A/N: Lemme just wrap this day up with one more important detail with Yasei's… magic, actually. Specifically Vallite magic. Oh, and her mental state. That's right! Don't think she's coming out of a major traumatic event without some form of consequence!

Consort: Yes, very close. Thankfully, Yasei didn't push the topic. So, as far as she knows, her mother moved in from this 'Valla' and married into the Hoshidan Royal Family, but… that still leaves some things unexplained, doesn't it? Still, at least Yasei will remain on her path to peace and unification!

Kaze does deserve that position! And I bet he's overjoyed that he isn't being forced to wait until about halfway through the Birthright Route (at the latest) until he finally gets that position.

Antex: Oh, that would be very bad. It's bad enough that it was stolen already, but a second time?

Out of all of that information, we had only managed to obtain that… Kaze's father was killed in a battle, but nothing else, so we had both left the Royal Library. However, while most of the day had slipped by, there was still one more place I wanted to visit before I would lie down for the night. "Kaze? There was a… lake in Shirasagi, right? I can just barely remember going to one." I can remember her voice better than I can her face, or name, or… anything, really. Soft and melodious, the one that brought me out of my stress-induced dragon transformation.

"Yes, there is, milady." Strictly formal once more, but… I'm not going to push it while we're out in public. "Do you wish for me to guide you there?"

I smile, "Yes, please." I do hope she is still there.

He nods, and as dutiful as the other times, begins leading… "How is your side, Lady Corrin?"

As I walk, I perform a slight stretch to my left side, yep. I can feel a spark of pain, but… "It's well, Kaze."

"Good, I'm glad. The lead Shrine Maiden believes she'll be able to work out an ointment that should be able to… 'layer' a sort of 'shell' around it, so that you won't need to constantly have a supply of it."

Oh? "That sounds wonderful!" Being able to do what I want, when I want, and not have to carry a jar of ointment around?

"It is, though she's afraid the 'shell' won't be as flexible or durable as skin, so there will still need to be precautions taken."

Well… can't expect a cure-all, can I? "She's working magic into it, right?"

To my surprise, he shakes his head, "No, she's working on the natural side first… I believe she said she'll have Orochi prepare the 'enchantments' for it."

Orochi… "Did you mention that name recently? Orochi?" She's a, uh… retainer?

"She was Queen Mikoto's retainer… milady? Are you having trouble recalling information? That might be a sign of something more serious."

I shake my head, "No, I'm just… still learning. Thank you for the concern, though."

He briefly glances my way during my answer, and gives me a critical look. I honestly can't tell if he's convinced. "Very well, milady. Should any complications arise, I'm here for you."

I'm fine… I know I'm fine. It's just, I'm still learning everyone, I haven't seen, met, or even heard of them since I was just a baby, right? How could I remember all of them after being separated for nearly, what… sixteen years?

Then again, despite the times that I saw my sibling's retainers, I'm having trouble remembering them. Let's see, Xander had… a. Alright, to be fair, his were usually doing something else while we trained. Camilla had, right! She had that… silent woman. Leo? Elise, oh! Elise's were that axe-wielder and Ef...Effie? See! I can remember… one, out of eight.

Oh dear, I think I do have a problem.

Who else? Um, there was Gunter, and Lilith! Oh, I can actually remember her perfectly! Wait, Gunter…

"Milady?" Kaze stopped, being several feet in front of me.

I hadn't realized I stopped. "It's…" Gunter. I can… remember Hans causing him to fall into the Canyon, I can remember losing myself, it was the first time I… changed. I look at my arm, the one that changed into a… what was it? A lance?

"Is there an issue?" He seems hesitant about… "You were crying."

I raise that same arm up and wipe off my eyes… yep. Tears. "I lost a close mentor to me… he… he fell down into the Bottomless Canyon." And Hans was the one… Sorrow is swiftly replaced with anger. Hans took someone close from me, and I… I'm going to.

"Breathe, milady." He calmly advises me. "Needless rage will only bring misfortune upon you and those you care for. If there is someone who is the source of your anger, then you must approach them in a non-vengeful manner, lest you try to kill them, which will result in naught but an empty feeling. Revenge leads to nothing."

"That's wise, coming from the person who wanted to investigate their father's murderer!"

He takes a breath, "That is true, I won't deny it. However, should I encounter him, I would wish to capture him and bring him to a trial, rather than stain my hands with his blood."

"But he killed your father! Hans broke the planks under Gunter's horse, which caused him to fall to his death! Both of them deserve to die!" I snarl, feeling a grumble within my chest.

