So yeah, I was told by a reader that there is a chance that part of Chapter 3 was very similar to another story on this website. If anyone finds a story with extreme similarities, please PM me with a link. If it is similar enough, I will give credit where credit is due.
Chapter 5
"Where's Robin?" Inigo shrugged at Lucina's question as he continued to walk towards the mess. "I don't know. Probably in his tent. Father told me that he spends most of his time there anyways."
"You really didn't have to mention Donnel telling you; everyone knows that. But besides that, I checked in his tent and he wasn't there." Inigo shrugged and replied, "Don't worry yourself over it. He comes and goes like the wind. Besides, this is my one chance to woo some lovely locals; he banned me from doing so under normal occasions, but he can't keep Inigo away from the ladies forever!" Lucina rolled her eyes and hurriedly walked away into the mess after saying, "I don't know, he's been gone for suspiciously long, and he is still recovering from a drunken bar fight."
Inigo ran to the stables. Robin was at Jamil's arena, and Lucina was almost onto him. If anyone found out about his nighttime activities, he would be in deep water. Chrom might kick him out of the army if he was caught participating in a borderline-criminal fighting league, and Lucina, who Inigo could tell from his own philandering was in love with Robin, was sure to be much less approving of the tactician. He ran to his own horse before realizing he would need a weapon, so he ran to the weapons tent as fast as he could.
"How art thou, my love-lorn friend? I was just giving a name to this wonderful axe, and I have settled on the Crimson Cleaver as a name!" Inigo nodded and rushed to the sword rack, seizing a sword with green dragon patterns on it.
"Hey! What are you doing with the Green Destiny? And more importantly, what are you doing taking out a weapon in full battle gear this late?" Inigo rolled his eyes. He knew how persistent Owain was, and he would have to tell Owain about it.
"Robin has been participating in a fighting league for months now. It's actually how I ran into him. He is going to be discovered before long, so I am trying to go get him before someone else does." He expected shock from the noble son of the duchess of Ylisse, but he instead received enthusiasm.
"The Grandmaster is in need of a rescue! Let us set out to fight by his side in this fighting ring!" Inigo rolled his eyes at Owain's response. "We probably won't be fighting anyone, but okay, you can come along."
"Okay, but if you have fought there before, you will be recognized. We will need disguises." Inigo froze. Owain was right. "Here, take the Crimson Cleaver. Now we just need a Thunder tome, our horses, and a couple of Second Seals."
"Remember me, Dragon Bird?" The fighter who threw Robin into a table during his date taunted his opponent as he and eight others entered the ring, including the other two who confronted the Dragon Bird in the restaurant earlier that day. Robin, now wearing a red and blue mask, replied, "No. If I fought you once before, you probably weren't very memorable. Ima watashi wa anata no senaka o yaburimasu."
"If the champion will politely stop threatening to break his opponents' backs, I will tell the champion his special conditions for the fight." When Robin had quieted down, Jamil continued. "On the line in this fight is his champion's belt and 10 L bullions. If the champion is defeated, the belt will go to the lovely mercenary lady Selena, part of the group that will fight the champion, as she is ranked highest among that team." Robin glanced to the edge of the group and saw the girl standing next to a villager who seemed terrified to be in the ring.
"The champion may have two teammates in the ring. Will the champion have teammates?" As Robin was about to say no, a voice called out, "He will, in the form of Laslow the Barbarian King and I, Odin Dark!" Robin wheeled around to see Inigo in barbarian garb and Owain dressed as a dark mage. Owain winked at him as the crowd roared raucously.
"What are you two doing here?"
"Saving your ass, Mystery Fist! Also, that girl is Severa, Henry and Cordelia's daughter, so try not to beat her up too badly. We want her in one piece." Robin nodded in response to Inigo, noting the resemblance between Severa and Cordelia and silently scolding himself for not noticing earlier.
"Let's not waste any more time! Last team standing wins! FIGHT!" The fighter yelled at his masked adversary and charged, with Severa and the villager close behind. A thief, barbarian, and mercenary attacked Owain, while two fighters and a myrmidon attacked Inigo.
"Enter your demise, my foes! Odin Dark will be your undoing!" The thief swung a low kick while the mercenary jabbed at his head and the barbarian kicked at him from the side. Owain jumped over the thief's kick and blocked the jab with his left as he yanked the barbarian's leg out from under him. The disguised myrmidon punched the mercenary twice in the stomach before a kick from the thief sent him reeling while the barbarian staggered up.
