Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Stories of heroes always entertained the young prince and princess of Ylisse. Especially ones involving their ancestor, hero king Marth. What’s not to love about a story where good wins over evil? The stories told to Chrom and Lissa were always similar, good vs evil, and good always won. It was that black and white for them. Bad guys were bad, and good guys were good. Gods were gods and there was nothing above them. That’s how it should’ve been. . . right?

Today was a different story for the siblings as they yet again explored Ylisstol, alongside Frederick of course. Lissa was eager to hear about the incoming merchant’s travels and the stories they’d be willing to tell. Chrom was just as interested of course but tried his best to calm his sister before she got herself lost. This time the story came from a brightly robed merchant who has just arrived back from their travels. And what they told the trio shocked them.

It was a tale about Grima, a being that was essentially Plegia’s god. However, the merchant shared a lesser known tale about the deity, or rather, the man-made god.

They shared the story of how an alchemist attempted to play the role of god. The alchemist was dedicated to two goals: to create an army made of the living dead and to create a “perfect” being. The man was successful with his plan to create an army of the living dead, those were the beings declared as the Risen by the merchant. This, in turn, gave the alchemist the title of The Demon Alchemist. His other goal wasn’t as easy to obtain as he originally planned. He created a being of his own by using not only Divine Dragon’s blood, but he added in his own blood too. Eventually creating a being of pure destruction that was unable to be controlled. The merchant then told the usual tale the trio have heard about the first Exalt of Ylisse and Naga.

The damage was done towards the once simple and clean story the royals knew, however. Both Lissa and Chrom stared at the merchant with puzzled expressions. Frederick just shook his head in response to the tale. The merchant just chuckled in response to the expressions laid before them, gaining an even more confused look from the trio.

“You can believe this is a story that some poor soul just made up on the spot if you wish,” the merchant sighed, “But not all stories come from imagination alone. The world is more strange than you may ever know, anything can happen. Just as anything can change.”

And with that, the merchant said their goodbyes and took off towards the next town over.

“That was a strange beginning,” Chrom muttered as he watched the merchant disappear into the crowd.

“None of that could’ve possibly been true,” Frederick groaned, “A man creating a being that’ll be worshiped like a god, unbelievable.”

“But what if it was true?” Lissa mumbled.

“That’d be kinda scary,” Chrom softly replied, “If anyone just had that power, who knows what could happen.”

“Please don’t tell me you’re buying into that nonsense,” Frederick huffed.

“I’m not saying that I am,” Chrom sighed, "But if it WAS true, then it really does change a few things.”

“Chrom, Lissa,” Frederick insisted, “Folklore is just that, lore told by dozens of people. Not all stories need to be true, or are true for that matter, that one especially.”

The siblings sighed as they realized this was a losing battle and decided to give up the argument.

“Okay, okay,” Chrom halfheartedly agreed, “The story was just a story. Nothing more nothing less.”

“Glad to see you be reasonable milord,” Frederick sighed.

“Yeah, yeah,” Chrom muttered grumpily in response.

The words still continued to echo within the sibling’s heads through the rest of the day, no story was able to keep their minds off of what they learned. After all, the world is more strange than their young minds may ever know, anything can happen. So why couldn't that story be true?

Chapter Text

It was a calm night like any other, and a small boy and his mother were walking through the forest trying to get to the next city as quickly as possible. The poor boy stumbled around as he clutched a part of his mother’s cloak in his hand. He was too worn out to stay at the same pace as his mother otherwise. That’s when he felt something crawl up his back.

The small boy decided to let go and take a breather to look around and adjust the bag around his shoulders. He found nothing out of the ordinary.

“Robin, come on,” his mother sighed, “We need to make it there before dawn.”

Robin turned toward his mother and quickly rushed back to her side, reattaching to her cloak. However, he still couldn’t shake off the feeling something was out there.

The two made a bit more progress towards the next village before disaster struck. A loud crack caught the attention of the duo causing them to quickly turn towards the sound’s source. A falling tree, heading their way. The two began to dash in an attempt to not get caught by the tree. They’d almost manage to escape from it together. However, as it finally collided with the ground with a loud thud, it finally managed to separate the two. Before Robin had a chance to think about catching up with his mother, but the fallen tree suddenly caught fire.

Robin froze in panic as he was trying to think of anything that will help with his current situation. His mother broke his trance as she began to scream directions for him, but he barely heard any as the sound of the fire grew louder. Another sound also catches the attention of the boy, it was the sound of horses. It was too dangerous to stay at that point. Robin started to dash as he finally found an opening, at this point he didn’t care where he was going to end up. He continued to run until he ended up on a cliff, and much to his dismay he could still hear the sound of a few men’s cries. Robin frantically searched for a way down as fast as he could. However, he couldn’t find a single way that wouldn’t involve a high chance of death.

Let me take over, this has gone too far. They’re closing in on us kid, I can feel it.

Robin shivered as the voice crossed his mind. He hasn’t heard that voice in a while. It would usually give him advice from time to time, mostly just a bit of insight into how people are possibly thinking and how to react. He hasn’t heard it since days after he and his mother arrived in Ylisse, but he was somewhat glad to have it appear in a time of need.

Robin was glad until he realized what the voice was suggesting. Another take over. Robin never remembered what happened the first time the voice suggested this plan, he just remembers how much it hurts. The boy clutched his head in pain as the feeling rushed through his veins again.

“I-is that the only way?” Robin cried.

It’s the only thing I can think of. . . Look, I know it hurts. I can feel it too you know. But, I could glide from the cliff and there’s a village in the distance. I won’t reach the town, but what’s important is that they won’t reach us.

“It’s too far, what about my mom?” Robin questioned.

We’ll make a plan afterward Robin! We’ll make them pay. Hell, I’ll even wipe out Plegia if that’s what it takes for them to let us be free.

“Please don’t,” Robin muttered, “I don’t-”

The thundering sound of horses reminded Robin of his current situation, he needed to escape fast. If that meant letting Grima take over, he had to.

“Do it,” Robin cried, “Get it over with!”

Sorry kid.

Robin’s mind then became clouded. 

As the soldiers began to close in a cloud of dark smoke suddenly clouded their vision. Their horses were frightened and started going out of control. Then a gust of wind threw them all of their horses and onto the ground. Some of the men stayed on the mission and continued to the cliff, but what the found was no longer a mere child. The creature spread its dark wings and created a strong gust of wind to push the men back once again. The creature gave a sinister and distorted laugh as it looked over its shoulder.

“I’ll be back for all of you, I swear,” the creature sang as it jumped off the cliff. 

Grima forgot how it was like to fly, or glide rather as they well. . . couldn’t fly correctly due to body proportions. Robin’s body was still too small and weak for Grima to use properly. Not being able to control their wings caused another major problem. No control means they couldn't really stop their possible crash landing.