"Milady, this is an unhealthy approach. You need to balance anger with reasoning."

"He's with me, Yasei. My own have found him. This aged man rests in my care." Wait… what?

"How?" I find myself asking out loud.

Unfortunately, or perhaps it is rather in my favor, Kaze smiles. "I'm glad you asked. I would be honored to teach methods in which to better gain self-control over one's emotions."

Now, at the same time that Kaze was talking… "Should one manage to dodge the rocks and walls during the descent in the Bottomless Canyon, they shall find themselves falling into Valla. My soldiers managed to find him, he's recovering right now. However, we were unable to save his horse. There used to be more gateways and portals, but some magical force that I can't undo has blocked them off… leaving the 'Bottomless Canyon' the only current route."

What? That… I could go to Valla? Hm, but I'm not going to risk getting impaled or sliced apart by those rocks. 'I still want to take Hans's life.' I'm… not sure what exactly I felt from him, but it wasn't denial. 'Do you… approve?' Instead of an actual response, I feel some sort of 'shock' of magic, the connection cuts off.

"Milady?" He asks, after my lengthy silence.

Oh right, he said something to me. "Uh, thank you, Kaze. I'm looking forward to it."

And now he looks confused, "Milady? We are here." He gestures in front of us.

A lake… where I met Azura. I think. "Right, thank you, Kaze." He offers me one brief and strange look, before it resumes the normal seemingly emotionless expression. Disregarding that, I continue to the lake. Lakes, water… I reach the edge, though I note that there's no singing echoing around here. Azura might not be here, but there's plenty of water. Reflecting off of this lake is a beautiful full moon, free of clouds, stars shining on from high… I take in a deep breath, right as a wind blows in.

Mmm, paradise.

'Can you teach me something else?' I essentially plead. 'Anything?' I reach down and touch the water's surface with my fingers. A few ripples flow out. "Mizu." I speak, which causes a second set of ripples, as if I touched the surface again. Mizu, Mizu, Mizu… another word clicks, "Hamon." Ripples start forming en masse, like I'm repeatedly smacking the water. Despite the simplicity of the effects, I'm finding myself giggling over it. I learned something! Can I… make something bigger? What's bigger than ripples? Like a… wave! 'What's the word for 'Wave', like an ocean wave?' Mizu is water, Hamon is ripple, so… wave would be… 'Come on, please!'

"You haven't practiced your magic enough, it will be too much for you."

'It's a wave, how much could it…?'

"Nami." He swiftly cuts me off.

"Nami." I can feel the pull of magic, but… I feel like it's just a bit… "Nami. Nami!" And then… it hit. It hit hard. My stubbornness paid off with a rather unique feeling, but it was anything but pleasant. While a mini-wave did form, something only about twice the height of those ripples, I felt… drained. No, not drained. Thirsty, parched… sudden and near dehydration.

"I warned you."

'I did it, though.' I cough, my entire mouth felt incredibly parched, thoroughly dry. My first instinct was to plunge my head straight into the water near me… the only reason I didn't was because I didn't want Kaze to think something bad just happened, so…

I stoop a bit closer to the water, and start paddling my hand in it, as if I was trying to do… something. I didn't think that far ahead. Swimming! That would be a perfect excuse! "I'm g…" I end up choking on my own words, due to the sheer lack of water in me.

"Milady?" And of course, he approaches. "Are you well?" He clears his throat, "I must say, I've never seen spells quite like that… is it… Nohrian?" I simply nod, then 'warn' him of going to swim by beginning to strip down. I… I really can't even talk right now. "Ah, pardon me." Thankfully, he gets the hint. He walks away, and I quickly drop the rest of my attire. Without wasting any more time, I dive straight into the lake. I feel the rejuvenating effects immediately, and without thinking about it, I take in a gulp of water… while swimming. It felt natural, normal. I'm able to swallow that water and breathe! The dryness is completely gone, just like that.

"Water really is my element, isn't it?" I manage to speak. I then take a second breath and… nope! I swim up as fast as I'm able to and cough up that helping of water. Why? Why could I only breathe one gulp of water, but not two?

And a concerned Kaze, in the middle of readying to jump in. "Gods, milady! Are you… I saw bubbles, and…"

"I'm well Kaze, honestly. I just wanted to swim a bit." I can see his eyes slightly divert… oh. "Sorry." However, I still remain above water, "I'm alright, really."