Robin, meanwhile, was in his best fight in weeks. The fighter was fighting much better than before, and Severa was a force to be reckoned with. As he didn't have the time to knock out the fighter or Severa quickly, he focused on the villager. Elbowing the fighter in the face and stunning Severa with a quick jab, he turned to the villager and landed two strong body punches, sending the man reeling.
"Holland! Get it together!" As Severa called out the villager's name, Robin was knocked into the wooden fence that surrounded the ring. He sidestepped to avoid the fighter's haymaker, was punched in the stomach by Severa, then punched her twice in the face, sending her reeling. As he ran to finish her off, the fighter swung a piece of the wooden fence at Robin. He ducked under the swing, and as the fighter swung the plank around again, Robin caught it, ripped it out of his hands, and broke it over the fighter's head, making him crumple to the ground.
"LITTLE HELP HERE?!" Inigo was struggling to fight off the two fighters and the myrmidon. Noticing Robin rushing to his side, Inigo seized one fighter by the collar and pulled him past his right shoulder, where the fighter was clotheslined by the Dragon bird. The myrmidon threw a punch at Robin, who caught his fist while Inigo round-housed the man, knocking him out instantly.
The last fighter, the last member of the group that confronted Robin, laughed. "I'll still gut yer, Dragon Bird, and when I'm done here, I'll track down yer date! Reckon she'll grant me a good time, seeing as she's so fiery!" Robin roared in fury and charged at the fighter, who punched him twice in the face, but he didn't care. Robin punched him twice in the stomach and side, then palmed him in the face. He clasped his hands and slammed down on the top of the fighter's head, knocking him to the ground. The Mystery Fist then yanked him up and swung him around, throwing him into the thief that Owain was fighting, knocking out the last of Owain's opponents.
The three Shepherds turned to Severa and Holland, who were backed into the corner of the ring. "You should've fought harder! Now we won't be able to pay for your family's freedom!"
"Severa, can you not recognize your fellow Justice Cabal and a Scion of Legend?" Severa got out of fighting stance and stared at Owain.
"Owain and Inigo? What are you two doing here? A prince of Ylisse, at least, shouldn't be in a fighting ring playing dress-up!"
"We came here to get Robin, and sorry, but we do still have to win!" At Owain's words, Robin judo-chopped Severa in the neck, knocking her out cold as the crowd cheered. He then turned to Holland and knocked him to the ground, whispering, "Stay down now, and I'll give you 30% of my winnings." Holland stayed down until a horn blew, signaling the end of the fight.
"The champion wins against the 4 to 3 odds against him! The prize of 100,000 Ylissean pounds goes to the Mystery fist, the Barbarian King, and Odin Dark!" The crowd cheered and began to make their way to the bookies. As Jamil's guards dragged away the Shepherds' vanquished foes, Owain told them to leave Severa and Holland behind.
Holland stood up and faced Robin, while the tactician gave Holland 30,000 Ylissean pounds. "Use that to pay off your family's freedom. My friends here know Severa, we can take care of her." Holland nodded and thanked Robin, then hurried away. Robin then turned to Owain and Inigo.
"You two shouldn't have come for me. I would have been fine. Now those guys will target you." Owain turned to face the tactician and replied, "I merely felt obligated to rescue the great grandmaster!"
"Besides," Inigo added as he drew close and whispered into Robin's ear, "Your date is almost onto you and your nightly excursions." Robin backed up and stared wide-eyed at Inigo. He's a philanderer, of course he could tell that we were together.
"You're right… I'll stop fighting in the ring until the Valmese campaign is done. In the meantime, we have 70,000 pounds to spend. And you're going to like what I have planned for it."
"So, was your date going well before you were attacked?" Sumia was sitting across from Lucina in the mess tent, writing in a book with a quill as she spoke to Lucina, who was eating breakfast.
"Yes, it was great. Robin is very funny. He brings out the best in me, I think. However, the way the fighters addressed Robin was very weird. They called him 'Dragon Bird'."
Sumia wrote a few things down furiously, then replied, "They probably just mistook him for someone else; Robin fights well, but off the battlefield he's gentle and cheerful. I can see why you like him."
"Wait, are you writing down everything I say?"
"Just for notes! This is great writing material! I'm not missing out!" Lucina threw a spoon at her mother, who ducked and laughed until Lucina whispered, "Stop talking about Robin, Cordelia's coming."
Cordelia sat down by them, evidently having downed a shot or three. She would do that sometimes when she was sad about not being able to win over Chrom or whoever she was daydreaming about.
"How are you doing, Cordelia?" She sat down and replied, "Now that Donnel is taken and Stahl is taken, terrible."
