Lady in Waiting

By psychored1911

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening or Fire Emblem Fates

Chapter 14: There's Something About Blue Hair pt. 1

"...and then that klutz just falls flat on her face! Ha! You should've been there! She's clumsier than Felicia and Arthur combined!"

"..."

"Eh, I know you love my company! You're still here, after all!"

Selena waltzed through the street with shopping bags in her arms, while Beruka followed beside her. It had been a long and tiring day, so Selena thought that a shopping spree was the best way to relax and unwind, and brought Beruka to be her packmu- companion for these lonely times.

Their friendship was odd, even to them.

Beruka suddenly tensed as her eyes darted towards the sky, "...Look."

"Y'know, that's the first time I've heard you speak in a wh- gue?!"

Beruka yanked Selena's head upwards to match her gaze, more specifically at the gigantic pillar of rising smoke that was engulfing the western side of the city.

"Shit." Selena cursed and promptly threw her bags to her fellow retainer, "Beruka, go back to the villa and alert the others!"

Beruka stared at the bags that were suddenly in her hands, and then at Selena with a look that crossed between 'Are you serious?' and 'If you honestly think I'm dropping these off for you…'.

"You have a wyvern! You're faster!" Selena argued, "Just go there and meet me back there with help! I'll take charge of any rescue efforts and gladly return control back to Prince Xander or Princess Camilla when they arrive! Just go!"

Without another word, Beruka whistled, and her wyvern landed. Tossing Selena's purchases into the saddle bags, Beruka promptly mounted up and flew upwards and out of sight.

Selena raced through the streets, calling for whatever guards she passed by to follow her to the source of the raging inferno, a series of warehouses at the edge of the western gate.

Her first thought was to try and rouse one of the soldiers that had collapsed by the mouth of the warehouses' entrance. She ran up to the fallen soldier and yelled, "Hey, are you alright?! What happened?!"

She pulled the soldier upright… only to find his neck slit, far enough that his head threatened to fall off the rest of his body, and the resulting pool of blood saturating his armor. His eyes wide, his sword left unsheathed, the poor soul didn't even have the chance to fight back. Selena nearly dropped it in disgust, but collected herself at the last moment, properly placing the body down and closing his eyes for one last time before she rose to her feet. She glanced over at the soldiers she gathered and began barking orders, "You lot, secure the area; I don't want anybody going in or out of the area! The rest of you, we're going to contain this fire and rescue any and all survivors until the mages arrive! Go!"

One half of the soldiers left to contain the scene of the flames, the rest of them followed her into the courtyards-

"Checkmate."

Another fiery explosion burst, engulfing a few of the soldiers behind her in the growing flames, and causing a giant hole to form in the burning remains of the easternmost warehouse.

Through the gaping rubble lied the culprit, standing there, menacingly, clad in a hood and lacquered armor, staring at them all through glowing red eyes, concealed with a white mask.

"Is that…?!"

Selena drew her sword and ran around the corner of the ruined rubble, but found no one there.

There wasn't a living soul anywhere…

"...What the hell?"

Sakura and Hana had been told to watch over their floor on the hotel, and had done so diligently for the first few hours. However, after a while, restlessness kicked in, and the two opted to leave to get some groceries for the others. Once they collected said groceries, the two were sidetracked by a merchant selling the most curious of wares.

"Wait, so these tomes can do what?"

"Imagine, if you will, writing in one of these tomes, and your words being transcribed into the other within seconds, even when they're kingdoms apart from one another."

Sakura and Hana exchanged curious glances as they gazed at the two tomes the red-headed merchant was trying to sell to them.

"How come nobody has ever heard of these?" Sakura inquired, "This sounds incredibly useful."

The red-headed merchant shrugged, "Why of course they're useful! Imagine such a world where these tomes were widespread! They'd bankrupt courier businesses in an instant! Revolutionize warfare with instantaneous commands straight from the tacticians! Allow for business deals in the confines of their own homes!"

Hana furrowed her brows, "Then why are you trying to sell it to us?"