Grima zipped through the sky at a faster pace than they expected and was desperately trying to slow their descent. If they fail it will lead to collateral damage to their shared body. They really didn’t need to give Robin another reason not to trust them. Grima started to get desperate and decided to reach for trees as soon as they got close enough. The minute they grabbed onto a branch, sure it stopped their momentum a bit, but Grima then ended up tumbling into the trees. Now, their wings were stuck in the trees and half of Robin’s belongings spilled onto the forest floor. The only reason they weren’t falling and tearing their feathers apart was the branch they managed to hold onto.

“All according to plan,” Grima hissed as they tried to flap their wings free from the trees.

The branches digging in their wings just made them much more pissed off.

“Shit, shit, shit,” Grima growled as they began to flap furiously.

Times like this made Grima wish that little Robin wasn’t so little. If he were stronger they’d be able to cut down all the trees around them with ease, hell they’d at least be able to retract their wings back into their body. Grima could’ve just handed control back to Robin, but the poor kid would be so confused that’d he’d probably fall to his doom. Grima shivered at the thought of dying in such a dishonorable way. Grima then decided to calm down a bit after a while of struggling. Then they carefully moved their wings so that there would be minimal damage if they fell.

“Okay, now that’s better. It will still hurt like hell, but better than before,” Grima sighed as they finally released the branch.

With a hard thud, the creature hit the ground, their wings took most of the force from the fall. Grima was pretty sure they broke at least one of their wings. They were going to have to apologize to Robin for all the damage dealt to their body when he awakens. If he feels it at all that is, he'd probably be too numb. Grima then remembered something.

They must have messed up Robin’s memory again, it was Robin's price to pay for allowing Grima free reins of his body since he’s still weak after all.

Grima then tries to think how far back the memory set back would be this round. He would have, more likely than not, forgot about the whole being separated from his own mother thing. Grima sighed, maybe it’d be best if they just hide out for the rest of the night and hand Robin back his body in the morning. Grima dreaded the fact that they’d have to explain everything to the small boy again.

Now without the help of his mother, Robin is more vulnerable than ever. That means Grima was now in charge of the safety of their own vessel, and that wasn’t great considering how this plan turned out. Grima sighed as they collected a few of Robin’s scattered items. They then walked around the forest until they finally decided to wait out the night in a cave.

Chapter Text

When Robin woke up he had a terrible headache. The last thing he remembered was walking around with his mom and trying to get to. . . where was it again? He didn’t remember, but they needed to get to a town in a hurry.

Which begs the following questions, why is he in a cave and where’s his mother? Robin shot up in panic as he ran that last question through his head.  

“Mom?!” the boy cried as he frantically searched the cave he was in for any trace of her.

When his search came out with more questions than answers the boy slouched against the wall of the cave and tried to calm himself down.

“Maybe she went out for something,” Robin muttered into his arms, “Maybe that’s just it and I’m being dumb.”

Oh gods you’re up-

Robin snapped his head from his arms as he recognized the voice.

Um, well, I suppose I should catch you up on things? Otherwise, you’d probably be here all day on a whim of lost hope. We can’t have that now, can we?

Robin tilted his head in confusion, “What do you mean?”

Well about your mother. Robin, we don’t know where she is exactly.

“Pardon?” the boys softly replied.

Yesterday there was an attack and you kind of. . . lost her. I’m not saying she’s dead or anything, just. . . lost?

Robin took a double take in his surroundings and realized how damaged he was. There were cuts all over his clothing and arms, and more than half of what he packed wasn’t present in his bag anymore.

Look, there’s a village nearby. We can go and see if she made it there for now, and if she’s not there we’ll have to get you ready to leave again. I think people would take pity on an injured child in Ylisse anyways, so you’ll be able to get a few things~!

Robin rubbed the tears from his eyes before he let out a small laugh, “That’s kind of messed up.”

You need some serious help though, beggars can’t be choosers Robin. What the hell are you going to do if those religious freaks come back? Sure you can use some magic, but that’s not enough yet. Hell, if they have a library take advantage of that too-

Robin sighed, Grima was right. There really wasn’t anything else he can do, and if there was he couldn’t think of it at the moment.

“Where’s the village anyway?” Robin asked as he began to walk out of the cave.

I’m pretty sure it’s to the east of here-

“Pretty sure?” Robin echoed.

Look it was a rough night, and I didn’t really keep track of everything. But I’m pretty sure if you follow my tracks you’ll be set.

“Whatever happened?” Robin sighed as he looked at the mess of dirt and feathers scattered on the ground.

We’re dropping this topic now. Follow the damn trail kid.

Robin decided it was best just to follow the trail as instructed. However, he had to stop as the trial ended with a bunch of twigs and feathers sprinkled with blood. Robin then noticed a few of his missing belongings and quickly placed them back in his bag.

“I’m guessing this is where we landed?” Robin groaned as he looked up into the ruined trees.

Yup, I made a mess of the place. Though I don’t feel bad it, the destruction of those trees was a necessary evil.

“If you say so,” Robin coughed, “Anyways, where do I go from here?”

Try going straight ahead. Maybe we’ll reach the village before all the generous folk are gone~

Robin gave a sad huff in response as he continued on his path. He really didn’t like the idea of using his weakened state as a way to mooch off of people, but he wasn’t really in a state to argue with Grima over it. As Grima said, they were able to arrive their destination in one piece.

Okay kid, now I need to help you learn the art of begging. Honestly, it’s very simple especially since you’re still very young.

Robin sighed as he dug through his bag to see if he had any money in the first place before paying attention to the rest of Grima’s “lesson”. He managed to find some money, but he wasn’t sure if he could buy anything with it.

“Maybe I should check for what I need first?” Robin muttered softly.

Alright, go ahead and do that. Actually the fact you found some money might make this easier.

Robin ignored that last part as he tugged his hood over his head and headed deeper into the village.

This was a mistake. Robin already felt eyes staring at him, and he didn’t like it at all. He barely even wanted to look up from the floor in fear of making eye contact with someone.  Which made looking for what he needed extremely difficult. He felt absolutely pathetic.

How did you expect them to react? You’re injured and all beaten up, remember?

“I know, I just,” Robin whimpered, “I didn’t think there’d be so many people.”

I would say let me help, but I can’t really make myself look like you yet. . . Hide somewhere for a bit.

“Hide where?” Robin hissed.

Maybe a bridge, I don’t know this place, Robin. I’m just as new to it as you, idiot.

Robin was about to make his way towards an ally until he heard someone cry out.

“Hey, kid!” the voice yelled.

Robin immediately turned around to see someone running towards him.

“Oh gods,” Robin muttered,

Oooooh, do we have a bite~?

The person approached and immediately then knelt in front of Robin to match his height. However, Robin jumped back a bit in response to the sudden movement.

“Where're your parents? Didn’t anyone tell you it’s not safe for you to go into allies?” the villager nagged much to Robin’s dismay.

NOW’S THE TIME KID!

Robin winced at the sudden yell that rang through his head. That’s when Robin watched the face of the villager change from anger to more of a concerned look.

“Wait, what happened to you?” they muttered, “Your clothes are all torn up. Who would leave their kid like this? How irresponsible.”

Robin couldn’t take the stress anymore.

“It’s not her fault,” Robin whispered.

