Fire Emblem: Fates Drabble Collection

"We should head out soon, then." Corrin adjusted her sleeves before doing the same to Shura's collar. She gave a slight sigh before brushing off his shoulder, a smile on her lips.

Shura had a general idea of the path he wanted to take, but he also knew that Corrin had a flighty personality. They would probably end up stopping at some small shops along the way, either there or back. This anticipation dug at him. They'd be around a fair amount of people, and knowing Corrin, she'd probably end up talking to a few of them. He wasn't young and, arguably, neither was she, but he was nervous enough to have his feelings show up on his face, and Corrin easily picked up on it.

She tilted her head, a confused expression in her eyes. "What's wrong? Nervous about the cold? You grew up in a warmer place after all..."

"N-no, that's not..." Shura sighed, confusion dotting his every move. "It's nothing. I'm just overthinking things."

"Haha, well that's your job. Mine is to make you forget the stress that comes with it." Corrin smiled before taking him by the hand and opening the door.

A cool breeze hit Shura's face and while it wasn't necessarily the best feeling, it helped cool his burning cheeks down.

The couple meandered around, choosing to walk to the coffee shop (not too far) as opposing to driving. Shura didn't mind it at all. They were both pretty fit, and it was nice to see the fading clouds in the sky while enjoying a walk.

The walk didn't last long enough in his opinion, however, and as soon as they reached the coffee shop, Shura felt nerves prick at his fingers again. He stuffed his hands into his pockets to avoid embarrassing himself.

Corrin didn't notice his behavior, or at least if she did she didn't make mention of it. While he appreciated her for her intelligence, she wasn't exactly insightful. She probably didn't even notice.

He started second guessing his choice of a first date after Corrin went to stand in line. Should he have done something more extravagant? Something a little more exciting? He had been thinking more of his wallet than what she was thinking. Oh no, that was probably where he went wrong.

"Oh look, they have the pumpkin spice cappuccinos. I'm definitely getting one." Corrin turned to look at him, and he snapped out of his thoughts. "What about you? You're usually not fond of foreign tastes in your coffee, but maybe...?"

Shura stammered for a few minutes before eventually buying Corrin's coffee, a few scones to share, and some darker coffee for him. They went to sit down, Corrin noticing that he had become fairly cold from walking outside.

"Oh, my professor graded my assignment..." Corrin turned her phone so that the screen was facing Shura, and he set his scone down.

"That's a fairly high score."

"I'm surprised, lots of other people spent much more time on it than I did..." Corrin shrugged and set her phone to the side. She smiled. "Taste good?"

He blinked in confusion before realizing what she was talking about. "Oh... I suppose. Nothing like my mother's cooking, but for a chain café, they have a surprising attention to detail."

Corrin chuckled. "High praise coming from you."

He paused for a few seconds to read Corrin's body language. She didn't seem like she was upset about their first date location... But perhaps he really should have chosen another place.

"What's wrong?"

"N-nothing! Why do you ask?" The words rushed out in a blur, and Shura took a drink of his coffee to hide the error.

Corrin tilted her head, confusion dotting her eyes. "You're more nervous than normal. Clearly something's wrong. You're usually not like this. At least not of late."

He gripped his cup tighter and set his jaw. Corrin wasn't at fault here, it was clearly him. "I should... should have chosen a proper place for our first date... I wasn't thinking..."

"That's silly, of course you were thinking." Shura blinked at Corrin's statement, and she held her hand out, counting on her fingers. "You knew that I liked coffee and the art in this shop, you didn't want to go somewhere outside because of the cold, and you chose a place where we can interact instead of counting on other stimuli." Corrin clasped her hands together, a smile dotting her lips. "You pretend to be less thoughtful than you really are. I think it's cute."

Shura stuttered, unable to get out a proper response, before turning his head to the side, bringing his coffee cup to his lips again. "Is... is that so...?"

"Haha~" Corrin took a drink of her coffee as well. "It couldn't be any other way."

*breathes* Format. Also online word.

Thank you @cookieloverdeluxe for the request!

He had been forgiven. It was naïve of Corrin to forgive him, Gunter knew. But that was what Gunter appreciated about Corrin- there was always a second chance. And now that that beast was nothing but a memory, Gunter trusted Corrin and Azura to do right by Valla, and maybe teach those other families how to rule a kingdom.

Gunter was unsure of how he had learned Corrin’s true heritage. It merely entered his mind when he first made that pact with Anankos. But that was not all Gunter had learned. This situation certainly explained everything about Lilith. For years, Gunter had wondered about the stable hand’s past. To think that she had managed to find Corrin after all that time. With Anankos gone, Gunter wondered if she would tell her secrets to Corrin. Of course, being a newly crowned monarch is stressful enough. Perhaps another time.

Lilith… Gunter was glad she was able to see this through. All of his children did. Jakob and Felicia stayed with their liege to the bitter end of this war, and they would likely continue to serve. They were at their happiest when they stood by Corrin. Gunter was a little less certain of Flora’s future. But he smiled in the knowledge that, whatever the maid chose, she would have Corrin’s blessing. And Corrin… to think Gunter’s own little Corrin would end up ruling an entire kingdom. Or at least in spirit. He figured Lord Xander and that Ryoma would probably work out some arrangement with Corrin in the future.

