligent and constantly seeks to improve himself? Check. Not arrogant despite your royal status? Check. Quite a charmer with the ladies? Che—"

"Okay! I get it!" Chrom snapped, his face fully red like a ripe tomato. "You can stop now!"

Gaius couldn't help but laugh. "Alright, alright; I'll stop teasin' ya. But you get my point? You're more like your ancient forefathers than you realize. Heck, if you think about it, the big bro is still looking after the little bro even after all this time."

"But…I still don't understand how that came to be," Frederick replied warily. "If what you say is true and I somehow possess an ancient, royal bloodline, then how did it get mixed up with the common masses?"

"Yeah…Er…I was kinda hoping to avoid that conversation," Gaius admitted with a sigh. "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but all kingdoms eventually fall. It's a sad, but true fact. No matter how just or pure the royal family may be, there will be dissenters who will never be satisfied until they see a kingdom and their rulers burn. War erupts from that and the unforgiving hellfire threatens to take every living thing in its wake. That's exactly what happened to Nohr and Hoshido. Some unnamed evil arose and squashed both kingdoms into dust, forcing the remaining royal family members to go into hiding among commoners."

Chrom felt a chill go down his spine. "Unnamed evil?"

"This is where I can't give you any concrete answers, Blue," Gaius replied, a melancholy tone to his voice. "I only have information that previous Saizos have recorded throughout history. All I do know is that an army of semi-invisible soldiers came from nowhere and raided both Nohr and Hoshido. Mindless bloodshed continued for centuries, threatening to end all human life until Naga rose up and quelled the fighting with her Divine Dragon posse. It was said she fought with the leader of the nameless evil and almost died in the process."

"Gods…"

"Both Hoshido and Nohr were once great and powerful realms, but they've been reduced to a mere fairytale told to babes barely out of their cradles. They were completely obliterated and almost erased from history. All that physically remains is the sacred weapons and the blood that flows through the veins of the royals' descendants. Cursed blood it may seem, but you should be honored that you're keeping their legacy alive. Without you, there'd be no evidence that those kingdoms had ever existed."

Both Chrom and Frederick were silent, slowly soaking in the information the thief/ninja had just given them. Of all the things to expect, hearing about the complete annihilation of Hoshido and Nohr wasn't what Chrom had envisioned. If anything, it made the weight of the knowledge that much heavier. He knew the kingdoms had disappeared over time, but he never imagined such a horrible fate had befallen them.

"…Did you say semi-invisible soldiers appeared?" Frederick suddenly questioned, breaking Chrom out his musings. "What do you mean by that?"

"Exactly how I said it, Freddy Bear. Bodies completely see through, except for a faint, but distinct, outline—" Gaius paused when he noticed the disturbed look on Frederick's face. "You okay? You look like you just swallowed a Super-Sour Sucker."

"Milord?" Frederick turned to Chrom, concerned. "Takumi reported something similar, did he not?"

Chrom stiffened. "He did. You don't think…?"

"If all of this is to be believed…then I fear that something sinister might be happening under our noses. We will have to be diligent, more so than ever before. I do not wish to find you or Lissa in the same state that boy was that day."

"Does that mean you're willing to help clear Takumi's name?" the prince replied with a smirk. "If your suspicions are right, then that proves he's innocent and he needs all the support he can get. Am I wrong?"

Frederick closed his eyes in acceptance, sighing. "I might have…erroneously condemned our archer friend; a fact I will have to remedy if—and only if—my suspicions turn out to be true. Until then, he and Robin remain criminals at large and I will apprehend them both if it comes to that."

"To serve with only the best intentions for the kingdom…a mindset fit for a prince's descendant."

"Milord, I am only a humble knight. Being chosen by a destructive sword such as Siegfried will never make me a prince. As far as I'm concerned, my duty is to serve the Noble House of Ylisse, not the forgotten Kingdom of Nohr," the Great Knight replied. "For now, we must focus on the issue at hand."

"Right. Our true culprit."

"Okay, ya got me. I'm completely lost," a very confused Gaius interrupted. "Am I missing something here?"

Chrom sighed. "Well, Gaius…It's like this…"

The lingering echoes of sinister laughter jolted her awake.

Robin flew upright, sweat dripping down her brow as her chest heaved from the lack of oxygen. Her heart pounded viciously against her ribcage, making it painful to breathe. She held her arms and curled in on herself, trying to focus and force the nauseating feeling away. Slow, agonizing minutes passed by before the rocks in her lungs lightened enough for her to breathe normally. She sat in silence on her makeshift bed of hay and spare linen blankets, trembling from the fleeting feeling of distress and raw sorrow. She took in deep gasps of air, trying her best to calm down.

