Lost in her own thoughts, Marth snapped back into reality. In an instant, she took her surroundings back in. What was once a cloudy afternoon became even more so as fog started to sink into the trees. She had noticed her footsteps too had been sinking, sinking into the ground, from the muddy terrain. Still, she pressed on. So far on the trek, the Shepherds had hardly stopped, making haste toward their destination. Marth had to follow them at every step of the way. Not with them, but close enough to see them, but far enough not to get caught. But..it was hard to keep up with them for some reason. Marth couldn't take a break lest she loses the army and then something catastrophic happens in her absence. Or, get too close, and receive a swarm of questions from them. The second she thought that, a few popped up in her head:

"Where were you these past two years?"

"Why are you following us?"

And the one that bothered her most:

"Why did you disguise yourself as a man when you're really a woman?"

She was particularly afraid that some of the Shepherds would ask all of that. That was one of many things that stopped her from getting too emotionally invested, even though she wanted to be closer with them. She often fantasizes being with them. Talking with them. Living with them. Fighting with them. They would stop this war…

Together.

But she knew that was too good to be true.

The whole ordeal was frustrating. She felt like emotionally she lost either way: Either be isolated for the remaining part of her journey, stuck in her head, and never feel peace from her loneliness, or be criticized for her choices and potentially losing focus of her mission.

Still, she felt like she needed someone to talk to. She's had unrest and a longing to be with people for so long, but she has no one.

It was especially hard when Ylisse was at peace for two years. It was relieving at first, but after a few months, it turned staggering. She did not have to move as much since all of the Shepherds were in Ylisse, and her camp was always hidden in the same spot somewhere beyond the castle borders. Occasionally though, she would pop in to check on her parents, without being spotted of course.

Lucina…

It was a sunny April 20th when she heard that name. That day, Marth peeped into a windowsill to check on her parents. On that fateful day, Lucina was born, and that day had so much emotional weight for Marth. She watched as her Mom swaddled her in a blanket, kissing her forehead. Beside her was her father, smiling warmly at his wife and newly born child. At that moment, Marth felt very full and proud.

But once she left the window and headed back to her tent, she felt a tinge of sadness that lingered for hours.

The feeling was something she couldn't shake, no matter how hard she tried to bury it with her duties; anything she could find to get her mind off of it. Something about it…felt wrong. Surely it wasn't her parents. Marth had no issues being the child of her parents, she loves them so.

But what felt wrong? That took Marth some thinking, once she finally let herself think about it that is. Seeing a second you is a sure way to make someone feel unsettled, but Marth knew that wasn't it. She believed it was the way she was treated. For obvious reasons, the baby couldn't see, talk, pick clothes or even roleplay with other kids. She was only there, crying like any infant would. Despite being unable to express any sort of identity, Chrom and Robin regarded her as a girl, and their daughter just by looking at her and nothing more. They knew nothing of her, yet, they somehow knew she was a girl.

Marth had been bothered by this for months now, but could not pinpoint why. Almost every baby is typed either as a boy or a girl. It's very normal. So why did Marth find it off-putting and even a little upsetting? Everyone in the future regarded Lucina as a woman, and it never bothered her then. In fact, didn't she endorse it at one point?

What happened? What is going on?

Before Marth could ponder further with her troubling thoughts, the fog began to clear. The sound of crows cawing drowned out her mind. She got into a defensive stance when she noticed the Shepherds unsheathing their weapons to prepare to fight distant danger, blood from afar.

Shooting her head up, Marth saw a swarm of crows that mobbed together into the bottom of a cliff, surrounding a young boy in the center of the plain. In turn, it split the Ylissean army.

A seeming threat at first, Henry made his entrance with some dad jokes that annoyed Chrom, and then declared allegiance to the Shepherds. While Henry was bantering about mommy and daddy Risen, it was a perfect opportunity for Marth to slip away and find a spot to hide from the army. Even though they will be distracted from fighting a horde of Risen, she could not take any risks of being detected.

Trying not to distance herself too far away from the skirmish, the hideaway warrior hid behind some trees not too far from a bridge, peering her head out to see the Shepherds and Henry slay away Grima's zombies. Just like any other battle they have partaken in, the future exalt made a point not to interfere with the fight unless something dire happened to her father, or anyone else. Thankfully, while they have been very capable and arguably lucky in some cases, Marth could not shake the feeling that something bad may happen this time.

Everything seemed fine until a fighter Risen got a little too close to Chrom, and slashed him in the shoulder. He was able to sustain the pain alright, but Marth had started to feel nervous. Where was Aunt Lissa to patch him up, or even Maribelle when you needed them?