"Well, I'm sure your luck will turn around soon." Cordelia smiled and replied, "I think it will. I'm going to see if Robin wants to go out with me tomorrow." WHAAT?! Lucina gasped, then quickly shut her mouth.
"Why wouldn't I want to go out with him? He's a nice guy and he's very handsome!" Lucina exchanged a look with Sumia and said, "Are you sure about that? I mean, he doesn't really seem your type!"
"What, jealous? You had your chance and you didn't take it. Besides, we actually share a generation!" Cordelia laughed as Sumia and Lucina exchanged another nervous glance and a Plegian-cloaked tactician entered with the other Justice Cabal who had just been in the ring entered the mess tent.
Lissa walked angrily up to her son (Gaius by her side, as he had been all day the day before) and asked, "Why are you two dressed like that, why are you all bruised, and who's the redhead?" Robin quickly replied for him, saying, "We tried to sneak past some bandits in disguise, we failed horribly, and this is Severa, daughter of Cordelia and-"
"YOU'RE MY DAUGHTER?" Cordelia laughed and ran to Severa, but she pushed her away. "What? Did you not want to see me?"
"I'm only visiting to see my friends from the Justice Cabal. Then I'm leaving, I don't belong here." Gasps from everyone from Owain to Cordelia ensued.
"What do you mean, you don't belong here? We've always been able to accommodate everyone's needs!" don't mention Father, Lucina silently pleaded, don't mention Father, Don't mention Father- "I'm sure if you talk to Chrom he can-"
"AAAAAAUUUUUGGGGHHH!" Robin, Sumia, Gaius, and Lissa winced, the other children sighed in resignation, Cordelia was horrified, and Frederick burst into the tent, saying, "Are we under attack? Who is this?"
"Severa, dear," Cordelia interjected, "What did I say? Do you really dislike my company so much that you don't even want me to try to talk to-" Lucina clamped her hand over Cordelia's mouth before she could say the trigger word and anger her daughter.
"It's always about Chrom with you!" Severa was clearly angry out of her mind. "First you tried to run off and help him when the Risen came, but when Father begged you not to, you promised to come back to him, but no, you left Father to be with Chrom, and Father lost the will to fight from his heartbreak! You're a liar and a traitor and I HATE YOU!"
Cordelia was speechless and in tears. She collapsed on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably at her daughter's bitter rejection. "W-w-was Robin the person who I-"
"WRONG AGAIN! You're such an idiot, Mother! Father told me about how you constantly chased after everyone: First Chrom, then Donnel, then Stahl, and now Robin, and you fail to notice the one person who has supported you through all of them without you even realizing it!" Cordelia stopped crying and slowly stood up.
"Owain, Inigo, Lucina," Cordelia asked, "A-are you sure I ever even joined Chrom?" Severa scoffed and said, "They don't know. You never let anyone know when you left me and Father for him." Chrom walked in eating an apple with everyone staring at him. "What? It's locally grown!"
"No, you never made it to my father. You probably died before then." Severa stared wide-eyed at Lucina. She had never heard this before. "W-what are you talking about-"
"You died by Virion and Cherche, while Gerome and I escaped and found Lucina. You died before you could return to your family." Inigo cowered away when he got an angry glance from Cordelia's daughter.
"W-wait, stop, you liars! Stop trying to convince me that my mother's not a horrible rat!" Chrom dropped the apple out of his mouth. "Is that Cordelia's daughter?! Why does no-one tell me these things?!"
"He speaks the truth." Gerome spoke from the corner of the tent for the first time, making everyone jump. "Your fate is to die by my parents. Also, before you ask, I've been taking lessons from Kellam."
"Severa, dear," Cordelia finally approached her daughter, "I'm pretty sure I wasn't cheating on your father. It seems I was dead. I understand if you still don't want to stay…" Severa stood in place, thinking about what her mother was saying. Robin noticed her glance at Inigo and then Owain, focusing on the latter for five full seconds before saying, "Ugh, fine, I guess I'll stay, at least for a little while."
"Oh, thank you, dear!" Cordelia pulled Severa into a tight hug, which she squirmed to get out of. "Nope, I'm not letting you go. I've apparently got years of motherly love to make up for!"
"Are we wrestling? Because I'll win!" Nah burst into the tent in full dragon form and barreled over the two red-haired women and laughed happily before her mother grabbed her and flew back out of the tent, knocking over another small tent. "LEAVE ME ALONE!" Yarne crawled back into the knocked over tent and ducked as the dragons flew into a nearby field.
"Poor folks. I will be in the weapons tent for a few minutes before I prep for our assault on Walhart, Chrom. Feel free to join me then." Robin stealthily squeezed Lucina's hand before leaving the tent.