The nightmares were getting worse.

She never remembered what happened in them, but always awoke feeling like she had committed a great atrocity she knew she would never forgive herself for. What she did, she never knew; only that it was something horrible.

Now uncomfortably awake, Robin took notice of the dreary atmosphere of the room. Dust coated every inch of stone, from the walls to the floor. She saw an abandoned spider's web hanging in one of the corners, dried insect husks still sticking to the nearly invisible threads. The light of the full moon glistened, lighting up a small rectangular area on the floor right near her feet. Robin sighed, feeling even worse than before. Reluctantly, she stood up and patted herself off. The tiny pitter-patter of sand and dirt against the floor sounded so much louder than it was supposed to.

"I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight after that. So much for a full eight hours…" she thought with a frown. "Maybe some fresh air will do me some good."

She slowly made her way through the dank hallways towards the stairs that led her to the roof. The Plegian sky was clear, tiny stars twinkling against the navy canvas. A few crows still lingered about, probably sensing that Henry was still within the vicinity. She absentmindedly wondered how they knew that when the boy was nowhere to be seen. Robin then blinked when she saw someone else there, sitting and gazing up at the stars.

"Takumi? What are you doing up?"

The silver-haired youth snapped his head towards her, topaz eyes wide with anxiety and fear. It gradually melted away when he recognized that Robin was no threat. He let out a sigh, turning away from her. He had buried his face into his knees, arms wrapped tightly around his legs. Robin frowned as she walked over to his side, sitting beside him.

"Nightmares keeping you awake?" she tentatively asked. He nodded. "Me too."

"What do you dream about?" came the muffled reply.

Robin bit her lip at his hoarse voice. "I feel like I've killed someone very important to me with my own hands. I didn't want to, but something forced me to. Every time I experience it, I'm left with a sense of doubt about who I truly am and I wonder how much blood is actually on my hands. Maybe it's a memory; or perhaps a premonition. I'm unsure. Either way, it makes me uneasy."

"I'm sorry you feel that way."

"Do you want to talk about yours?" Robin paused, mentally slapping herself for her insensitivity. "Actually, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. Forget I said anything."

"I feel like I'm living a nightmare…"

"Why do you say that?"

"I finally had a chance to live my life…and I threw it all away. Basilio, Lon'qu, and Olivia gave me a home and the Shepherds became my family, albeit a dysfunctional one," Takumi replied with a small laugh. "You've tried to get me to open up and Chrom was so persistent on earning my trust, even when he didn't need to. Lissa liked to prank me, but she did it so I could loosen up and enjoy myself. But it's all gone now. I'll never be able to experience what that's like again. I'm sorry for taking it all for granted."

"You didn't know what would happen. Don't blame yourself."

"Every night it's the same thing," Takumi choked out. "I'm frozen in place while I watch someone die. And I'm reminded over and over again that I'm worthless…and I'd be better off d—"

"Don't you DARE say that!"

Takumi jolted upright at the outburst. Robin looked at him, seeing despair and hopelessness in his eyes. She felt her heart clench inside her chest. How many times had she failed to hear his voice, grated and worn from screams caused by nightmares? How many sleepless nights had he gone through, afraid to bear witness to his greatest fears and regrets?

How could she be so thoughtless?

Robin wrapped her arms around him, bringing him into a tight hug. Fingers dug into fabric, clutching them as if Takumi would disappear if they let go. After hearing what was just said, Robin feared it might actually happen one day if she wasn't careful. There was so much ahead of him; so much he was meant to do. She wouldn't let him fall victim to such vile thoughts again.

"You are the strongest person I've ever met, Takumi," she said, praying to Naga that he would believe her words. "And I know for a fact that if you were to die, I'd never be the same again. I'm certain everyone else feels the same way. Me, Basilio, Lon'qu, Olivia, Chrom, Lissa…we care about you, and we all love you in our own crazy ways. I know we don't say it as much as we should, but you're more than a friend. You're family. Don't ever believe that you don't matter to us. I'll pound it into you if I have to."

The silence was suffocating. He didn't move a single muscle and Robin embraced him a little tighter. Her heart pounded in her ears and she felt her stomach doing somersaults inside her body. She felt like she was on fire, even though Takumi felt as cold as ice. She nearly jumped when she felt hands press against her back, bringing her even closer to him. The hands were replaced by arms and they squeezed her just as tightly. She felt a smile form on her face, tears falling from her eyes against her will.