Gunter turned to leave.

His job was finished. Corrin had become a fine young adult. It was a brand new day, Corrin’s day. And Gunter would be content to retire to the shadows and allow the world to continue.

Things were different now. There would be new experiences and possibilities in these young peoples’ futures. As for Gunter… he had been sentenced to live. For his family, for Scarlet, for anyone who was not allowed to live because of Anankos. And so Gunter would live. Corrin would protest to his departure. They all would, even Jakob. But Gunter knew it had to be done. Their lives needed to go on, and Gunter… he will welcome a rest. He needed to sort out his own feelings, see what this brave new world had in store for him.

Perhaps someday he would pay his little monarch a visit. But until then, Corrin had their own life to live, as did Gunter. Or all of them, for that matter. The world was about to change, and the real trial would soon begin. As daunting as war and destruction were- recuperation and restoration were easily the bigger ordeal. But Corrin would handle it, just like everything else. And in his own way, Gunter would handle it too.

With one last smile, Gunter left.

Everyone. It was fun. I learned a lot, here, and I think I really began to spread my wings as a writer, trying new things.

But... So many of us have left to pursue other passions or maintain responsibilities. And that goes for me too. There’s no resentment. But I don’t want to keep doing a token drabble every so often just to pretend things haven’t changed.

So yeah... this is probably the end of the road for me. Maybe if the other mods return, I will too. But until then, I want to focus on my own stories. (I’m on these sites.)

Thanks for having me. Maybe we’ll meet again.

Subaki must’ve been a great kisser – he was great at everything! To think of all the lips that brushed against his own before the two of them were smitten with one another… how enviable. Corrin considered them to be terribly lucky.

Then there was her, a sheltered princess who was so terrible at romance that she resorted to practicing kissing in the mirror.

She’d asked for help, but no one gave her any sound advice. Hinoka and Sakura were too embarrassed to help her, Elise said it was easy, but only ever kissed her family members on the cheek, and Camilla winked at her and said,

“A true lady does not kiss and tell.”

Were there any un-ladylike women who had no qualms with kissing and telling? She really needed all the help she could get.

“Corrin? Is something the matter?” the sound of Subaki’s smooth voice broke her train of thought.

Startled, Corrin managed to sputter out, “Wh-what?”

“I’m asking if you’re okay,” said Subaki. “I’ve been talking to you for a few minutes now, and you’ve just been spacing out. Are you feeling unwell?”

“No, no! I’m fine!” she cried. “I was just thinking is all…”

“About what, if you don’t mind my asking?”

She began to chew on her bottom lip, trying to think of anything that didn’t have to with kissing. “Oh, just about how you seemed to pull this whole date together with everything going on… it’s perfect.”

He laughed. “Corrin please, this is hardly worthy to be called a ‘perfect date.’ It’s just dinner I made on short notice. When the war is over, I’d love to take you on a proper one.”

He said that, but this little picnic they’re having in front of gorgeous scenery is hardly anything she’d say was thrown together at the last minute, but Subaki was always hard on himself when it came to things like this.

“But it is perfect,” Corrin assured him. “Sitting by your side, eating a beautifully cooked meal and taking in the sights – I couldn’t ask for a better way to spend my time, Subaki.”

His smile broadened, and his cheeks only slightly turn pink. “You really know just what to say to make me smile, don’t you?”

Corrin let out a bout of laughter herself before Subaki’s gently placed hand atop her own stopped her. His whole demeanor seemed to change. She could read the passion in his eyes before he closed them, and leaned in forward. Corrin knew exactly what was coming next, so she closed her own eyes, and prayed to the gods that her body would just react on her own.

But the kiss never came.

When she opened them, Subaki was looking elsewhere with a rather flushed look on his face. “Uh, is something wrong, Subaki?” she asked.

“Oh, I uh… it’s nothing really.”

“Don’t lie to me. I know you’re hiding something.”

With a sigh, he turned to face her. “I must look so silly, moving in to kiss you and not actually going through with it. How unsightly…”

Corrin’s eyes widened in shock. “You were scared to kiss me? Why?”

“I’ve… never kissed anyone before, and I wanted it to be perfect but…” As his voice trailed off, Corrin began to laugh, and Subaki’s cheeks turned a few shades darker. “It’s not very nice to laugh, Corrin.”

“No, no!” she giggled. “I’m not laughing at you. I’m laughing because I was so nervous about my first kiss too.”

“Were you?” he asked, completely in shock.

She nodded. “I thought you knew exactly what you were doing, and I was so scared… It was wrong of me to assume you were, but I was wrapped up in my own insecurities that I–”

Subaki gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “It’s okay, my love. I was wrapped up in my own too, so much that I forgot to talk to you about my feelings instead of putting on a façade.”

Corrin smiled. “Let’s say… we try again?”

“Of course.”

This time, things between them feel more relaxed. Her heart beat rapidly against her chest, more out of excitement than nervousness.