Robin took the fighting position for a while, in time for a healer to arrive, but she took a few hits during that period from defending Chrom. First, there was a fighter Risen that slashed her arm. Then, there were a few close calls with archer Risen, which Chrom thankfully deflected at the last possible second.

At the worst possible second, Robin was hurt by a myrmidon's critical, to which Chrom responded by switching to the offensive position. The Risen, motivated by his weakened state, and possibly by Marth's fear, lusted for his blood.

At this point, only two Risen were left: the boss and its goon. With no hesitation, they came straight towards him, making Marth's muscles tense. She nearly unsheathed her sword to charge towards the Risen, despite being unrealistically too far to do anything; they were already right beside her parents. She resisted her urges when she noticed Lissa rush in to heal her brother. Seeing immense relief for the Exalt gave Marth immense relief, and she rested her hand easy.

One more swing of Falchion, and the last visible Risen had fallen. A loud sigh of relief echoed throughout the woods as Marth's pulse began to slow. She watched as Robin and Chrom headed toward the bridge, little ways off from the rest of the Shepherds, who were either managing equipment or being tended to by healers.

Once the couple made it onto the bridge, Robin gave her husband a warm smile. "That was a close call. Are you alright?" Chrom asked, worried.

"I am, why else would I be smiling, silly? You're still alive," she replied sweetly.

Before they could continue their conversation, a Risen was inching its way towards them. Enamored by her parents, Marth had no idea it was there until it was deathly close, about to strike Chrom.

"Huh? Ah!"

Everything that had Marth in a panic before filled her core, but tenfold. Wearily, she dashed towards her father because his life depended on it.

"Father! No!" She yelled with the little air she could muster.

Chrom's head turned quickly as he saw Marth jump in front of him, blocking the Risen's strike with her Parallel Falchion. Once the axe failed to make a dent in her sword, the Risen stepped back, giving Marth an opening to strike and finish it in one blow. As a result, the corpse fell to the ground, seeping blood into the ground.

Marth had not felt this much tension since the night of the attempted assassination. She let out a huff, followed by a deep exhale. She turned to her father.

"Thank the gods you're safe," she said in an unintentionally endearing tone.

Chrom gave her a confused look. "...You called me 'Father.'"

"Did I?..I…." Marth gulped, flushed from what she had said. It's like she should have never let her guard down. If that Risen was spotted sooner, she would not have yelled out, and he would have never known.

Not sure how to respond, as there was no fixing it, she bowed her head. "...Perhaps we might speak privately?"

"Perhaps we should, yes."

Beyond the trees Marth had hid behind was a gorgeous river home to nearby rocks, and a mountainscape that watched over them. It was nearly dark out.

"I don't even know where to begin," She said nervously. She wanted to talk to her father, but not like this.

"I know you're not 'Marth,' though I've nothing better to call you…." Chrom was stumped because he was far too young to have an older child. "...But I'll ask nothing of you that you don't wish to reveal. Whoever you are, Ylisse owes you a debt beyond repaying."

"Thank you but…" Marth felt the weight of her actions eating at her, the guilt of what she had done. Marth was still taking in all that just happened, freaking out that she pretty much completely blew her cover. That's twice now, and there's no third chance. In her mind, it made no sense to be in limbo anymore with all of the clues presented to the clueless Chrom.

She sighed, closing her eyes."I think you would prefer to know the truth."

He nodded. "As you wish."

Opening her eyes, she braced herself. "Here. Look closely, and all will be made clear." Marth then stepped closer to him. Chrom looked intently, his curious expression turned into awe when it hit him. "That's the…Brand of the Exalt…"

His breath taken away, he uttered "Lucina…" quietly.

He looked away from the smaller picture to the larger, as his eyes looked down at her sheath. From there, he was able to piece together her story. All of their experiences together from the past two years flashed through his mind, as well as a future he never saw. A wave of sadness engulfed Chrom.

"You deserved better from me than one sword and a world of troubles. I'm sorry."

Lucina, having to deal with isolation for so long, having to deal with fear of losing her father even in simpler skirmishes, having to deal with her trauma of the future, even having to deal with confusing feelings she couldn't name at the moment, lost it. She had dropped everything there, tears streaming down her face, feeling the strongest urge to find security from her father. She called out to him, falling into his embrace. The two stood there for a while, still in a moment of reconciliation.

Letting go of Lucina, Chrom stepped back, still wearing a concerned look on his face. "Better, Lucina?"

It felt nice to hear her real name again. "Yes, Father…I'm sorry. It just rushed all back at once.