“Pardon?” they replied.

“It’s mine,” Robin cried as he began to collapse to the ground, “Mine. Mine. Mine.”

Uh, Robin? I’m kind of choking on your thoughts here-

“Oh gods,”  the villager responded as they tried helping Robin stand up again.

“Leave me alone,” Robin stammered, “Alone.”

A few more people began to gather around as Robin’s cries got progressively louder. That in turn just made Robin even more stressed out. This was a horrible idea.

“Hey, hey kid,” the villager pleaded, “I’ll help you out if you just calm down. You’re making a scene.”

“R-really?” Robin croaked. 

“Yes really, now clean yourself up,” they replied as they handed Robin a piece of cloth.

Robin took a deep breath as he attempted to calm himself down, and wiped the tears from his eyes. He still couldn't prevent himself from shaking, or restrain from burning up. It wasn't much, but this was the best he could do.

“Okay,” the villager sighed, “Now explain to me what happened.”

Robin explained what he could remember. However, he lied and said that he was from another town he was attacked by Plegian soldiers and that he and his mother tried to escape.

“There’s a lot of that going around nowadays,” the villager sighed, “You’re lucky to have lived.”

Robin nodded his head in agreement.

“I want to go out and look for my mom though,” Robin finished, “I just need things to protect myself with.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea kid,” they replied.

“You said you’d help me,” Robin hissed, “At least tell me where the nearest towns are.”

"That would ne too dangerous," they retorted.

“I can help you get to a few towns,” a new voice chirped.

Robin and the villager turned their head towards a merchant who was listening to their conversation. Robin swore his heart skipped a beat at the sound of the news.

Hook, line, and sinker-

“Really?” Robin chirped.

“Well, you’d have to help me in return,” the merchant replied, “It’s only fair.”

“Okay! As long as I can go,” Robin sang.

“Well looks like you’re going to be fine,” the villager sighed, “Stay safe kid.”

“I can’t promise that,” Robin sighed as he watched the villager walk away.

That’s the life of a chosen fellblood after all. That and you already broke the "no talking to strangers" rule, safety is no longer a concern at this point-

Robin gave a small nod of agreement, "At least we’re starting to get somewhere Grim."

“Excuse me if it’s rude to assume, but you’re Plegian aren’t you?” the merchant asked.

Robin froze.

What the hell- 

“It’s just that attire resembles those of some Plegians,” the merchant vacillated.

Robin just continued to stare at the merchant in disbelief.

“There’s also one other thing,” the merchant added as they slightly pulled down Robin’s hood revealing part of the boy’s long white hair, “White hair is common for Plegians.”

Fuck, he’s got you there-

Robin quickly pulled up his hood again and began to glare at the merchant. His body began to furiously shiver in fear again.

“Don’t worry, I mean no harm,” the merchant sighed, “I just wonder why a small child like you is far from their homeland. It must be an interesting story.”

“It’s not really,” Robin quickly replied.

“Still, I’d like to hear it someday,” the merchant laughed.

Robin, this guy creeps me out. And that says a lot coming from me of all things.

Robin let out a small nervous laugh in response. He hopes that he didn’t make a mistake in trusting this strange man.

Chapter Text

It’s been days since Robin accepted to travel around with the merchant. Along the way, he learned that their name was Morgana. From what Robin understood Morgana has traveled around the different kingdoms not only to sell their items but also to learn about different cultures. Robin quickly became fascinated with the stories Morgana would share with others. Listening in on the stories while working usually ended up with a small lecture, but that never really bothered Robin. The young boy would have gladly liked to use his breaks to ask Morgana about their stories, he still remembered why he accepted their help in the first place. He had to use all the time he had to find any trace of his mother.

“Okay, I’m off!” Robin yelled to Mogana as he walked off into the crowd.

“Keep your hood on and stay safe!” Morgana yelled back.

Robin nodded and began to search the streets again. It was his second day in this town, and he still hadn’t made much progress. However, he did notice something different. The town felt much more lively than yesterday. Meaning his search would be more difficult if he went around town again. He was about to reach the gates of the town until he heard a familiar sound. The sound of horses. Robin couldn’t think of when or how, but gods did he hate that sound.

It was probably those religious freaks that did that to ya.

Robin snapped out of his trance at the sound of Grima’s voice.

“Maybe,” Robin muttered, “It just gives me more of a reason to search around the outskirts.”

Though that does beg the question. . . why is the cavalry here?

“I don’t know and I don’t care,” Robin sighed.

Grumpy today are we.

“Shut up,” Robin hissed.

Don’t hiss at me you worm! Get on with your search if you have time to have an attitude problem-

Robin let out a deep sigh as he began to search for his mother once again. 

Morgana began to clean up their stall as it started to become late. The merchant’s thought began to drift towards the boy he promised to take around.

Robin was still such an oddity towards the knowledgeable merchant. Despite staying around the boy for days, they barely learned anything about him. They only were only sure of a few things about Robin. The boy was well a boy. It was somewhat difficult to tell what he was at first as Robin owned a few "feminine" features such as long hair and lashes, a seemingly lithe figure, along with a usually soft tone to his voice. However, after a few spites with customers, Morgana learned the truth quickly. Another thing was that the boy was “born Plegian, but raised as a Ylissean” as Robin claimed he doesn’t remember anything about Plegia. It showed in the lack of a Plegian accent during the rare times where the boy would speak. But then came the most strange thing about Robin, and it was the first thing Morgana noticed about him. The boy had scars on himself, and they looked fresh too. That and his clothes must have seen better days. However, Robin acts like he was never injured as he’s been able to keep up with both his work and search fairly well. It makes it seem like the boy and his missing mother were Plegian refugees more than anything.

“Oh! It’s the one who told us about Grima! Chrom look!” a familiar voice rang through Morgana’s head.

“Lissa, Lissa wait!” the prince called after his sister.

Morgana gave out a soft laugh as they turned towards the incoming children. The princess rushed past people as they quickly moved aside for her, while the poor prince desperately tried to slow her down.

“My, my it’s been a while hasn’t it?” Morgana laughed as Lissa came to a sudden halt.

“Yep!” Lissa sang.

“It has,” Chrom managed to wheeze out as he finally came to a halt.

“You two are so lively,” Morgana laughed, “I wish I could say the same for a child I know.”

“Oh?” Lissa chirped, “Do you have a kid?”

“Oh no,” Morgan sighed, “I just happened to come across an interesting child on my travels. He currently travels with me as a little helper, but he’s not the most sociable child I know.”

“Really?” the siblings replied.

“Yep,” Morgana answered, “But sadly as fate would have it, he’s not with me at the moment. He’s busy looking for someone important to him.”

“Like a girlfriend?” Lissa jested.

“I would hope not,” Morgana laughed, “He’s far too young.”

“Lissa,” Chrom groaned, “Who would go out this late to look for a girlfriend?"

“Those who are more charming than a prince I know,” Lissa hummed.

“Rather those who have no common sense like a princess I know,” Chrom retorted.

“Rude!” Lissa cried.