When their lips finally met Corrin could feel a warmth in the pit of her stomach and her boyfriend’s smile against her lips.

And when they broke apart, she gave Subaki only a second to catch his breath before she moved in for a second kiss, just as slow and as passionate at the first one.

After the fifth, time seemed to be almost nonexistent.

Thanks for the request @wishingbell! Hope you enjoyed it! (Even though I can’t find the actual request lol.)

[5:30:39 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): You've never seen that meme?

[5:31:04 PM] P.T.: Guess not. Of course that's not a real name anyway.

[5:31:22 PM] P.T.: Like, with HeartGold I named him "Harold", because it sounds kind of like 'heart' and 'gold' mixed together.

[5:36:57 PM] P.T.: Ok I don't mean to get all tumblr here, but I was a little bothered by how Caucasian the trainer was during the Sun/Moon demo. He just stuck out like a sore thumb. Especially since he didn't match his mom.

[5:37:20 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): I made a joke when I turned on the game that my dad must have been the whitest mother fucker in existance

[5:40:07 PM] P.T.: Your dad is Professor Oak. He's the father of every Pokémon protagonist except for Gen 3.

[5:40:19 PM] P.T.: Or maybe including Gen 3, I don't know Norman's sex life.

[5:42:25 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): Man Professor Oak ain't white Pfft

[5:43:11 PM] P.T.: Maybe it's just a tan.

[5:43:50 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): The fuck he getting a tan in Kanto

[5:45:13 PM] P.T.: I don't know they have a tropical island there. So Mom tells me to let the professor in, but as soon as I get near the door, he just walks in on his own. He's not even wearing a shirt. What a rude guest.

[5:52:13 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): RIGHT

[5:52:18 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): I was like 'Mother fucker'

[5:53:12 PM] P.T.: I bet he is one too. I saw the way Mom talked about him.

[5:53:42 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): Don't you be banging my mom, professor

[5:54:17 PM] P.T.: "Eh what happens in Alola stays in Alola, cousin"

[5:57:37 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): 'STOP CALLING ME COUSIN'

[5:58:45 PM] P.T.: 'YOU'RE GIVING ME WEIRD PSEUDO-INCEST VIBES I DON'T LIKE IT'

[5:59:59 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): 'REFRAIN'

[6:00:02 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): 'STRANGER DANGER'

[6:00:59 PM] P.T.: And thus Monty and What's-Their-Face's Grand Pokémon adventure began

[6:03:41 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): I always name my girl Salem

[6:04:07 PM] P.T.: And thus Monty and Salem's Grand Pokémon adventure began

[6:04:29 PM] P.T.: Sounds like a RWBY insert crossover fic.

[6:05:48 PM] P.T.: Now I need to name my cat Pokémon.

[6:09:12 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): Omg it does

[6:09:17 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): I named my seal Sherbert

[6:10:12 PM] P.T.: Somewhere a Vanillite is crying. I named my cat Lynx. Because that's the name of a cat guy in this one other game.

[6:11:35 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): I'm naming them all after ice cream

[6:15:16 PM] P.T.: "Ugh why do I play Pokémon when I get hungry"

[6:15:32 PM] P.T.: I gave Hau chicken skin. I bet the trainer's like "what the heck is a chicken".

[6:49:10 PM] P.T.: I'm on the third day of the game. Mom seems to have realized the professor will just let himself in at this point.

[6:49:45 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): Fucking professor

[6:50:15 PM] P.T.: But nah it was the shy girl.

[6:50:22 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): Lillie?

[6:50:30 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): Aka my only white friend on this island

[6:52:34 PM] P.T.: "OMG Salem you can't just ask girls why they're white!"

[6:53:32 PM] Mod Sieg (Vanessa): 'I'M WHITE'

[6:56:52 PM] P.T.: I am pretty excited to be playing this though, I'm getting memories of Black 1, which was my personal favorite generation. I'm told this game goes for a more story-based approach like that one.

Corrin blinked. “…As in, all of us?”

“Yeah! It’ll be fun! We can write the book, and we can all take turns! Father and Flora and me did it all the time back home!”

“Okay!” Corrin turned to Jakob and Lilith. “Is that okay with you two?”

“Whatever milord wishes.”

“Yes, that sounds fine.”

“All right!” Corrin already had some sheets and a pen ready. He promptly slid them over to Flora. “You can go first, Flora.”

“Huh? Err, wouldn’t you rather go first?” the older twin asked. Corrin shook his head.

“I want to hear all of your parts of the story first.”

Flora shrugged. “Well, okay.” She then took the pen and paper. “What should we write about, milord?”

The prince tapped his chin. “Hmm… Let’s make it a ghost story! Yeah, and after you write a little bit of it, you can pass it along to Felicia. Then, Felicia, you can pass it to Lilith when you finish, and Lilith can pass it along to Jakob, and then he can pass it to me.”

Flora simply nodded. Felicia immediately watched her sister’s writing. Lilith looked upward, as if contemplating ghosts, while Jakob appeared to be undergoing some form of meditation.