"Thank you, Robin."

Those words meant more than the world to her.

"We'll make it through this," Robin replied. "I promise."

"Well, isn't this disgustingly adorable? Now kiss already!"

Shrieks erupted from two throats at the unexpected exclamation, causing the flocks of crows to fly about in a frenzy. The chaos lasted a good ten seconds before the birds settled down once more. Robin eyed a feather that stuck to her hair, irritably blowing it off and watching it as it fell to the ground. She quickly spotted the spot of white hair, peeking ever so slightly over a crate. Henry's smile threatened to spill off his face.

"HENRY!" roared Robin.

"Aw, come on!" he laughed. "There were plenty of times you could've gone in for the kill! Why didn't you take them?"

"You shut your pie hole!" Robin angrily snapped, her cheeks burning now. "Can't a girl make a motivational speech in peace?"

"Not if you're leaving out the part where you proclaim your undying love for pineapples."

"I'm going to kill you, Henry," Robin growled dangerously.

"For real? Hurray!" the dark mage cheered. "Make sure it's extra bloody, okay?"

Robin moaned and buried her face in her palm. "Never mind. Just…go and keep a lookout or something. And no more spying!"

Henry was visibly disappointed, but thankfully obeyed. With a sigh, Robin faced Takumi again. "I'm beginning to wonder if I should have listened to you after all. I didn't expect him to be this much of a handful."

"Told you."

She punched him playfully. "Come on, don't rub it in!"

"You asked for it," he said smugly.

"Oh, shut up," she retorted, but a smile lingered on her face. She gently took his hand and relished in his shocked expression. "Come on. Let's watch the stars together."

"Wh-what? Why?" he stammered.

"It's what I do when I can't sleep and have nothing to read. Besides, it's a beautiful night. Come on, don't be shy!"

Ignoring her companion's flustered state, Robin focused on the sky above.

"See that group of stars there?" she began. "Together, they make a constellation called the Radiant Hero. See? There's his body, there's his head, and that's his sword."

"I guess I kinda see it…" said Takumi.

"And see those two big stars that are almost touching? They're called the Sacred Twins. Apparently, their name derived from a tale about twin royal children who defeated a powerful demon king."

"You've done your research, huh?"

"Of course. I have no memories, so I had to fill my head with something."

"Memories…" Takumi muttered. "Now that I think about it, this feels familiar somehow."

"Did you remember something?" asked Robin.

"Yeah. I can see my mother, the starry sky, and trees covered with pink flowers."

"Trees with pink flowers? I've never heard of such a thing. They sound lovely."

"Yeah. Almost as lovely as…"

Robin turned to look at him. "As lovely as what?"

"Never mind," he muttered. "Forget I said anything."

"What? That's not fair! The suspense is killing me!"

Takumi hid his face in his knees, mortified by what he almost blurted. He could barely hear Robin's whining over the thumping of his heart. No matter how he looked at it, this was bad. A worthless nobody like him didn't deserve Robin. Not only that, she was in love with Chrom. There was no way he could reveal his feelings now.

What a blind fool he was. It was only when Robin embraced him earlier, treating him as if he were a priceless treasure, did he finally realize how special she was to him. She had always been like that. He had glared at her, yelled at her, and shoved her away, but she never gave up on him. She even threw away everything she had in order to save him.

He felt unworthy of her kindness, but she insisted otherwise. The fact that she stubbornly stayed with him warmed his heart. She was sweet and caring, yet feisty and clever. She was a truly special person and Takumi wished he could tell her that, but the words always got stuck in his throat. He supposed it didn't matter in the end. As close as they were, she was forever out of his reach.

"Takumi? Are you okay?" Robin asked.

"Sorry. I'm fine," he replied, lifting his head from his knees. He would have to get over his aching heart eventually.

Robin didn't look convinced. "You can tell me if anything's wrong, you know."

"Of course I know that," Takumi grumbled. How could he possibly tell her that she was the source of his problem?

Robin pursed her lips, but didn't press him anymore. She returned her gaze to the sky and pointed out more constellations. Takumi quietly listened to her, enjoying the sound of her voice and their entwined fingers. Even if he could never reveal how he felt about her, he was content to have her by his side. If the gods had decided to grant him this gift, far be it from him to refuse it.

He tried not to think about the day he would inevitably have to leave her.

When morning came, an argument ensued over who would go out to buy food and supplies. Takumi didn't want to be seen as useless, but Robin was concerned over his health.

"You're half-starved, Takumi, and the desert is dangerous!" she shouted. "If you collapse out there, you'll die!"