“I’m only speaking the truth,” Chrom smirked.

“Children, it’s not important,” Morgana cooed, “It’s getting late, where are your guards? They must be worried.”

“Ditched them,” Lissa calmly replied.

“More like they seemed to have lost us,” Chrom sighed as he patted his sister’s head, "Thanks to a certain princess."

Lissa hissed and swatted her brother's hand away in response, "They'll find us sooner or later."

“I would assist you two in searching for them, but I can’t in case Robin comes back,” Morgana groaned.

“Robin?” Chrom echoed.

“Ah, that’s the boy’s name,” Morgana quickly replied, “He should've been here by now.”

“Are you worried?” Chrom asked, “Maybe we can help you as you help us?”

“Yeah! It’ll be fun!” Lissa giggled, “I wanna meet Robin too!”

“Honestly, so do I,” Chrom added.

Morgana laughed as they considered their options. However, they couldn’t stand the idea of turning the children down.

“I’ll take up your offer prince Chrom,” Morgana sang, “Help me help you.”

And with that, the group took off to search for their missing members.

“Why do I even try?!” Robin screamed as he kicked the dirt.

Robin, finding her was never going to be easy. You know that. Abusing the dirt isn't going to help, I know that from experience.

“I know, but,” Robin cried, “I just want to see her so bad. . . so very bad.”

I know. I can feel your despair, and it’s really. . . killing my train of thought here. . .

“Sorry,” Robin muttered as he slouched against a tree.

You don’t need to apologize. You just need to stop feeling sorry for things you can’t control. Kid, your mom could still be somewhere.

“And if she’s not?” Robin sighed.

We’ll deal with that when the time comes.

“Of course we’re saving that conversation for later,” Robin growled.

OKAY, WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY?! I’M NOT EXACTLY A SAINT ROBIN. I SURE AS HELL DON’T KNOW HOW TO COMFORT PEOPLE. 

Robin held his head as his head started to ring from the yelling. It took awhile for him to regain his composure.

Sorry, but your attitude really isn’t working for me. Especially since your emotions can cause me to lose myself as you just heard-

“Okay, okay,” Robin groaned, “I’ll try to control my thoughts, and you have to learn to stop yourself from yelling. It hurts like hell.”

Alright then. We should really get back, it’s getting fairly late.

Robin looked up at the sky and gave out a soft sigh as he got up, “Yeah, you’re right. I wonder if Morgana is gonna be mad.”

More likely than not-

“Yeah,” Robin agreed, “Hopefully I just get a lecture rather than a pile of work.”

Pick a god and pray. . .

Robin gave a light laugh in response as he passed by the gates. However, the atmosphere different than earlier. There seemed to be a sense of panic in the air, unlike the lively feeling that was present earlier. Sure it was soon to be nightfall, but it was too early for the town to feel so empty.

What the hell happened here?

Robin began to sprint towards where Morgana’s stall was and panicked when he saw it was empty.

Maybe they went to look for you?

“Maybe,” Robin echoed as he began to walk around the stall.

That’s when men on horses flashed by nearly running the small boy over. Luckily Robin was able to dodge to the side before he became a pancake. Robin glared at the men on horseback as they disappeared into the dark of night.

I’m guessing you’re starting to hate horses now?

“You'd be right,” Robin muttered in response as he adjusted himself, "There hasn't been a reason to like them so far."

I wonder what the rush was about.

“Yeah,” Robin growled, “I’d like an explanation of why I almost got ran over as well.” 

Hah! Looks like someone really has something against the world.

As if the universe heard their pleas, the men started to call out. All Robin was able to make out were the words prince and princess.

“Holy hell,” Robin exhaled.

They fucking lost their royalty, holy shit that’s funny.

“Grima,” Robin hissed.

No, Robin. This is hilarious. How many men was that, like four? There’s bound to be many more. And they lost at least two people? How do you mess up that bad?!

“It’s highly possible,” Robin replied blankly.

Still, this is beautiful. I'm never letting go of this moment-

“I’m wasting time with this,” Robin sighed, “We need to find Morgana.”

Okay, okay. I’m ready to be a useful member of society, unlike those guards. Hah! Me, being more useful to society than guards, that's quite sad!

Robin gave a loud sigh of defeat as he began to walk deeper into town.

“Wait, wait,” Chrom exclaimed as he stopped in his tracks.

“What is it Chrom?” Lissa asked.

“I just realized something,” Chrom sighed as he hung his head low, “How are we supposed to help if we don’t know what Robin looks like?”

Morgana sighed as they patted the small prince on the back.

“I’m sorry I didn’t see that hole in our plan earlier,” Morgana chuckled, “I should have told you something so important. Anyways, he’s a small boy and he wears a dark coat with purple detailing."

“Got it!” the siblings replied.

“Now we can actually help you!” Lissa chirped as she tugged on Chrom’s sleeve.

“Or at least try to,” Chrom sighed.

“What a day,” Lissa exclaimed, “I kinda wish Frederick was here to help.”

“Eh, I’m not sure we would have been able to help if he were here,” Chrom scoffed, “You wouldn’t have been able to run off in the first place.”

“Then we’re lucky he’s sick,” Lissa replied.

“We’re still probably going to get a long lecture after this,” Chrom groaned as he thought about it, “If not by the guards probably Emm or Frederick will.”

Lissa shivered in response before muttering a small sorry. Chrom gave her a reassuring pat on her head before muttering a small, "It's fine."

“Ah, I feel like I should apologize,” Morgana laughed awkwardly breaking the silence, “It seems that you were looking for me after all.”

“Well, sorta,” Lissa softly replied, “I just happened to see you after I ran off."

“I feel like it’ll be better if we get back to the tasks at hand,” Morgana sighed. 

The siblings nodded in agreement as they began the search for Robin and their guards again. 

Something doesn’t feel right-

Robin stopped in his tracks as he heard the words echo in his head.

“That’s never good,” Robin growled as he began to dig through his bag.

Robin managed to grab an old tome before his suspicions were confirmed.

“Aw, looks like my fun is over,” a voice sang from the darkness, “The games are over fellblood. You need to return home.”

Robin immediately sprinted in the opposite direction of the voice.

Shit, how did I not notice him earlier?

“It’s too late to think about it,” Robin hissed as he quickly climbed up an empty stall.

Robin quickly then jumped from the stall to a roof.

Height advantage, smart idea. However. . .

The cloaked man was still right behind them and closing the distance pretty quickly.

Try sending out a spell kid, slow him down a bit-

Robin then decided to jump back and send out a quick fire spell in hopes of causing the man to back off. It was successful as a small wall of fire temporarily blocked the man’s path. However, he failed to account for how much space he had for such a move and fell off the building due to the recoil force of the spell.

We can’t catch a break, can we-

“Look over there!” a voice called out.

The fire must’ve attracted some attention-

“Shit!” Morgana’s familiar voice rang through the air.

Robin quickly braced for incoming impact. But much to the boy’s surprise, he collided with more of a softer material before tumbling to the ground. Robin tried his best to stand himself up after the fall, but all the shock from earlier decided to finally pour into him. His head started to pound again, none of this was good. He felt a hand on his shoulder and froze.