“I must prepare myself. Lord Corrin deserves a passage of the highest caliber,” Jakob whispered.

Lilith smiled reassuringly. “I’m sure Corrin-”

“Lord Corrin,” Jakob corrected. Lilith sighed.

“I’m sure Lord Corrin will appreciate whatever you write for him.”

Corrin beamed. “I will. Don’t worry about it, Jakob.”

“That may be true, milord, but you still deserve my best.” He narrowed his eyes. “Is that understood, Felicia?”

“Hey! I can tell a good ghost story! Just you wait!”

“Okay, I have an idea,” Flora announced.

…

Once upon a time, there were two children. A boy named Ephraim and a girl named Eirika. The brother and sister lived in a small village, playing and studying as children do. One day, their friend, Ike, challenged the twins to spend the night in the cave in the woods. Ephraim and Eirika were too proud to back down, thus they went into the cave that very night.

The night passed without incident, and come sunrise, the twins returned to their village. But something was wrong, very, very wrong.

Their village had disappeared. The forest was there, the rivers were there, but there was no village.

…

Ephraim and Eirika walked around the woods for a long, long time until it was dark. They still couldn’t find the village. So they just kept walking. Suddenly, they come across a house! Ephraim knocked on the door, and an ugly butler answered.

The brother asked if he and his sister could stay the night, because they were lost and it was dark. The ugly butler told Ephraim and Eirika to wait a minute, and he would ask his boss. After a few minutes, they were allowed inside.

An old lady was there, and she told the twins that they could spend the night if they do not touch anything. The kids agreed, so they were allowed to stay. But Eirika woke up in the middle of the night, and heard someone crying! She found a girl crying about losing her favorite doll, and the girl asked Eirika if she knew where it was. She looked around, and found the doll under the sofa. Eirika reached for the doll and took it, but the girl wasn’t there anymore! Only the butler was there, and he was scared!

He kicked Eirika and Ephraim out of the house right away and told them not to come back.

…

At first, Ephraim was furious with his sister for breaking the rules. But then, they both noticed that the doll was not a doll, but a bar of gold. They were rich! If the two of them could find civilization, they could sell the doll, and live comfortably for a while.

Then, there was rustling in the bushes. Skeleton soldiers appeared, and began to approach Ephraim and Eirika. Their bones creaked, their jaws were angled in the right way to resemble wicked grins, and they had a horrible purple aura about them. The twins screamed and pounded on the door, begging to be allowed back inside. But the only response was the butler’s voice, calmly telling the twins that they had brought this on themselves.

They ran. They ran as far as they could, not once looking back, for fear that the skeletons would be right behind them. Eirika tripped, and dropped the gold. She called out for Ephraim to help her. But Ephraim saw the state his sister was in. Her leg had been wounded, she would need to be carried.

Instead, Ephraim recovered the gold bar and ran away, believing his poor sister would get them both killed. Her screams echoed through the woods as Ephraim made his escape.

…

The boy eventually found a tree with an opening at the bottom. He crawled into the tree and hoped to get some rest for the time being. He eventually dozed off, but when he awoke, the scent of smoke had invaded his nose. He appeared to be tied to stake, as the skeletons formed a mob around him. One of their number spoke for the rest.

The skeleton spoke of finding demons in their forest, threatening to corrupt their soil, poison their crops, and spread plagues. As demons do, they had stolen the soul of the elderly forest hermit. They had captured one demon, and now they were ready to burn the other.

For, you see, Ephraim and Eirika were truly demons. The cave was a forbidden, cursed den, and their stay in the cave had allowed them to cross the barrier to the mortal world. That doll or gold bar or whatever it was- it was actually the crone’s soul. The skeletons were no skeletons at all, but actually the town’s guardsmen. They had captured and executed the demon Eirika, and were ready to do the same to Ephraim.

And when the fires consumed Ephraim’s body, he saw only one thing- his sister’s phantom, hovering above him, glaring.

…

Corrin’s lip trembled. “I… I don’t think I like this story anymore… It’s… it’s so sad!”

“Whatever do you mean?” asked Jakob.

He sniffled. “It sounds like the twins didn’t even know they were demons! And they didn’t mean to take the lady’s soul!”

Flora sighed. “Way to go, Jakob.”

“W-well, Felicia wrote the ‘stealing’ part!” Jakob defended.

“Really, you’ve made the story too dark-”

“And now they can’t go home again!” Flora winced, hearing Corrin refer to her passage. “They don’t have a home anymore!” He looked over at Lilith. “A-and how could Ephraim be so cruel to his sister?” Tears ran down Corrin’s face. “This is the most tragic story I’d ever… I’d ever heard!”

The four writers all had the same guilty face at that point. Felicia spoke first. “W-we’re sorry, Lord Corrin. We didn’t mean to.”

Lilith gave him a sympathetic smile. “Hey… It’s still your turn to write, Corrin. It’s not too late to give Ephraim and Eirika a happy ending.”

“Huh? Oh! You’re right! I can still fix everything!” With renewed determination, Corrin grasped the quill and set off to conclude this tale.