"While I see it for the limitless potential of profit, my peers believe this will be the key to bankruptcy, because it can only be sent from one person to another. That and the mage who made this only made the one set before kicking the bucket. However, I see the spark in your eye, so that's why I'm selling it to you for one thousand gold!"

"A thousand gold?! That's extortion!" Hana barked.

The red-headed merchant shrugged, "Hey, low supply, and you're the only ones who seem to want it."

Sakura wearily put her hand on Hana's shoulder, "Never mind, I don't think we can afford it in our allowance. Let's just go."

Hana sighed, "Yeah, I think Lady Aqua won't appreciate us splurging on a novelty."

"Now hold on," The red-headed merchant cut in, "You wouldn't happen to be related to the-up-and-coming Countess Aqua of The Black Forest, would you?"

"...Yes, that happens to be my sister…" Sakura said hesitantly, "Why do you ask?"

"I heard rumors in Cyrkensia that a newly installed countess is acting on developing a new town on their lands!" the red-headed merchant bolted to her feet, startling the two Hoshidans.

Hana surreptitiously whispered into Sakura's ear, "Is that what they're doing over there? I thought they just bought a dump and a rundown old mansion for the whole land ownership part of the noble title."

"I guess they were doing stuff with all the money she gave them…" Sakura said dumbly, remembering the piles of resources she left behind at her 'estate' so that her other retainers could do… something with it.

The red-headed merchant beamed, "You know, any town needs to have connections to the outside world in order to grow and thrive. So, how about we make a deal: I sell you these tomes at a tenth of a price, and you put a good word in with your sister so I can get exclusive rights to set up shop in your lands."

"I-I don't think I have the authority to make those kinds of decisions." Sakura hesitantly answered.

"I'm not asking for a full contract or anything right now; just put a good word in so I can put my foot in the door, and my economic expertise will speak for itself." The merchant stated.

Hana gave her liege a shrug, "I mean, it's not a bad deal, if you ask me. We're just making a recommendation, not signing any formal contracts or anything."

"I-I guess we could tell Aqua about your services and put in a good word." Sakura hesitantly suggested.

"That's all I'm asking for!" The merchant took out her card and presented it to them along with the tomes, exchanging it for the small pouch of gold that Sakura dug out of her pockets. "The name's Anna, and we'll be in touch!"

Later that night, after everyone arrived back home, the Hoshidan Strike Force reconvened for a debriefing. After Catria, Kagero, and Nagi debriefed the group on their uneventful exploits into the Windmire Academy of Magic.

"...So, did you actually check if those tomes worked?" Azura asked incredulously.

"I can confirm that they work, at least as far as from the lobby to our floor." Hana stated, with Sakura nodding in affirmation. "She said that they work between kingdoms, so we might be looking at a communication channel all the way back to Shirasagi."

"Impressive." Azura nodded, "Though our problem with that would involve transporting one of those tomes back to Shirasagi in a timely manner."

Subaki raised his hand, "I can make the trip. I'll just stop by your estate in Nestra, drop it off with instructions for your other retainers, and then they can finish the rest of the trip while I return."

"If you do that, we'll be shorter on manpower than we were before, at least for a few days." Kagero pointed out, "And we already spread ourselves thin since we need to confirm if Prince Corrin is actually Prince Kamui."

"Consider that part of the mission accomplished," Azura stated, "Kaze and I have confirmed that Prince Corrin… is indeed the lost Prince of Hoshido."

A chorus of gasps from the Hoshidan Strike Force echoed throughout the room, with excitement racing through them. The most excited of which was Sakura.

"R-Really?!" Sakura squeaked, "T-Then we could bring him back home to Hoshido, right?!"

Azura shook her head, "Unfortunately, it's not going to be that simple. There are several snags that may hamper that objective."

"Like what?" Rinkah asked.

"For starters, he has his own set of retainers following him around." Kaze began, "We've only encountered one of them, but we can be certain that his personal retinue consists of more than a knight with a stupid haircut."