“Come on, can you try to stand?” a voice coaxed.

Robin tried to turn his head to the source of the voice but ended up keeping his head down in fear and pain. Then the sudden sound of fast footsteps flooded his ears.

“Are you crazy?!” another voice yelled, “What were you doing up there anyway?”

That was Morgana, Robin noted, and now he must have seemed like a disappointment. Great.

Robin, we don’t have time for this, we need to move. Now!

Robin was to busy with his overflowing thoughts to acknowledge Grima.

“Don’t yell, he’s hurt,” a third voice replied.

“Then there must’ve been a good reason for why he was up there,” the earlier voice sighed.

ROBIN GET UP NOW-

“It’s not safe,” Robin croaked as he began to stand up.

Robin was finally able to get a good look at the two new voices. Next by Morgana was a girl a bit smaller than him, she wore a bright yellow dress that matched with her blond hair. The first thing Robin noticed about the boy next to him was that he had seemed beaten up. . . Robin concluded that this was the guy who must've caught him. Before Robin was able to offer an apology, he was interrupted by his attacker.

“He is right ya know,” the man’s voice, “If you know what’s best for your own lives, you should just hand him over now."

Chapter Text

“He is right ya know,” the man’s voice echoed from the dark, “If you know what’s best for your own lives, you should just hand him over.”

Robin froze in place. Why did this have to happen?

ROBIN GO-

Instead, Robin mimicked what the rest of the group did and stared at his attacker. The man was on the roof above them, it was too dark to see his expression. However, you could tell from his voice, that he was smiling. Aside from trying to process Grima’s insistent screeching, Robin couldn’t think of anything.

“Look like this is it little one,” the man laughed, “Unless you want to drag these fine people down with you, I suggest you don’t try anything funny. I won’t hurt you too badly if you resist anyways, I was told to keep you alive. However, these fools who walked into danger can pay the full price for their choices. So what will it be?”

Robin couldn’t answer. He couldn’t think clearly. He couldn’t move forward or away. He could barely breathe, but each breath felt like it was tearing him apart inside. All he could do was try and not to collapse where he stood. It was all he can do.

“Whatever purpose does one need to go such lengths for one child?” Morgana hissed at the man.

“Don’t know, don’t care,” the man sighed, “I was just hired to do my damn job, and that’s getting the precious cargo you’re keeping from me.”

“He’s not cargo,” a voice growled.

Robin quickly glanced at the bluenette beside him who just spoke and notice the boy had begun to take a defensive stance. How was this injured kid was willing to speak up to this kind of man? Why was Robin just letting this happen?

“He might as well be,” the man scoffed.

“Kids, get out of here,” Morgana instructed, “I’ll hold him off, go find help.”

Another wave of shock washed over Robin’s body as he processed the words. There’s no reason why this should be going down this way.

Listen to them, we need to go!

Robin was fighting with the idea of fleeing and just leaving Morgana here alone with his attacker.

“We can’t just leave you here!” the bluenette cried.

Why are you kids so suicidal nowadays, JUST RUN-

“You need to get your priorities straight, get him and your sister out of here!” Morgana barked as they drew a sword from beneath their cloak.

“Oh, you have made a grave mistake old timer,” the man sighed as he mimicked Morgana and drew a sword of his own.

The little girl next to Morgana ran over to the two boys and attempted to drag them both away. Once her hand grabbed onto Robin’s wrist, the boy felt like he was able to move again.

“Chrom!” the girl cried out.

“But Lissa-” the boy responded.

“Please,” Lissa whined.

Chrom hesitated before he decided to grab his sister’s hand and dragged her and Robin away from the scene. The children traveled down each street trying to search for someone who could help them.

“There were men on horses earlier,” Robin huffed, “They could help.”

They’re really bad at their jobs though. . . Like, extremely bad. I can’t even laugh about it anymore, it’s just sad. They almost killed you too-

“Oh, we should find them!” Lissa chirped, “They’ll help us.”

They have been helping NO ONE all evening. It’s sad when two children and a merchant can spot disturbances better than the royal guard. Ylisse is doomed. . . most likely the people they were here to protect died already-

“Good idea,” Chrom replied, “Maybe we should yell?”

“Don’t,” Robin quickly added in, “It could attract his attention too.”

“Oh, I guess so,” Chrom sighed as he began to pick up his pace, “We better find them quick then.”

Lissa and Robin responded with quick nods as they began to match up with Chrom’s pace. And finally, they heard loud trots from around the corner. Lissa and Chrom dashed towards the sound of the incoming horses with Robin close behind. They were so close to getting the help they needed until Grima decided that Robin should be reminded of how unlucky he is.

Okay, some bad news and good news. . . Good news, Morgana’s still alive and still in pursuit of the guy. Also, you’re about to reach the horsemen that almost trampled you earlier. . . The bad news is the guy’s back. He’s quite close, and gaining speed. . .

Robin immediately started to pick up his pace after hearing the news. Hoping he and the two kids with him can reach their goal in time.

“You know, that fool was right,” a voice boomed through the air, “People have to focus on their priorities, and that means I should just be focusing on one person here.”

Shit! He’s faster than I accounted for. Keep going, kid!

“OVER HERE! HELP!” Chrom and Lissa yelled in an attempt to gain any attention to their situation.

Clever kids.

Finally, the kids were able to see horses coming towards their direction. They believed they were saved. Robin wanted to believe it was over. Then smoke suddenly started to fill the air, the once hopeful scene was shrouded from their view.

“Milord, milady!” voices cried.

Why would they yell that of all things. . . Wait, it can’t be. . . oh shit-

Robin tried to run out of the smoke in the same direction he was going in before. However, he just ran into the one person he never wanted to see face to face again.

“Now that was close wasn’t it?” the man cooed as he quickly scooped up Robin and threw the kid over his shoulder.

Shit, I would help. . . but Gods this situation is worse than I thought. I wondered why I was messing up all day, now that I know why. . . I just can’t physically help you were just too weak to do so.

Robin tried his best to free himself from the man’s grip as the man was already down an alleyway near the smoke, but he had no success. Robin was quickly losing track of where they were going. Robin then decided to do something that Grima didn’t expect from the kid, he yelled. Robin never yelled for help on his own accord. Be it for silly pride or just not wanting people to be dragged into his problems, the kid just never wanted to ask for help with anything before. But here he was, begging for someone to save him.

“Why do you insist on dragging other into this?” the man sighed, “It should’ve just been you, me, my client, and a pile of money.”

Robin jabbed his elbow into the back of the man’s neck, causing the man’s arm to loosen. Robin took the chance to slip out and drop to the floor.

Then he immediately got up and dashed back towards where the rest of the group should’ve been.

“You little brat!” the man hissed as he attempted to chase after the boy.

However, as soon as the man turned around an object flew past Robin and into the man’s face knocking him back a bit. The one who threw said object was none other than Chrom who began to dash towards Robin.