…

Before the villagers could burn Ephraim, Ike interrupted. He told the villagers that it was his fault the twins had crossed over, he didn’t know that this would happen. Ike asked if they could let them all go back to the demon world unharmed in exchange for the hermit’s soul.

The villagers agreed, and took the soul back from Ephraim. Then to repay Ephraim and Ike’s kindness, the hermit used her magic to heal Eirika. The three demons went back home. Eirika was upset with Ephraim for what he did, and so was Ephraim himself. He would do whatever she wanted for the rest of their lives. The twins and Ike then returned home and all was well.

The End.

…

Corrin smiled. “What do you guys think?”

“It’s… good!” Flora flattered.

“Er, yes… Top notch,” Jakob added.

Felicia scratched her neck. “Y-yeah, good job, milord.”

“That was a lovely conclusion.” Only Lilith seemed to have any appreciation for this. But Corrin did not care.

“You know, that was actually fun in the end. We should write more often!” And with that, the servants could not help but smile back. Corrin had this infectious positivity about him. Even as he butchered their ghost story, it was worth it to see him happy.

Here’s a Halloween drabble. From the start, I figured it would be “Corrin and family tell a round robin ghost story”. But which family do I go with? I couldn’t decide, so I went with my favorite of Corrin’s families- the fortress crew. Strangely, I’m a little reminded of this blog, a group of folks coming together to write. We even have a Jakob!

Y’know, with some adjustments, this might work as a legit ghost story... Oh well. Happy Halloween.

“Takumi!”

“What? I was kidding, sheesh.” Takumi shook his head, but then paused. “Oh wait… you still like him, don’t you?” Sakura blushed. “Heh… But seriously, this is boring. At least the nobles aren’t flocking to us like they usually do.”

The princess nodded. “I wouldn’t know what to say if they wanted to talk ab-about the couple… We’ve seen Ryoma and Camilla together for so long, I’m just used to it.”

“Yeah, she’s already acting like she’s part of the family.” The prince looked around the room. “What are our retainers up to, anyway?”

“They’ve been making sure that nobody gets in uninvited…”

“What? Who’s gonna break in? Besides, we could handle it!”

Sakura blinked. “Takumi, you don’t have Fujin with you.”

“Well… I could improvise.” This made his sister giggle. “What? I could!” He sighed and looked around. “Wait… Isn’t Princess Elise here?”

“Oh, no…” Sakura frowned. “She and Odin l-left for Odin’s homeland. Camilla said that Elise had p-previously sent her regards in a letter.”

“I see. So I guess we can’t have any more Koto/violin performances?”

The priestess nervously gripped the side of her dress. “No… But, I really don’t want to be put on the spot, Takumi…”

“Well, you could just do the Koto by yourself.”

“But… I just said I don’t-”

“Aw c’mon, you’re great at it! At least you have a talent!”

The princess gasped. “Takumi, don’t say it like that! Y-you have talent!”

He let out a sigh. “Okay, okay… Ryoma and Hinoka have both been over this with me… I didn’t mean for it to sound like that. ‘I am an amazing person’ after all… I was just saying, you’re good at music.”

Relief went over Sakura’s face. “Well, thank you, Takumi. But... I don’t even have it with me.”

“We could probably get Subaki or someone to go grab it for you.”

“You know we haven’t asked our retainers for tiny things like that.”

Takumi shrugged. “Hey, I’m sure they’d love to hear it too.” He smiled. “Haha, I can already imagine Camilla cooing over her ‘new little sister’ providing music at her wedding.”

“S-stop.”

“Hahaha! Remember when she first joined our group, and she just thought you were the most adorable thing she’d ever seen?” Sakura’s response was to blush furiously. “So that’s what Corrin had to deal with growing up!”

Then Sakura stopped blushing, and began to chuckle a little. “You know, heh, that reminds me of the time I showed Camilla one of your old dolls, heh.”

His eyes went wide. “…You didn’t…”

“Heh, I d-didn’t mean to, but… but it still happened, heehee.” Takumi groaned. “One time Camilla was visiting my room, and she liked the dolls on my shelf. But one of them was y-yours. I corrected her when she thought it was mine, without realizing…”

Takumi groaned even more loudly. “That explains why there were a few days in a row where she’d keep looking at me and snickering. And here I thought it was Nohrian haughtiness. I’ll have to apologize later… That’ll be an awkward conversation.”

“Hmhmhmhm!”

The prince raised his eyebrow. “Oh now what?!”

“It’s just… I’m actually having fun, just talking to you! And we were so worried about being bored,” Sakura said. To that, her brother smiled.

“Hey, you’re right. We’ve just been shooting the breeze the last few minutes, and honestly? It wasn’t bad at all. You’d think that after so long together, we’d have run out of things to talk about already.”

Sakura kept smiling. “I’m glad we still have each other, Takumi.”

“Yeah. We make a good team.”

I’d probably have a harder time thinking of a drabble if you and you-know-who didn’t get me to like Sakura more. Happy birthday, Mod Takumi.