"I'm not that weak!" he protested. "I can take care of myself!"

"You two argue like an old married couple," Henry interjected with a snicker.

"SHUT UP, HENRY!" they both screeched.

"Whoa, you guys are totally in sync. CAW-lor me surprised."

"That's it. He's dead," Takumi snarled.

"Wait, the pun is what sent you over the edge?" asked Robin. "I think you need to get your priorities straight."

Somehow, she managed to talk Takumi out of starting a bloodbath and convinced him to stay behind, albeit with great reluctance. After feeding and watering her horse, she began her journey into the Plegian desert. Her destination was a small town located a few miles away from the fort. She doubted anyone there would recognize her, but she hid her face with her hood just in case.

As she entered the town, people broke into fervent whispers. Robin swore she heard the word "Grimleal" uttered a few times. A troubled frown spread across her face. Why did these villagers think she was a member of that awful cult?

"Wait… Could it be…my clothes?"

During the war against Plegia, Robin had noticed that her coat had the same kind of eye-shaped markings as the Dark Mages' robes. She never told anyone for fear of arousing suspicion, but it weighed heavily on her. Did this mean that she originally came from Plegia? And if that was truly the case, how did she wind up in Ylisse? It made her wonder if her intentions from before she lost her memory were less than savory.

Still, there was no sense in dwelling on what she couldn't remember. In fact, she decided to take advantage of the situation. If these people feared her, then they would most likely give her whatever she asked for. She felt slightly guilty about it, but she was already branded a criminal. Her reputation couldn't sink much lower.

As her coat helped conceal both her face and her breasts, she lowered her voice in order to put up an androgynous facade. The ruse worked, and the terrified shopkeepers gave her steep discounts on their wares. She was able to purchase enough food to last their group a few days or so, but her funds would eventually run out. If they hoped to survive, she would have to figure out a way to earn some coin.

She wondered if this was how Marth felt when she had disguised herself as a man. Speaking of which, she hadn't seen hide nor hair of the mysterious swordswoman and her young companion since the assassination attempt. Marth had quite a talent for appearing exactly when she was needed, so Robin figured they would show up again if Chrom ran into any trouble. She remained curious about the pair, especially Gin, but her questions would have to remain unanswered until she saw them again.

The sun was setting by the time Robin returned to the fort, and worry tugged at her heart. Her stomach was growling, and if she was hungry, then Takumi had to be starving. He insisted he was fine, but Robin knew better. Even though Takumi was finally opening up to her, getting him to admit something was wrong with him remained frustratingly difficult. Something had been on his mind last night, but he refused to divulge anything to her, and that stung a little.

She prepared a simple meal of preserved meat, vegetables, and rice in the fort's kitchen and shared it with her two companions. Henry devoured the food greedily, but Takumi took only a small portion. Robin frowned at him over her own bowl of food. "Takumi, you have to eat more than that."

"I'm not that hungry," he replied.

"Don't give me that crap," Robin scolded. "You haven't had a decent meal in months. You need to get your strength back up."

"I'll be fine."

Robin huffed irritably. "I'm not a fool, Takumi. I know you're doing this to preserve our funds. Let me worry about the gold, okay? I'm a tactician. I'll figure out something."

"But-"

"Shut your mouth and eat already!"

Henry failed to stifle his snickers and earned a fierce glare from Robin. It only made him laugh more. The whole situation was hilarious. Anyone with half a brain could see what was going on here, and yet the two of them were oblivious. Teasing them was almost as fun as cursing people.

"What's so funny?" Robin demanded.

"Look at you, the mother hen," he said. "Did I ruffle your feathers?"

"Will you shut up?" snarled Takumi.

"Nya ha! I see I got under your prickly skin, Mr. Pineapple."

"Knock it off!"

"Aww, come on, you need to lighten up a bit. Or should I say… RIPEN up a bit?"

"HENRY!"

Yes, joining with these two was definitely a good idea.

I am not dead yet. But my muse was and I had to get help from LunaClefairy again to finish this dang thing. I got about 2/3 of the way through this chapter before I got stuck for months. It also didn't help that I've been working so much that I just feel like doing nothing on most days. And if you couldn't tell by the references, I finally played Sacred Stones for the first time! AND I LOVED IT! So much so I'm considering another Awakening crossover idea (that I'll probably need help with as well, lol), but I'll only do it if you fans REALLY want it. So I set up a poll on my profile. Vote if you want to vote and if you don't have an account, tell me in a Guest review. Hope you enjoy this chapter! Pretty please?