“Hurry up, let’s go!” Chrom yelled as he grabbed Robin’s wrist and dragged the boy away with him.

The boys raced down the alleyway trying to escape from the man that was again hot on their trail. They snaked into many different paths in order to somehow gain more distance between themselves and their threat.

“You two can’t keep running forever!” the man cried, “You’re only little kids, you can’t have more stamina than a grown adult! It’s only a matter of time.”

As they turned another corner, Robin was finally able to take out another tome. His magic had to have regenerated since he last used it, right? He could possibly use a better spell that’ll gain them more time.

“What,” Chrom growled, snapping Robin out of his book.

Both boys immediately slowed down their place as they looked at what was before them. A dead end.

Robin, you better hurry up with finding a spell-

Robin quickly skimmed the book, trying to find some spell that would’ve been enough to get rid of their problems. One spell, any spell. The man’s footsteps were getting closer, their time was running short.

“I’m sorry,” Chrom muttered as he stopped his foot on the ground, “I should’ve watched where we were going.”

“I should be saying that,” Robin quickly replied as he continued to skim, “It’s my fault we're even here.”

"Don't say that," Chrom snapped.

That’s when a familiar spell flashed into Robin’s view. It was a spell he vaguely remembered his mother speak about, but in short, he remembered it was a very powerful spell. Thoron.

Robin, no. You’re way too inexperienced to handle that spell of all things-

“It’s a fast way out,” Robin muttered in response.

It’s also a fast pass to death if you mess up badly, and you most likely will you fool!

"Sounds like you found something," Chrom observed as he walked over to Robin.

"Yeah," Robin muttered, "A way out."

"Really?" Chrom replied.

Loud footsteps echoed through the ally disrupting the conversation between the two boys.

“My, my, isn’t this a sad display,” the man laughed as he slowly approached them.

Chrom immediately placed himself in front of Robin and glared back at the man in response. Robin quickly tried reviewing the spell as quickly as possible.

Robin, just listen to me! We’re going to die if you try!

“I’m getting real tired of you meddling in my business kid,” the man growled at Chrom.

“Well, I’m not tired of doing it at all” Chrom spat back.

The man quickened his pace towards Chrom. Robin began to quickly recite parts of the spell.

You know it’s incomplete, right? You’re going to get us killed Robin-

“You know, it’s kind of fitting that you’re a royal pain in the arse,” the man snickered as he grabbed the boy by the arm.

“Glad to know I fit the title,” Chrom scoffed as kicked the man in the groin.

“You-” the man growled as he loosened his grip on the boy.

Once Chrom was able to free himself and moved to the side, Robin raised his hands in front of him and continued to mutter the spell. And as the man started to get up a loud crack rung through the air.

Oh Gods-

Robin, took a deep breath as he aimed for the man before him. Bits of light sparked and danced within Robin’s palm.

“You wouldn’t dare,” the man hissed.

You shouldn’t dare. . .

“Checkmate,” Robin growled.

Suddenly another loud crack filled everyone’s ears, and bright flash came from Robin’s hand sending both Robin and the man in opposite directions. Robin’s body collided with the wall behind him as the man’s body landed further away from Chrom’s position.

“Hey!” Chrom yelled as he ran over to Robin’s body

Robin collapsed on the ground, the right sleeve of his shirt and cape was ripped to shreds. His right arm was covered in black marks and it was heavily bruised.

“Come on,” Chrom whined, “Get up, please.”

Loud steps began to head towards Chrom’s direction. Chrom turned his head as he watched Morgana and Lissa heading towards him. However, they stopped at the man who was on the far side of the ally. Chrom was able to hear Lissa’s small cry as she hid behind Morgana’s back.

“What happened here?” Morgan asked as he continued to approach the boys, “That man is charred in the chest. . . How did you two do that?”

Chrom shook his head in response as he brought his attention back to Robin. Morgana picked up the boy’s body and gave out a small sigh.

“A reckless one, isn’t he?” Morgana sighed, “Luckily, he’s still breathing.”

Chrom gave out a small sigh of relief. Today was one hell the prince wished he would never have to witness again. However, it just made him think. Could more people be going through similar situations? How many weren’t as lucky?

“Come now little prince, we need to get you and your sister back to those guards,” Morgana cooed.

Chrom nodded his head as he walked over to join his sister. He should be relieved right now, but something about all of this just didn’t seem right. Leaving the scenario at this just didn’t seem right.

Chapter Text

“Mom, how much longer do I have to stay inside?” Robin asked as he stared out the window of a small hostel from his perch on a bed next to his mother.

The boy watched as people gathered around and interacted with one another. The scene was so happy and serene, Robin couldn’t help but feel frustrated about having to stay inside a building each town they got to. It just didn’t seem fair, he had every right to enjoy the world outside like the others, right?

“Ah, I’m not sure birdie. As long as need be,” Robin’s mother sighed as she ran her hand through her son’s hair, “It’s for your own safety, I hope you know that.”

“I know, I know. Then why can’t we just stay in the woods or something? I don’t need to hide there, and you don’t need to hide your coat,” the boy replied as he collapsed back into his mother’s lap.

“I would love that, honest dear. Ylisse is much prettier than I could have ever dreamed. However, we all need the common necessities and that means a strong roof over our heads,” she replied as she raised her hands up to the roof and sunk back into the bed gaining a small giggle in response, “Even if it is temporary.”

“I guess so,” Robin sighed as he turned to poke his mom in the gut, “But how come you go out so often? It’s scary for you too, right?”

“Ah, well, as your sole guardian,” she began as she was interrupted by a loud cough.

“As your mother,” Robin corrected with a laugh as he poked her again, “You don’t need to be so fancy jeez. I just wanted a simple answer mom.”

“Robin, I love theatrics, you should know this well by now!” she laughed as she bounced up from the bed to sit up and hug the boy, “Don’t ruin my fun birdie.”

“I’m your kid, that is my job,” Robin snorted.

His mother responded with a goofy gasp as she lightly shoved her child away, “I’m to suffer at the hands of my own flesh and blood?! How could it be?!”

“I’m such a monster!” Robin cried as he mimicked her, “Destroying a poor woman’s fantasy of raising a decent child!”

Robin’s mother laughed as she got up from the bed, “Ah, what did I do to have a child who can tolerate me so?”

“I dunno but it’s fun to have you around,” Robin sighed as he calmed himself down, “Being stuck in here would be worse without you.”

Robin’s mother gave a soft smile in immediate response.

“Anyways, to answer your question from earlier,” she chirped, “I have to go out and make sure we have the supplies we need to survive. As to when you’ll be allowed to be a member of society, we need to be far away from the border of Plegia before that my little bird. Question is, are you ready to fly away with me?”

“I’ll go where you go,” Robin hummed, “Birds of a feather stick together after all.”

“I suppose so,” she sighed, “Just promise me you’ll stay safe until then.”

“I’ll try my best.”