“Where’d you find him?” Soleil eased up on squeezing the cat, and had taken to sitting in Corrin’s throne. She was playing with the cat’s frontal paws while Corrin spoke.

“I actually got him from Elise. Xander’s cat had a litter, and I know you like adorable animals, so I talked Elise into letting me keep this one.”

Soleil looked up. “Wouldn’t you need King Xander’s permission instead?”

“Haha! Elise is more protective of Xander’s cat than he is. She could probably give you a run for your money.”

Content, Soleil went back to playing with the cat and smiled. “Well thank you for thinking of me!”

“No problem, Soleil.” Corrin let out a sigh. “It’s just… It was a lot of work getting this new kingdom off the ground, I’m sure you know.”

“Yeah, I was there.”

“And we weren’t able to celebrate your birthday…”

Soleil’s smile went away. “Corrin, I told you, I understood.”

“I know, I know. But it kept bothering me that I couldn’t do anything for you. So when I heard about Xander’s cat, I had the idea.” He stepped closer to the throne, amused at the indifferent look on the kitten’s face. “You know… he doesn’t have a name yet. I thought you might like to do the honors.”

“Huh.” Soleil stopped playing with the cat to take another look at him. Its fur was pink, just like her hair. “Well, I had a few names, but I was gonna save them for if we ever had a kid.” Corrin blushed, and Soleil chuckled. “You’re so easy to fluster! Hmm… I don’t know if I want to use it on this cat though. Even if he is super adorable. Let’s see…”

Soleil narrowed her eyes in concentration. “Huh… I had another name, but it’d only work if the cat was a girl… Oh wait! That’s easy, I’ll just make it masculine!”

“Thought of it?”

“Yep!” The pink-haired queen proudly held the matching cat forward. “Corrin, say hello to Oliver!”

Corrin’s lips formed into a grin. “It’s nice to meet you, Oliver.”

“Meow.”

Then a thought occurred to Corrin. “Wait… masculine… What would you have named Oliver if he were a female?”

“Olivia.” Soleil went back to cradling the cat. “That’s my grandma’s name. After the war, Dad told me all about her.”

“Oh yeah…” Corrin nodded, remembering when Laslow had told him, Soleil and Xander of his true origins, and how he had to return, with Anankos defeated. It was with a heavy heart that Laslow and his wife left Soleil behind. But as the new queen of Valla, Soleil felt she had to be there for her people.

Soleil noticed that the atmosphere had gotten a little intense, so she smiled. “Hey. Corrin. Smile.”

“Huh? O-oh, sorry… I was just thinking.”

“It’ll be fine, Corrin. Mom and Dad said they’d come back eventually. They might even bring Grandma with them!” Soleil looked down at Oliver and smiled. “You should be more like Oliver. Look how relaxed he looks.”

To that, Corrin could only chuckle. Oliver looked sufficiently disinterested in the world around him. Then, Soleil turned her gaze to Corrin. “So do we have any food for him? Or milk?”

Corrin blinked. “What? Oh… uh… Well…”

“Aaaah! Corrin! You can’t just get a pet and then not have what they need!” Soleil stood right up, still carrying Oliver. “Don’t worry Oliver, we’ll go see Auntie Lilith, maybe she can milk a cow for you.”

“Meow.”

As Soleil left, Corrin looked on. “I thought you knew how to milk cows, though.”

“Yeah, but I can’t do it and keep an eye on Oliver! One neglectful owner is bad enough, Corrin! Don’t worry Oliver, I’ll take way better care of you!”

Corrin sighed. His wife sure did love small animals. More than him? Probably not… probably…

Here you are, @violette-crossing. My most creative title yet, wouldn’t you agree?

Kana was only seven, far too young to be riding on a Pegasus. But Corrin knew that how protective Hinoka was, and trusted her to keep Kana safe. Mikoto chuckled and made her granddaughter comfortable on her lap. “Is that so? You certainly took it better than your father did, when he had his first Pegasus ride.”

Corrin blushed. “I-I wasn’t sure what to expect, that’s all. I’d never ridden any flying mounts before. Not even in Nohr.”

“No excuses, Papa! You have to be brave, like me!” To that, Corrin shook his head and laughed. He knew he could not refuse anything Kana said to him. Kana had him wrapped around her little fingers.

“I guess you’re right, Kana the Fearless!”

“I am fearless!”

Mikoto rubbed her hand through Kana’s hear, smiling. “You’re so brave, Kana. And so adorable!”

Kana pouted. “I’m not cute, I’m fearless!”

The elderly queen hugged Kana tightly. “You can be more than one thing, Kana.”

“…I guess so.” Kana then sighed, but it was an exaggerated sigh. As though it were an attempt to sound adult. “Okay Grandma, you can call me cute. But only you!”

“Hahaha! How generous. Thank you, my adorable granddaughter.”

Corrin smiled. Though he did not blame Xander or his other Nohrian siblings, he regretted not being able to spend more time with his mother. At the very least, it was not too late for Mikoto to get to know her grandchild.

“What were you and Papa talking about, Grandma?”

“Oh, just miscellaneous things,” Mikoto answered with a smile.