"Permission to dismiss for battle prep, Milord?" Chrom nodded and Frederick hurried out, while Gerome exited in the other direction, muttering something about fate. Lucina followed Robin to the weapons tent, where he was sorting through the new weapons he had bought.
"Hey Robin, you alright?" Lucina set her hand on Robin's shoulder and he whirled around in alarm, then settled down when he saw that it was her. "Robin, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, just a little rattled after that very awkward fiasco. But at least you're here." He leaned over and kissed Lucina before continuing to sort through the brave weapons.
"What's up with this sword?" Lucina picked it up and took a few swings, marveling at how fast she could swing the sword. "That's a brave sword. They're designed to be swung twice as fast as other swords." Lucina set the sword down and picked up a lance, and after taking a few practice swings and thrusts, the lance slipped out of her hand and trimmed Robin's hair as it got stuck in the tent post.
"Let's stick with the sword for now, shall we?" Lucina nodded while Robin sat down on a stool by the brave weapons. "After seeing that nonsense, I'm kind of scared to see what Chrom will do to me when he finds out about us. I saw what happened when Virion flirted with Sumia during the Plegian campaign, I don't want to know what he'll do to me!" Robin closed his eyes as he felt a recognizable weight sink into his lap and a hand brush hair out of his face.
"I'm sure he'll be fine with it. You're his closest friend, he'll trust you." Lucina and Robin's lips met for a few seconds before they pulled apart and Robin asked, "Well, do you like the new swords?"
"They're nice, but I'll probably stick with the Falchion. As far as swords in this room go, my favorite is the one I'm sitting on." Robin opened his eyes and stared wide-eyed at the princess of Ylisse.
"Did you just make a sex joke? You, who doesn't understand a single joke that anybody else makes, just made a sex joke!" Lucina's face fell as she muttered, "Well I thought I was being funny but if not…"
"Relax, Lucina. Great to see you in a good mood." Robin's lips met Lucina's again repeatedly as he pulled the princess closer to him, while Chrom walked by outside.
"So Robin, Inigo, and Owain found Severa last night, and she didn't want to join because she thought her mother had cheated on her father? With ME?" Sumia nodded, laughing. "Before you asked, she hasn't said who her father is, and she threatened the other children with death if they tell you or anyone."
"Kjelle is doing the same thing for me, and it's driving me CRAZY!" Chrom and Sumia jumped as they walked by the training area and Sully was swinging her killer lance at a post angrily. "Every damn time I try to get her to tell me she finds some way out of the situation! I mean, how does she run so fast in full armor?! Why'd I have to train her so well?" Chrom and Sumia backed away quickly while Sully continued to hack angrily at the dummy.
"Why Sully so angry?" Gregor was sitting on a tree stump nearby. The bow knight was casually firing arrows, usually hitting the second or third ring from the center of the target. "Gregor not used to this."
"Oh hey, Gregor," Sully stuck her lance into the ground and leaned against the damaged post. "My daughter is driving me nuts. I'm her mother, but Kjelle won't tell me who I marry! I really hope I don't marry a bum like Kellam or something."
"Hey, Kellam not bum. Leave stealthy man alone… he might be here." Sully glanced around to make sure Kellam wasn't there, then continued to talk.
"Lucina revealed her identity and there wasn't a giant time paradox! Kjelle even revealed her own identity! So why can't she tell me who my husband is?!" Sully angrily threw a javelin at a target, going straight through the target circle.
"Look from Kell's shoes, Sully," Gregor pointed out. "Maybe she just do not want to ruin your chance of finding out naturally."
"Ugh… You're right…" Sully stuck her javelin into the ground and stood up. "Thanks for the advice. By the way, I've been meaning to spar with you, as they say you're one of the greatest swordsmen in Plegia. Winner can have the other person do anything they choose, no matter how humiliating." Gregor nodded, saying, "You cannot best Gregor, but Gregor accepts."
"I'm tired of people underestimating me because I'm a woman! I'll show you just how great I am!"
"Gregor underestimate no-one! Especially not muscle-bound lady with great chip on her shoulder!"
"Then this will be interesting." The cavalier and the bow knight went to get their horses, while Chrom prepared to talk to Robin about his new weapons…
As he was about to enter the tent, Chrom heard clattering coming from inside. As he rushed in, he saw Robin standing by the weapons table with a close trim while Lucina held a strange sword with wires through the middle next to him.
"Be careful where you point that thing, Lucina!" Robin rubbed the top of his head in dismay while Chrom laughed heartily.