"Second, I doubt he might even be willing to leave," Azura shook her head. "I've spoken to him in length today. Among the many things we spoke about, he doesn't seem even remotely aware of his true heritage. Nor does he seem to have any intentions of betraying Nohr or his so-called family."

Rinkah groaned. "Do we have any good news?"

"I do… of sorts." Saizo said, "We've identified one of the sites for the Faceless Project. A series of warehouses near the east gate of Windmire. We didn't get a good look inside, but we can confirm that one of the ringleaders, a commander by the name of Daniela."

"The place was well-guarded. We didn't risk a proper infiltration as per your orders." Subaki told them.

"Good, because I have reason to believe that if we spook the Nohrians, they may have Corrin go back into hiding." Azura stated, "It seems as though the populace is only vaguely aware of Prince Corrin's existence, so that means the Nohrians are keeping him secret for a purpose, under the guise of succession reasons, but also to make sure Hoshido never finds him, which is why we know so little of him. If we do anything drastic, the Nohrians may return him to whatever hole they spirited him away to, and we might never have another opportunity to find him again. We must be very delicate with how we resume our operation from this point onwards if we wish to achieve both objectives."

Nagi raised a brow, "So, if we want to do this right… we're going to need to ruin the Faceless Project and rescue Kamui at the same time."

"I know that this may drastically increase the difficulty of our operation, but this may be our only chance to recover him." Azura paused, staring down at the table, "Leave him to me; I shall handle Corrin personally. The rest of you, focus on your objectives. If we do this right, we shall return to Hoshido with our lost prince with Nohr none the wiser.

The next morning.

"Are you sure of what you saw?" Xander inquired.

Selena nodded wearily, "Yeah, that should be everything."

Camilla patted her retainer on the head, "Go and get some rest now, dear. You've earned it."

"Don't have to tell me twice…" Selena got out of her chair with a yawn, bowing before she left the room.

As soon as she left, Xander shared a look with his sister, "Seems we found our missing Dread Fighter Armor, and from what we've detailed, we can all but confirm that my vigilante and your arsonist are related, if not the same person."

"True, there are a lot of overlapping details that are too difficult to ignore." Camilla sighed, "How is father reacting to the news?"

"He's about as happy as can be expected." Xander shook his head, "It turns out that those warehouses were where they stored those faceless for Iago's pet project."

"Well, at least there's a silver lining to this madness." Camilla mused, "Father must be quite upset that his right-hand slimeball's little money sink has gone up in smoke. I can already picture that worm begging father for more resources so they could recuperate those losses."

"Unfortunately, we still need to find out who our saboteur is, lest Iago take the easy way out and blame the Hoshidans for this madness." Xander noted.

"You're right." Camilla frowned, carefully examining the shuriken Selena pulled from the scene. "If there are reports that a 'Hoshidan Dread Fighter' has been wreaking havoc on our fair city, father will have him on the first horse back to the Northern Fortress, where he'll be stuck. No telling how long this time around would be."

Xander grimaced, "We'll keep this under wraps, for now. As far as anyone else has to know, Commander Daniela had an accident and the entire facility went up in smoke, killing everyone inside."

A week later.

One of the Hoshidian targets had been eliminated… but they were not the ones responsible.

Shortly after their debriefing earlier that week, they had discovered that the warehouses and the commander within it died in a freak accident that led to everything burning to the ground. It should have been good news, but it had the unfortunate side effect of proving Azura's theory correct, as Corrin was nowhere to be found after that incident. They feared the worst, but without any leads to any evidence, all they could do was speculate on the prince's fate.

Azura already sent Subaki to go to Hinoka with a parcel from her. It's already too late to change what she wrote to her.

While the others were at their assignments, the two sisters decided to explore the town and maintain their cover as Nestran nobility on vacation. Azura and Sakura were walking through the street, hand in hand, with the elder sister leading the younger sister out of the hotel lobby, followed closely by Hana and Nagi, when-

"Aqua!"