“Mis…laneous?”

“It means we were talking about a lot of different, small things,” explained Corrin.

“Oh, okay. Did I interrupt?” Kana had a worrying frown on her face. She was every bit as sensitive as her father. Corrin and Mikoto both knew it. Though really, Mikoto did not mind.

“It’s all right, Kana, I always have time for you.”

“No Grandma, you and Papa should talk about grownup things. Ooh! I’ll talk about them with you! I can be grownup!” Corrin giggled, which prompted Kana to pout. “Hey! I can be!”

Mikoto took on a faux stern gaze. “She’s right, my son. You need to take your daughter more seriously.”

“O-oh, you’re right,” Corrin conceded. “I’m sorry, Kana.”

“It’s okay, Papa. Now you know.”

“Haha, I guess I do.”

As much as Mikoto loved Corrin, she would always take Kana’s side, and they would gang up on him. It was all in good fun, and Corrin truly did not mind. He enjoyed it. He enjoyed spending time with the family he never knew he had, especially his mother. They were able to spend years together, as Corrin acclimated himself to Hoshido once again. The whole family grew closer than ever, especially once Corrin and his wife had their child. It was almost too good to be true…

...

…Because it was.

“Lord Corrin?” Kaze’s voice stirred Corrin from his slumber.

“Huh… wh… Kaze?”

“Lord Corrin, you had asked me to wake you up this morning, remember? Today’s the day they’re finishing the statue in the town square,” the ninja explained. That was when it all came back to Corrin. None of it was real.

Kana was merely an infant. And Mikoto had passed away over a year ago.

“…Lord Corrin?”

Tears were streaming down Corrin’s face. “I… I need a moment, Kaze.”

Kaze gave a sympathetic look. “Another dream about her, I take it…”

“She…” Corrin shuddered, “she’ll never get to meet her granddaughter…”

“I understand.”

“I’m sorry, Kaze. It just… it felt so real…”

“Take all the time that you need.” Kaze left, and Corrin was alone.

Alone with thoughts of the family he could never have.

First I thought, “what if we got to see Mikoto doting over Kana?” Then I thought, “now how about if I ruin it?”

“Do you like their napkins?”

Velouria looked up from the task of stuffing napkins in her pocket. “Hm? They have brown napkins here. I like those better, so that’s good.” She went back to stuffing her pockets. “White napkins look too clean. Like, why use something stark white to clean something? It’s just going to get messy, white napkins don’t need to pretend they’re better than they really are.”

People felt that Velouria was a little crazy. Sometimes Corrin himself thought that, especially when they first met. But over time he found himself more interested in her unique views, in the way she saw the world. Eventually that interest developed into a full-on infatuation with the girl. Corrin smiled.

“I guess that’s another point in this place’s favor.”

“Are you going to eat your crust?” Corrin looked down. He had eaten his half of the pizza, but not the crust from two of his slices. He shook his head, and Velouria snatched them away. “Crust is my favorite part.”

“I know.”

As she gnawed on the crust, Velouria smiled. “Om, nom… Thanksh for taking m’ he’.”

“Haha! No problem. This place really isn’t so bad.”

The eccentric woman nodded, as she finished off the crusts, and then used her shirt to wipe her hands. She had a large supply of napkins at her disposal, yet elected to clean her hands with her nice shirt. Corrin quirked his brow.

“Why didn’t you use any of your napkins?”

“Huh? That would ruin them.”

“That’s what they’re for, though. You said it yourself, napkins get messy.”

She winced, looking defeated. “That… That’s true. But I also don’t have a lot of napkins or towels right now at home.”

“Really? Okay then. Why don’t we pick some up for you once we get out of here?”

She narrowed her eyes in focus. “You’re serious? You… want to go to the store with me. Me.”

Then it all came back to Corrin. Velouria was notorious among all their friends for being an easily distracted, very eclectic shopper. Last month, Velouria need to buy a new pair of shoes, and instead left with several empty CD cases, a gift card for an online service nobody ever used, two toothbrushes, and off-brand cookies. Still, as long as Corrin was there, perhaps he could keep her focused.

“Sure, why not?”

They had arrived at Velouria’s apartment two hours later. Corrin and Velouria had paid for the meal and left to Valmart a few minutes after their conversation, and it took two hours to finish their shopping. (Okay, traffic played a tiny role in that, but it still should have been a simple in-and-out trip to the store.)

“You could give Selena a run for her money,” Corrin joked, as the two of them went to the kitchen. He looked at the haul. While he internally congratulated himself on picking up paper towels for Velouria, he also berated himself for not keeping an eye on her. Apparently she had snuck off with the shopping cart (which Corrin insisted they did not need), and went off to fill it with random objects.

“I see it as less shopping and more of a treasure hunt,” Velouria said optimistically. “Like those vintage cereal mascot shirts.”

“Who are they for? Those are children’s size, and we don’t even know any children.”

Velouria focused on putting away the few practical groceries. “They’re for me. I can’t wear them, but they’re fun to look at.”