"I've been telling him he needs a haircut. Thanks, Luci." Chrom's daughter laughed the laugh that barely showed while Robin scowled at Chrom.
"Is that so, Chrom? Well, you'd love to know that I found a recipe for a potion that allows people to see conjurations of my memories. I'm sure Lucina would love to witness her own conception through my unfortunate entrance into your room on your wedding night!" Lucina wore a face of horror while Chrom replied, "You wouldn't!"
"You're right, I wouldn't put Lucina through that. Or anyone or that matter. Unlike someone I know, who put me through the ringer." Chrom rolled his eyes and walked over to the table, picking up one of the brave swords.
"These swords can be swung twice as fast as normal swords. I think they'll be very useful." Chrom took a couple of practice swings before strapping it to his back and walking out.
"I think I'll stick with Falchion myself, but these swords will be very useful. Equip as many people as you can with these weapons." Robin nodded and began to assign weapons to Shepherds for their attack on Valm, while Chrom and Lucina exited the tent to prepare for the battle.
"Seven times you talked to women who weren't Mother!" Robin whirled around to see Lon'qu enter groaning, while his son Yarne followed him angrily. "Lon'qu, Yarne, what's going on?"
"My son fears that I am unfaithful to Panne just because I have to talk to other women during battles for strategic reasons." Robin laughed happily and turned to Yarne, saying, "Don't worry, Yarne, your mother is the only woman that Lon'qu can stand. I'll put you in a fighting group with your parents, if it's that important to you." Yarne still didn't look happy with his father.
"Son, I know that you went through tough times, but you shouldn't worry about that." Turning to Robin, Lon'qu said, "My son thinks I will cheat on Panne and that he will cease to exist as a result. Despite my promises, he will not listen to me!"
"Well, you can't blame me for not believing your promises! You made a promise that you'd come home safe, and you never kept that one! Instead Mother and I had to run from home from your hooded killer! So you can't blame me for not believing you!" Yarne stormed out in anger while Lon'qu leaned against the table with his head in his hands.
"So that's why he doesn't trust me," Lon'qu muttered, "In his time, I am just the memory of a broken promise…"
"Don't worry about it, Lon'qu. He'll realize that we live in a different world to his and that you'll survive here."
"But what if I don't? What if I leave him like Sol-Zin left me?" Robin was puzzled for a second, then remembered that Lon'qu had once told him about his brother when he was drunk.
"You are older and stronger, Lon'qu. You are the greatest swordsman in this entire army. You'll do fine as a father."
"You'll think otherwise when you have a child of your own!" Stahl walked in and rebutted Robin's claim. "Brady is sure a pain sometimes! He must have had a lot of strange ideas put into his head by his mother."
"At least your child is the same species as you!" Ricken walked in and grabbed a tome off of a bookshelf. "Nah is a lot like her mother and me, and wow, I am a pain in the ass!" Robin, Lon'qu, and Stahl couldn't help but laugh at this realization by Ricken.
"Long story short, Robin, you and Lucina will see what it's like soon enough, if it's even possible for you guys to have a future kid." Robin sort of let this fly over his head, then quickly did a double take. "Wait a second! YOU KNOW THAT WE'RE DATING?!"
Ricken laughed giddily and replied, "Of course we do! Basically everyone in the camp does! Except Chrom, of course, because I'm sure he'd let you know if he did." While Ricken was red in the face from laughter, Robin was red-faced from embarrassment.
"Word spreads fast in this camp. It was nearly impossible for me and Panne to keep our marriage secret. Libra took extreme caution to hold our wedding in private."
"Could not keep Gregor in dark though!" Gregor walked in and slapped Lon'qu on the back with enough force to knock over someone less strong than Lon'qu. "Gregor was best man after he found out about Sword Boy and Bunny Woman's marriage!" Robin grabbed a brave sword and a killer bow and tossed them to Gregor, who strapped them to his back. "Gregor like wire sword! Will allow old, slow man to fight like when Gregor was young, eh? Also, Robin, Gregor best sword-man in Shepherds! I fight circles around young men like Chrom and Lon'qu!" Rolling his eyes, Robin gave Stahl, Lon'qu, and Ricken their weapons and exited the tent. They would face a horde of Paladins, and Walhart himself, after a three-hour march.
Anyone pick up the movie reference that I made in this chapter? Hint: It's at the beginning when Owain is talking to Inigo. Besides that, please do review, it helps to get advice. I felt like I wanted to give Gregor some of the attention he deserved in the story, since he got so little focus in that. I do definitely intend to make this story a good 20-30 chapters long, so look forward to that! See you later!