Robin woke up in a bed with tears pooling in his eyes. It wasn’t the first time he has dreamt about his mother, but this was the first time it felt so vivid. It felt like she was there with him. Robin shook his head in order to readjust himself from the dream and back into reality. She isn’t here, not yet at least. His first course of action was to try and leave the bed, but he was met with a painful rejection. It was exhausting to even sit upright, and everything looked pretty hazy at first for the poor boy. The first thing he noticed once he cleared his eyes was bandages on his right arm.

Congratulations, you survived your horrible plan that would have cost us our lives!

Robin groaned in response as he looked around the room. He really didn’t want to deal with the salty voice in his head at the moment. His torn up cape was discarded on the floor causing the boy to let out a sad sigh.

“Whelp that’s one thing I can’t wear again,” Robin growled.

It was a target anyways, despite the eye pattern being hidden it was still recognizable after all.

Robin just simply nodded in agreement. But still, even though he didn’t care for where the cape came from he did like the look of it a lot. It was a shame to see it so beaten up. Robin then brought his attention back to his bandaged arm and began to poke at it. Even gentle poking caused pain to rack through Robin’s arm.

“I should’ve probably listened to you,” Robin hissed in defeat.

Who would’ve ever guessed? Ugh, anyways just don’t be that idiotic ever again. You’re quite literally going to be the end of me.

And with that, the sound of a creaking door filled the room snapping Robin out of his train of thought. Robin lifted his head towards the door finding Morgana standing there.

“Ah, it’s nice to see you finally up,” Morgana sighed.

“How long was I out?” Robin yawned.

“Only a couple of days, I’m honestly surprised to see you up,” Morgana replied, “I’ve heard cases of inexperienced magic, but never involved such a fast recovery. You’re really something Robin.”

Oh, he’s something alright. Correction WE’RE something.

Robin just nervously nodded in response as Morgana walked over.

“Are you experiencing any pain?” Morgana asked as they sat on the edge of the bed.

“Yeah, everything is sore,” Robin groaned, “I could barely sit upright at first.”

“Ah, well that’s only normal,” Morgan confessed, “I’d be scared if you weren’t in pain.”

Robin just gave a nervous smile in response. Sure it wasn’t the greatest thing to hear, but after a minute of pondering Robin didn’t blame the merchant for what they said. Surviving something that even a being like Grima was scared of is one thing, but surviving and having a full recovery only after napping? That would be terrifying.

The fact you survived is terrifying enough, let’s leave it at that.

Morgana then leaned over to grab the tattered cape observing the damage before the muttered, “Wow, you’ve done a number on this poor thing.”

“Yeah, I guess I did,” Robin agreed as he grabbed a piece of the tattered cloth.

“Well, then I guess it’s for the best you’re bedridden,” Morgana claimed, “I wouldn’t have let you go out without anything to disguise yourself with anyway.”

Robin tilted his head, this felt oddly familiar. This is déjà vu, right? Such an odd feeling, Robin didn’t like it.

“Why not?” Robin asked.

He still never got an answer from his mother, surely Morgana could’ve given him some reason this judgment was passed twice.

“Because you’re a Plegian,” Morgana explained, “And it’s a horrible reality, but after the war between here and there not many Ylisseans are fond of Plegians. You can barely get by just because you look a bit different than most, and that’s probably because you were raised here, right?”

Robin nodded his head, he knew nothing about Plegia other than what his mother and Grima have told him. Most of his life has been spent here in Ylisse, town skipping and camping in forests. All of it was here.

“That’s what I thought,” Morgana continued, “Most Plegians have a darker skin tone, there are a few who are light skinned but it’s fairly rare. This is mainly because Plegia is mostly desert and most of their people are exposed to the sun, thus a darker skin tone. You, on the other hand, seem to have barely had any exposure to the sun.”

Robin felt shivers run down his back, Morgana had to psychic, or just extremely perceptive.

“The only things really giving you away was your hair,” Morgana added, “And possibly this cape. Luckily not many people here really care for Plegian design to the point where they can recognize it at a glance, and those who can don’t really care to cause trouble. Sure, without the cape you can probably blend in, but your hair would still be a dead give away. And who knows what someone would do to you if they found out where you come from? It’s best just to stay safe, okay?”

“I understand,” Robin sighed.

“So, now I have errands to run and a shop to keep,” Morgana announced as they stood up and stretched, “I probably need to get you something for your pain too, luckily we’re in the right place for that.”

“What do you mean?” Robin asked.

“Ah, we’re currently in Ylisstol little one,” Morgana disclosed, “The heart of Ylisse, and the best place to look for items or information you need.”

 Chrom couldn’t stop thinking about what he witnessed days ago. He couldn’t forget about the man who chased after him. He couldn’t forget about the merchant that tried to help them. But he really couldn’t forget the boy who shot lightning from his hand. There were so many questions Chrom had, some concerning if the kid was okay and some concerning what had happened before he, Lissa, and the merchant showed up to the scene. He wanted answers, but as usual, he was stuck inside the castle walls. What made it more frustrating was that he knew that the merchant and the kid were in Ylisstol, after the merchant accompanied the royal group back here. He could always sneak out, but considering the recent events he was just reminiscing on, if he were caught he may never be able to leave the castle again, or at least that’s what he believed. The guards were pretty mad when they got back after all. Chrom could always ask Emmeryn, she would probably allow him to go if he brings Frederick along.

“I don’t really want to go with him,” Chrom mumbled aloud, “He’d probably be all negative like last time. They don’t need that right now.”   

“Whatcha talkin bout?” Lissa chirped as raced towards the boy.

Chrom jumped as his sister’s voice dragged him quickly out of his thoughts earning a quick laugh from her.

“Ah, um,” Chrom stuttered as he stared wide-eyed at his sister, “I was thinking about what happened that other day.”

“Oh me too,” Lissa confessed.

“I just can’t stop thinking about it,” Chrom groaned, “It’s killing me that I can’t just walk outside and get answers.”

“Maybe we can catch them outside?” Lissa suggested, “Kinda like before?”

“Yeah, but after that last stunt we pulled we’ll probably be stuck with Frederick,” Chrom replied, “And considering the last time he met that merchant, it won’t be a great time. With Frederick’s constant judgment and all.”

“Oh, you’re right,” Lissa gasped.

Chrom brought his attention back towards the window and leaned in on it with a sad huff. Curiosity was killing the young prince inside, and his sister was possibly in no better state.

“Maybe we should just being Frederick,” Lissa sighed, “Even if he’ll be a grump.”

“Maybe,” Chrom echoed, “Sitting here isn’t making us feel better after all.”

Lissa nodded in agreement as she began to drag her brother away from the window, “Come on, come on.”

Chrom was right, once they asked Emmeryn if they could leave the castle Frederick was immediately assigned to chaperone them. This was going to get interesting. Chrom and Lissa shot off into the streets of the capital as soon as they had the chance to, dragging poor Frederick along as they went. They checked each merchant’s stall as they went for any signs of the old storytelling merchant they knew, and they found none. It wasn’t until they passed by a herbalist shop Lissa started to cry out.

“Chrom, over there!” she yelled as she darted toward the cloaked man again.