-they were greeted with the second prince of Hoshido himself.

"Goodness, Corrin!" Aqua gasped as Corrin approached them, "I haven't seen you in a while. Showing a girl a fun time one day and disappearing the next? Have you been avoiding me?" She spoke with a coy smile, obviously teasing him.

"Not at all. I've actually been meaning to spend more time with you." Corrin said with a charming smile, "Unfortunately, my brother put us on lockdown for a few days due to that horrible fire in Western Windmire."

"Ah, yes, I've heard about it. Quite the disaster." Aqua stated. In fact, it was such a disaster, that when Corrin didn't show up the next day, they feared that he was sent back to wherever the Nohrians hid him and they might have lost their chance forever. Seeing him in-person once more brought her quite some relief.

Corrin then glanced at the shorter girl beside her, "Oh, and you must be Aqua's sister."

Aqua then realized that Sakura was still beside her, staring at her lost brother with wide, unblinking eyes. She also realized that her other two retainers were staring right at him; Hana was staring at him in shock, while Nagi was unashamedly undressing him with her eyes.

Corrin was seemingly oblivious and bent down a bit to reach eye level with Sakura. "Hello there. My name is Corrin, and I am the second Prince of Nohr. You must be Aqua's little sister. It is nice to meet you- oh?!"

In an instant, Sakura embraced her long-lost brother and hugged her face against his chest, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

"I-I…I-It-It's n-nice t-to f-f-f-finally m-m-meet y-you!" She was trembling, crying into Corrin's vest, her overwhelming feelings of meeting the sibling she longed to meet overtaking any and all self-control she had.

The sudden hug stunned the pair, with Corrin awkwardly hugging her back, and Azura snapping out of it long enough to recognize the break in decorum for what it was and gently pull her sister back.

"Bullying a girl and making her cry, Corrin? How awfully mean of you…"

"W-Wait! I'm not-"

"Hehe. Apologies, Corrin. I'm only teasing." Aqua giggled with a bow. "My sister is usually so quiet, but she can get quite excitable under the right circumstances."

"It's alright," Corrin said with a comforting smile, giving Sakura a comforting pat on the head, "I know it must be overwhelming to meet royalty for the first time."

Understatement of the year.

"I-It's nice to… meet you too…" the younger sister stammered nervously. "...M-My name is… S-Sakura-"

"Sakura?" Corrin blinked.

Sakura panickedly covered her hands with her mouth. "A-Ah?! I mean-"

"Erm, her name is Sara, actually." Aqua hastily lied in her stead, "Sakura was just a nickname a few of her friends in Hoshido called her due to her hair."

"Oh, you've been to Hoshido?" Corrin lit up, fortunately forgetting about that slip of the tongue.

"U-Uhh…"

"Yes, we've had some trading opportunities in the past and were able to spend some time there." Aqua continued to lie, "They're not exactly friendly to strangers, but once they open up, they can be quite hospitable."

"I see. It's good to have an alternate view of the other kingdom once in a while." Corrin noted, "Most accounts of Hoshido I've heard are from Nohrian soldiers, and they really don't have much nice things to say about the locals."

"I can imagine." Aqua mused, "But I doubt you came all this way to have a discussion on the kingdom of the Dawn Dragon."

"No, it is not. I was actually hoping to invite you to the Royal Villa." Corrin bashfully scratched his head.

"R-Royal Villa?" Sakura stuttered, "I… in the castle?"

"Oh, no. The Royal Villa is a separate building on the outskirts of the city." Corrin explained, "It was shortly built after… an incident, in order to protect the rest of the Royal Family while my father resides in Castle Krackenburg."

"I see…" Aqua narrowed his eyes, "And will we have an opportunity to meet with the other members of the Royal Family?"

"Unfortunately, my elder siblings were busy, while my younger ones are out and about." Corrin told them. "It will be just us over there."

"Ooh, a handsome bachelor inviting a pair of noble sisters and their lovely retainers into his home." Aqua giggled teasingly, "You are quite the bold one, Corrin."