"Milady…" He lets out a breath. "You are truly worrying me. Forgetfulness, sudden anger… and now I thought for a moment you were drowning…"

"I'm just… still recovering, right? It hasn't even been a week since I woke back up." I try to reason, though at least he's able to maintain eye-contact… "You know, Kaze? Big sister Camilla always told me that a woman should be proud of her appearance, that all women are beautiful… well that, and she also kept telling others that 'My eyes are up here'." To be fair though, I have two little 'hills' compared to her 'mountains'.

"I can respect that, but I should advise that you at least wear some water wear over your…" He gulps.

Is he… really offset? Hrm. "Kaze, I can understand that, but I'm not ashamed of what I have." It also helps that water feels really good… "If I'm swimming, I'm going in bare."

"...Understood. Milady? May I fetch a towel for you?"

Oh… that's a good point, actually. "Uh, yes, please!"

"I will return shortly." This time, he does vanish, and I'm left alone…

For the first time in quite a while, actually. I mean, completely alone, well maybe except for one. 'Do you have anything else you can teach me?' I reach out, 'How about Valla… what's that like? Mother's from there, right?' I take in a breath and dive under again, freely swimming for a few extra minutes… though I do try to 'breathe' another gulp before I rise, which ends in another failure. 'How come I could breathe in only one gulp of water? Am I… oh! Is my dragon form like… part fish?' I'm left with silence. That, actually kind of stings. I was hoping for something.

I'm… really all alone, then. Not even that voice is responding. I huff, fine. I'm sure I can figure some more of this magic out myself! I mean, I managed to get 'ripple', and I just knew what 'Yasei' means, so…

Considering that forming a 'wave' is too much, I think a large weapon would also be so… how about a… whip? That has good range, and it can be a more tactical weapon. "Whip, whip…" Hrm. I make a random 'slinging' gesture with my arm, which scatters some random water droplets. "What would 'whip' be?" Come on! I thought of ripple…

However, any thought I might have had was cut off. I hear footsteps in the grass, but it's not Kaze. In fact, I don't ever remember seeing this one, not that that really amounts to much. "Good evening, ma'am." He first says, offering a bow, his smile is gentle, or at least, what I can see from his smile as his silver-ish strands mixed in with his primarily blue hair are hiding a part of his face… kind of like big sister Camilla. Except that the half of his hair that is covering his face reaches much farther than hers. For the eye that I can see, it is colored an admittedly pretty emerald mixed in with a bit of blue.

Leather armor, akin to a Ninja's, but also… not. In fact, this set-up is similar to what I've seen… gods, what was his name?! Leo's retainer? Archer, right? This man's armor resembles an Archer's, which makes it a Nohrian assemble. Past that, he does have a bow, a shortsword, and the head of a staff tucked into one of his many, many pockets. "Oh, hello, sir." I greet back with a smile. "I haven't seen you before." His sword seems to be made of steel, his bow, at least from what I could tell with a brief glance from his physical bowing, has some sort of decorative piece near the handle… I think the bow is also steel, maybe? The Staff hanging out seems a lot less expensive.

Something in me clicked and I understood, he's better with his sword and bow than a staff.

"Nor have I you, but… I believe you made contact with my liege? Does Lady Azura ring a bell?" He stoops down, completely unbothered by my partial nudity.

Azura… Azura. I squint my eyes and concentrate. "Vaguely? I think I remember meeting her here." I finally answer, with furrowed brows. "She was singing and I was… entranced by her skill, so I came closer."

He plucks a single blade of grass, "That is how milady described it. I am Ignis, from Nohr." Instead of a second bow, he instead takes a breath and places the blade of grass near his mouth to… oh.

That's actually a pretty lovely tune. I even find myself humming along to it, before he needs to catch his breath. "That was well done." I applaud.

And now he bows, "Thank you, Lady Corrin." Looking at his grass, he picks two more. "I apologize for the brief conversation, but I came for a few pristine blades of grass." Looking them over once more, he does yet a third bow.

"Oh… okay. I'll see you later then!" I wave. Huh, he's pretty nice, though… Ignis. Hrm, nope. Not even a shred of a memory, it's not like…

Niles! That's the Archer's name! I smile to myself as I manage to somehow and randomly recall one of Leo's retainers. There, I remember two, that just leaves… six retainers. Currently proud of myself, I go back to swimming in the moonlight, I'll get out soon, just… a few more minutes.

A/N: I mean, I've only been on the same day for the last four chapters or so… well, at least with a lot of things now established, I can start going through the days a bit quicker, and with the initial explanations of the issues out of the way, maybe I'll also won't struggle so much? …

Updates will remain a bit slow, not due to my own typing speed, but because the rest of my days are so loaded.