“Milady will you slow down?!” Frederick called out as he quickened his pace after her.

Chrom gave a small laugh as he caught up with his sister as she yanked on the merchant’s coat.

“Milady, please restrain yourself from tugging on others!” Frederick pleaded.

Morgana turned towards the princess, “Ah, hello young princess. How are you today?”

“I’m doing fine now that we’ve found ya!” Lissa chirped as she gave a lighter tug on their coat.

“Oh, were you looking for me again?” Morgana remarked.

“Yeah-huh!” Lissa confirmed.

“So this is why you two wanted to go out?” Frederick asked.

Chrom and Lissa nodded their heads in response. Chrom then decided to address his biggest worry since his last meeting with the merchant. Chrom felt himself grow hot right before he spoke, and he tried his best not to let it show.

“I just really needed to know something,” Chrom confessed shakily, “That kid who was with you, i-is he doing okay? He’s not dying or something, right?”

Lissa loosened her grip on the coat at the sound of Chrom’s voice, it was just so foreign to her for her brother to sound so. . . so scared and shaky. It just didn’t feel right. Frederick, despite knowing nothing about the situation Chrom was referring to, just silently placed a gentle hand on Chrom’s shoulder in response. Morgana fully turned to Chrom with a soft smile.

“He’s doing fine,” Morgana cooed, “In fact, he’s in better shape than I could have ever dreamed of. The only thing troubling him is the pain, but other than that he’s still functioning just like everyone else.”

Chrom let out a heavy sigh of relief, “Thank Naga.”

“That’s great!” Lissa exclaimed as she walked over to her brother.

“It’s nice to see that he has made an impression,” Morgana chuckled, “Even though it wasn’t under the best of circumstances.”

“So what exactly happened to this boy you’re all talking about?” Frederick finally decided to ask.

“A case of inexperienced magic usage,” Morgana answered, “A man tried to kidnap him and he retaliated with magic he couldn’t handle.”

“Oh, no wonder you’re worried milord,” Frederick sighed.

Chrom nodded quietly in response.

“So where is he?” Lissa asked.

“Ah, he’s going to be stuck at inside for a while,” Morgana answered, “He didn’t seem to like it, but it’s for his own good.”

“That’s too bad,” Lissa sighed, “I’d like to meet him now that nothing is after him.”

“Yeah,” Chrom agreed, “Though if he’s trying to get better we shouldn’t bother him.”

Morgana took a moment to think of a way to keep the kids connected while Robin had to lay low. Then he finally found a simple solution.

“How about this, you can write a letter to him and I’ll pass it on,” Morgana suggested, “At least until he’s ready to go outside again.”

“Ooo! That sound like fun!” Lissa chirped.

“I suppose I can try that,” Chrom agreed, “It’s at least something.”

 Once Morgana returned from their errands they decided it was best to give Robin the letters as soon as possible in order for the boy to have something to do. Morgana opened the door to find Robin sleeping soundly. Morgana wore a small smile as they decided to softly tap the boy in the head with the letters.

“Robin, I have something for you,” Morgana softly said to the boy.

Robin’s eyes slowly opened as he glared at the merchant who woke him up. Morgana laughed as he tapped the boy with the letters again earning a soft growl from their victim.

“Can you not?” Robin hissed in dismay, “I’m tired.”

“I can see,” Morgana chuckled as they waved the letters in the air, “But I got medicine for your pain and these in my hand are for you.”

Robin took a minute to examine what Morgana was attacking him with and furrowed his brows in confusion.

“What are those?” Robin questioned as he began to reach for them.

“Do you remember those two kids who were with us the other day?” Morgana asked as they allowed Robin to grab the letters from their hand.

“Yeah,” Robin replied softly as he sat up and wiped the sleep from his eyes.

“Well, I saw them again today and they wanted to make sure you were doing alright,” Morgana explained, “They wanted to see you too, but of course that couldn’t happen due to your current situation.”

“Why?!” Robin blurted out, “I put them in danger!”

Morgana was startled by the boy’s sudden reaction. It was saddening that he was so quick to blame himself for what happened.

“It wasn’t your fault,” Morgana sighed.

“It might as well be,” Robin mumbled.

“Nonetheless, they’ve taken a shine to you,” Morgana insisted, “So I suggested that they can write letters until you’ve gotten better and I get you a new hood.”

“Oh,” Robin replied, "But still-"

“If you want to write back, you can,” Morgana sighed as they began to walk out the room again, “Though, that is entirely up to you.”

“Alright,” Robin answered as he opened the letters.

Robin took a minute to observe the handwriting of each letter and noted small differences between them. Both letters contained a small introduction to each kid. There was Lissa, the princess of Ylisse, whose handwriting was bigger and more spaced out, and Chrom the prince whose handwriting was smaller but less clear than his sister’s. The letters contained a few questions as well. Robin muttered answers to himself as he read.

How are you?

“Fine. Though I should be the least of your concerns.”

When did you meet Morgana?

“In a town after I lost my mom.”

Why was the man chasing you?

“I don’t know exactly why. Maybe because of Grima, it's why other people have.”

Ding Ding!

Where did you learn magic?

“Mom and by having nothing better to do than practice.”

Where is he from?

“Plegia?”

Robin decided he might as well answer the letters. He had nothing better to do after all. Though, he left out any information that would involve Plegia and Grima in anyway shape or form. Those were the two things he was told to hide about himself after all. 

It’s been a few days since the exchange of letters from the castle and Morgana’s base of operations began and Robin was finally able to move around like his old self again. Through the past few days, Robin was able to learn more and more about the royal siblings of Ylisse and began to take a shine to them himself. He started to learn that even though Chrom and Lissa were very kind at heart, they had a few quirks that might claim otherwise. Lissa would go on about how she successfully pranked so many people that it was even able to impress Grima, and for Robin that was a red flag. Chrom, on the other hand, seemed to have a sharp tongue when he was annoyed with something, though for Robin it was pretty amusing to read through some of the prince’s tangents. That was probably due to him getting used to Grima’s similar tangents about people who’ve annoyed the being within him before. Now Robin was actually excited with the idea of meeting the two royals again, hopefully under better circumstances of course. All he was waiting on were new clothes that Morgana forced Robin to wait for. Morgana insisted that Robin should wear more bland colors in order to blend in with the crowd easier, which meant including more beige and brown into his attire. Robin was perfectly fine with it, he liked those colors anyways. He was more concerned about how much longer he had to remain inside the stuffy room, and by the middle of the day, his prayers to go back outside were answered.

“Finally!” Robin exclaimed as he hed the folded articles of clothes in his hand, “Thank you, Morgana!”

“You’re welcome,” Morgana laughed, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so expressive before.”

Robin stopped in place and began to redden and stutter, “Uh, well, I’m just happy I can go outside again.”

“It’s fine Robin,” Morgana sighed, “It’s just really nice to see you more open.”

“Oh, well I’m going to go try these on now bye,” Robin stammered as he ran into his room.

“Well,” Morgana muttered with a smile, “This seems like the start of a beautiful friendship.”