"E-Eh?!" Sakura- Sara flushed red.

At that moment, Hana suddenly found herself consciously checking out Corrin and blushing at his handsome appearance, while Nagi snickered at Aqua's implications, biting her lip, gleefully taking in eyefuls of the Nohrian prince.

"Why would-" Corrin's red face mirrored Sara's. "I was meaning to see my sister at the barracks, but I was actually hoping to invite you to lunch, to thank you for the other day, before I go."

Aqua glanced at her sister before giving the young prince a charming smile, "We would love to, Corrin. By all means, lead the way."

"...She hasn't stopped staring at us ever since we got here."

"I know… and is it just me, or does she look… familiar?"

"Oh, good. I thought it was just me."

When the Hoshidan women were escorted to the Royal Villa, they were first met with Corrin's right-hand woman, a maid with bright blue hair and a matching uniform. While she seemed nice enough, those golden eyes of hers were anything but friendly; she seemed more like a predator that spotted its next meal rather than a welcoming servant. Her eyes, unmoving, stared directly under their skin. Her smile, while polite, gave a sense of utter dread to the other four women.

Every instinct in their bodies was telling them to look out for this woman, but they didn't know why.

They were there for a while now, trying to have a friendly chat with Corrin while waiting for, and eventually being served, lunch, but being stared at by this maid was giving them all chills. While Azura and Sakura were desperately trying to save face, keeping calm, collected smiles, in front of an unsuspecting Corrin, the same could not be said for the other two. Hana's hand hovered over her sword, her years of warrior instincts were telling her they were about to get ambushed, but other than Corrin and her friends, the other woman was the only one setting her off. Nagi wanted to tease Azura and flirt with Corrin. However, she refrained; this maid was making her blood boil with her gaze, and the two locked eyes with one another.

"...Are you not going to eat?" Corrin asked, concerned, "I can ask the chefs to exchange it if you want?"

"No, it's alright." Aqua said dismissively.

The Hoshidan- Nestran noblewomen ate their meals with their gracious host across from them, enjoying the idle talk that happens during such times.

"So please, tell me." Corrin asked between bites, "You've been to Hoshido before, correct? Can you tell me more about the locals there?"

The maid seemed to lock her gaze upon Aqua, her lord oblivious to the gesture, prompting Aqua to stop eating and answer. "The people there… they're quite wary of strangers, even of those from allied lands. And that's if they're generous. The worst of the lot are unrelentingly hostile to outsiders."

"I see…" Corrin looked down sadly.

"But not all of them are like that." Aqua said, with an inkling of pride in her voice, "There are those with gentle souls in Hoshido, and those that can be won over with hard work and faith, those who can be as loyal and valorous as any knight."

That seemed to lift Corrin's spirits somewhat. "I see, so the differences between Hoshido and Nohr aren't as substantial as previously believed. It's too bad that Nohr and Hoshido are so terribly locked in war that their reconciliation is nigh impossible."

"You've had some thought about the eternal war between the two kingdoms?" Azura inquired.

"Of course. Being stuck in one location for most of my life has given me a lot of time to think about two worlds I am almost a complete spectator to." Corrin noted, leaning onto the table and tenting his fingers. "From what I gathered from my studies, the war between Hoshido and Nohr was due to Nohr's lack of fertile land but abundance in ores causing them to conquer other territories out of necessity for resources, but also out of social reform?"

"Social reform?" Aqua asked incredulously, "From what I heard in Hoshido, Nohrians overthrow long-standing dynasties and noble houses indiscriminately."