"Father…"

Panic filled her. "Should I call you something else?"

"No, it's just strange to my ear." He thought about it for a moment. "...I like it."

Lucina lost her tension, laughing for the first time in Naga knows how long. "Father! Heh heh!"

Chrom laughed with her. "Hah! Yes, it will take some getting used to!"

A moment of unbridled happiness that could last forever was interrupted by a woman's voice. Thankfully, it was familiar.

"I'm sorry—Chrom?" She said, looking out ahead of her.

He turned. "Hmm? Oh, Robin. What is it?"

"It's just that…" She started, upset. "You two are out here alone, and Marth is…crying. This is how ill rumors are born. I trust you Chrom, but is there a reason you two need to be alone?"

Chrom shot glances at both of them. "Should we tell her, Lucina?"

"Of course," Lucina said peacefully.

"Lucina!?" She stepped back.

Chrom faced her. "Robin, this is going to come as a shock, but...I'll just say it: This is our daughter." Lucina felt a twinge in her chest hearing that.

"...What?! Have you gone mad?!" Her disbelief seemed to echo Lucina in a way.

Silence for a moment. Lucina was still slightly taken aback, but she couldn't deny what Chrom had said. After all, she is the heir. "It's true, Robin. Please, look closely. Prove it with your own eyes."

Skepticism turned into belief as she stared into the oceanic view. "Ah! You have the brand"

"The same Brand carried by all House Ylisse's bloodline," Chrom added.

"Lucina's eye bears the same exact pattern…" She said in the same awe Chrom did.

"Do you see now?"

"...No, no I can't say that I do." She crossed her arms. "If this is Lucina, what has befallen our baby back at the palace?"

Lucina found it odd that it was this difficult to prove this to her mother. "Nothing. She's fine. Your baby is right where you left her, and perfectly safe," she said in one breath. "I am…her from another time. From a time that is yet to be."

"You mean...the future?"

Lucina would go on to explain it just as she had run through the memories and nightmares that she had of it. She gave the basic details such as Grima, and what happened to all of the Shepherds. Robin and Chrom, (and Lissa when she arrived) felt the weight of her emotions, and yet, that truth seemed distant to them. Regardless, they had come to believe her, even if they did not see any evidence. Both parents felt distraught after hearing that, particularly Robin, who was still taking in the fact that Lucina was in front of her.

"My daughter…"

Lucina felt the twinge come back. Yet, she smiled. "Yes, Robin. Your...daughter."

She gave full eye contact to Lucina's entirety for the first time. "You have grown into such a strong and beautiful woman...Chrom and I are truly blessed."

Lucina was hot with embarrassment. "Thank you...milady."

Robin's expression turned into a concerned one. "Will you not call me Mother?"

"I...thought you might mind," Lucina shrugged, eyes peering off to the side.

"Of course not! I love you with all my heart!" She said with open arms.

She thought that she had cried all of the tears she could that night, but more came back. "Oh, Mother…"

They embraced tightly. "You are the finest daughter a woman could hope for, Lucina."

Lucina was too happy to take in what exactly she said, overwhelmed by her embrace.

"Mother…oh I missed you more than you ever know."

…

Lucina felt many things that night. Fear, Happiness, sorrow, and the weirdest of all, a twinge she occasionally felt. Lucina knew it appeared every time that she was called their "daughter", but could not wrap her head as to what that emotion was. It's been a long day, and she's exhausted.

When the Shepherds traveled to find camp, she tucked away any conflicting thoughts she may have had, and felt very happy during the trip, even if she did not make much conversation. That is, unless aunt Lissa chimed in and asked questions.

When they had made it to camp, Lucina gave her feelings more thought before she went to bed. Her mind ran through the entire day, and it was stuck on the twinge that she felt. Was it giddiness because she finally was acknowledged as Chrom's own? She was very happy and excited at that moment.

Then, she thought of the compliments her mother gave her. How did she feel about those?

Awful. "Woman", and "beautiful" stung more and more the more she thought about them. In fact, she was uncomfortable the moment her mother said them.

Maybe it's from where she hadn't interacted in a personal setting in a very long time, and doesn't know how to take a compliment. That could be it, Lucina thought.

Then, she remembered when she explained that the baby was safe.

The baby…

On a sunny April 20th, on that fateful day, Lucina was born.

And was deemed a girl for all her life.

Lucina's feelings of empty sadness had returned for the first time since she thought about it earlier.

What about being a woman was a problem?

Having no more energy to think about it, and turning to old habits, Lucina dismissed the thought and went to sleep.