"Well, yes, from another perspective, it can be seen that way, but from the Nohrian perspective, things are seen a bit differently." Corrin continued, "There is a saying here in Nohr: 'A king and a serf are equal when facing the end'. In times of scarcity, which are unfortunately common in this side of the world, all suffer. In Nohr, we are united in that common suffering, so the divide between commoners and nobles aren't as extreme as they are in other kingdoms. We are relatively equal, and our laws and culture develop from those core beliefs, the tides of corruption and decadence notwithstanding. So, when Nohr takes over a territory, the territory is generally rid of its worst lords and better, more stable ones are appointed. As a result, the conquered territories are generally in better straits than they were originally. Plus, when the armistice inevitably breaks down, they benefit from staying under Nohr's locus of defense. Take Freesia and Cheve, for example. When my father conquered the territories, he had their tyrants executed and look what had happened: crime and corruption are at an all-time low, no want for jobs, trade is efficient and safe. The people there are much better off than they had ever been before."

"What of their cultures, their religion?" Aqua pressed.

"Contrary to what the loudest critics claim, Nohrians are fair, people can practice what they want as long as they follow our laws." Corrin replied, "My father may be tough, but he is always fair-"

One of Corrin's butlers walked in, "Milord, there is a messenger here, from Iago's office. He seeks an audience with you, and he is not taking no for an answer."

"He must be seeking my signature on something." Corrin sighed as he rose from his seat and regarded his guests, "Pardon me, but I need to see this."

Once their gracious host and his butler had surely left, the blue-haired maid closed the door behind him, locking it.

Alarm bells started ringing in their minds. Azura's hand gravitated to the steak knife on her dining set, while Hana's hand drifted toward the handle of her sword.

The maid, undeterred, craned her head towards Aqua in particular, her eerie smile instantly warping into a cruel smirk. As soon as she did, Aqua- Azura noticed one alarming detail:

Why did this maid resemble their mother?

"You really do resemble Arete…" The maid noted with a sinister hint in her tone. "So, Azura, what brings you back to Nohr?"

The barracks of Windmire.

Built right into the walls of the great capital, this is the home of many of Nohr's finest soldiers, where men and women of the kingdom learn, fight and grow together for the glory of the king and the Dusk Dragon. While this installation is mostly available to the

Felicia and Flora walked right through the front doors and into the lobby, finding… absolutely no one inside, save for Effie standing sentry outside of one of the offices.

"Oh, hey there." Effie waved them over, "What're you two doing here? Did Lord Corrin send something for Lady Elise?

Felicia shook her head, "Nah, nothing like that. It's actually our day off, so I was hoping we could take Marth off your hands so we could hang out."

Flora looked around, "Where is Marth, or everyone else, for that matter?"

"Eh, Lord Xander ordered all hands on deck for the next week, something about increasing security till the end of the Dusk Festival." Effie explained, "He also asked Lady Elise, something about public confidence of the competency in the royal, and she has to stay here in order to help support-"

"He's making her do all the required paperwork in his stead, isn't he?" Flora surmised.

"...Yes. Yes he is." Effie uncomfortably coughed into her gauntlet.

Ah, paperwork. What every noble feared during times of peace. Not assassinations, not revelations of corruption or affairs, not even getting backstabbed by their ilk for pettiness or greed. No, the biggest, most uniting fear among the nobility had to be the monotony of constantly sifting through nigh-identical pieces of paper for even the tiniest of discrepancies and the constant aches to their dominant hand from all the signatures that need to be written. Yes, that is what all, even the Crown Prince Xander, nay, even the great King Garon himself, fears most above all. The twins could remember all the times Corrin tried to escape his own paperwork back at the fortress, only for Lilith to drag him back into his office by the ear.

"I wouldn't go in there if I were you." Effie suggested, scratching the back of her head, "She's buried in countless forms about bonuses and overtime that I could barely see the top of her head from behind those stacks of paper. The only reason I'm out here is because someone has to stay out here in case anyone else comes in."

Flora could only wince in sympathy. "From what it sounds like, it's a total nightmare in there. I dread that to be our fate once we inherit our father's estate."

"And what about Marth and Arthur?" Felicia inquired. "Where are they?"

"Arthur went out to get us some food, and Marth… as it turns out, she's only 'semi-literate at best', in her own words."

"...What does that mean?" Flora asked awkwardly.

"She can read, but it's very slow. So slow that Elise gave up and told her to leave before the poor woman's head exploded." Effie shrugged, "We're almost done, though Lord Corrin should've been here by now. Anyway, I'll give Lady Elise a heads-up about Marth. She should be hanging around by the courtyard. You should check it out over there."

"Okay. Thanks, Effie."

"You are Azura, am I wrong? I've seen your real mother in paintings throughout the years."

"W-What the-?!"

"H-How did she-?!"

Hana deftly drew her sword and Nagi growled, baring her fangs.

The maid scoffed at their paltry attempts at a threat. "Oh, please. Go on. Try something. Pray tell, what are you going to do? Kill me? Beat me into submission? Perhaps you will threaten to slit my throat the second I let my guard down. Ooh, or maybe you'll use some form of black magic to turn me into a thrall to your will! Go on. I dare you to try something, anything! How would you explain to Corrin the death of his head maid by your hands? I don't doubt that whatever attempts Azura made to gain Corrin's trust would end up in smoke, right here and now."

Azura paled, clearly realizing everything the maid said was right, immediately waved at the two retainers, "Hana, Nagi, stop!"
The two retainers stopped in their tracks, glancing at Azura uneasily, before returning to their original position, with Hana returning her sword back to the sheath.

The maid chuckled darkly, seemingly exuding an intense pressure that threatened to swallow the Hoshidans whole. "See? Isn't that better? Backing down when you realized you have yourself stuck in a stalemate? It makes things so much easier than if I just killed you all and explained to Corrin how the Nestran women who entered his life were just using him to kidnap him to Hoshido."

Azura shuddered, and the maid laughed. "Oh, no need to deny it, Azura. You and your 'sister' reek of Mikoto's scent." Her gaze wandered to the pink-haired girl in question. "Sara, is it? No, with how strong her scent is, you must be one of the Royal Children of Hoshido. The youngest, perhaps?"

Sakura shuddered, and Hana threw herself in between them, glaring daggers at the maid.

"Back off." Nagi growled, her eyes turning draconic.

"You have a trick up your sleeve." Lilith tilted her head, her eyes turning as draconic as her counterpart's. "Interesting."

Nagi recoiled, not in fear, but in shock, "You- You're-!"

The maid snorted and returned her attention back to Azura, relishing in the woman's increasing discomfort. "I wonder what she said to you that made you go through all this trouble. Did she promise you money? Power? Acceptance? Whatever empty promises she's made, I can guarantee you that she would never follow through with it. After all, what kind of mother would ask her children to go right into the heart of a hostile kingdom? Certainly not a mother that cares for the wellbeing of her children."

"T-That's enough!"

Azura was afraid, terrified even, of the maid whose golden eyes momentarily flickered red with rage at every mention of Mikoto. But that didn't mean she would tolerate any more slander of the woman who took her in and gave her a place in the world that otherwise rejected her very existence. With her resolve overcoming her fear, she stood from the table and pointed at the maid across from them. "Who are you?! What do you want?! And how do you know about Queen Mikoto?!"

The maid placed her hands over her heart and gasped with faux outrage, "Oh? Mikoto never mentioned me? I'm hurt… but not surprised. After all, she discarded me without a second thought. I would be more surprised if she remembered me at all."

The maid then bowed with a mocking curtsy, her reptilian, golden eyes turning a solid crimson red, the same hue as Corrin's, as her cruel smirk bared draconic fangs.

"I am Lilith, the true firstborn of Mikoto: the Reigning Queen of Hoshido, but back then she was known as the High Priestess of Silence."

A/N: Special thanks to SK for reading it. She's been a great help.

Anyway, once again, when we were planning this chapter, it got really long again and everything takes place on the same day, so it's also a two parter.

What did you think of this take on Lilith? I think she's a lot more interesting like this. The dynamic between her and the other characters were minimal and we always wanted to expand on it. I've been waiting so long to write this change, you guys have no idea! You'll find more about her in the next chapter.

We're still in our last semester of college, don't expect too many updates!

Thanks so much for reading, and please review!