Corrin sighed. That was the most explanation he was going to get. He was not even frustrated. Corrin had come to accept these quirks of Velouria’s long ago. It certainly helped that Velouria’s tastes were on the cheaper end of things, meaning she went broke rather infrequently.

After helping Velouria unpack her ‘treasures’, she ran off to put them in different places in her apartment, something she insisted she knew how to best on her own. This left Corrin alone on the couch, leaning his head back. He had begun to doze off, when he felt something on his shoulder.

“…Velouria?”

“Hey.”

She was resting against Corrin. He smiled. “All done?”

“Almost. But you looked like you needed company.”

“Heh…”

“Hey…” Velouria’s tone became uncharacteristically serious, “thanks for sticking around at the store. I’m sure it got frustrating. Even my friends don’t like to shop with me. But I’m glad you did, and you didn’t yell or something.”

Corrin blinked, concern waking him up. “Do… do your friends yell at you?”

“No. I’m just glad you didn’t.”

A wave of relief went over Corrin. At least Velouria was not being harassed by any hateful false friends. “It’s not a problem at all. It was actually kind of fun, looking back.”

Velouria nestled herself against Corrin’s shoulder even more. “I’m glad… to hear that…”

Corrin stayed there for a moment. He admittedly did not want to move from his spot, though he had stopped feeling tired. He wondered how long Velouria was going to stay cuddled next to him.

As if on cue, he heard her going, “Zzzz…”

“I see.”

Corrin shrugged in spirit (as a literal shrug may disrupt his girlfriend’s nap) and allowed himself to remain as Velouria’s pillow.

Here is your request, @shinypepe. I took it in an AU direction because I felt it worked better that way, and wanted to flex my AU muscle. I hope I did Velouria justice.

“We banished all the Mokushujin from Hoshido, but Kotaro found a way to escape into your father’s village. And when we got there, the place was deserted! Then, ninja football players grabbed Kagero!”

“Wait, nobody equipped a weapon on me, I want a do-over!” Kagero yelled.

“Saizo was attacked by a Nohrian wizard, and a rabid wyvern!”

“…Great.”

“And I found myself face to face with a ninja with a Wolfskin!” The beast charged at Kaze, knocking him off a cliff. “Yeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaawww!”

“I fell for hours!”

“Wow, hours? Long time!”

“Well, it felt like hours anyway. I was falling. Nothing below me but boiling lava! Good thing I found a Pegasus!” Kaze landed on the Pegasus, and it thrashed in pain, as it plummeted. Kaze leapt over to a solid ledge, heedless of the Pegasus’s fate.

“Oh! Then Kaze pick up items off ground!”

“Okay smarty, what happened next?”

“You found me!” Kaze walked over and found a fox cub with extra tails. “Mama?”

 Selkie was giggling to herself. “Hahahaha! I called you ‘Mama!’”

“Yeah well I didn’t think it was that funny…” Kaze muttered.

Kaze carried baby Selkie in his hands through the cave, when the two of them heard the stomping of Wolfskins behind them.

“Yum, Kitsune!”

The ninja warily narrowed his eyes and stepped back. “Stand down, you Wolfskins. You’re dealing with a licensed ninja!”

“Yeah, so?” asked one Wolfskin. “I ate a ninja yesterday!”

Kaze gulped and proceeded to run away from the Wolfskins. They kept clawing at him as they ran, but eventually Kaze lost them in another tunnel, and made his way to the surface.

“Phew. Back in the forest.” He set Selkie down. “Okay, I gotta find Saizo and Kagero. You stay here while I catch my breath.”

With that, Kaze lied down, and Selkie immediately wandered off. Kaze groaned and got back up, following Selkie further into the woods. The Kitsune was smelling a flower, when Kaze picked her right back up.

“Hey. I told you to stay put.”

Selkie’s tails began to wag. “Look Mama Kaze, lizards!”

“Stop calling me…” Kaze turned around and saw that a group of wild wyverns were headed his way. He gulped again. “Saizo, wherever you are, HEEEEEEEEALP!”

“I wanna plaaaay!”

“Well I think these wyverns are playing for keeps, so-”

“I WANNA PLAY NOW!” Selkie then leapt from Kaze’s arms and did a rolling attack right into the lead wyvern. The dragon wailed in pain and retreated before Selkie did the same thing to the others.

“I’M-A COMIN’ KAZE,” Saizo bleated in his monotonous voice. He emerged from sudden smoke, but the danger had passed. He glared at the little Kitsune.

“What, this fox is giving you trouble? Pathetic. But all right, I’ll kill it for you.” Saizo was then jumped by Selkie. “Blaaaah! Great, now I know how a Nohrian feels…”

“Selkie, get off him! That’s my brother, Saizo!”

Kaze managed to get the boisterous fox off his brother, and whom himself managed to regain composure. Kaze chuckled. “I guess that’ll teach you to mess with little Selkie.”

“Mama Kaze!” Selkie nestled herself against Kaze’s chest.

“I already told you, I’m not your-”

“Mama? Mama Kaze?! Heh. Heheheh. …Heh.” Saizo cleared his throat. “Anyway, Kotaro has Kagero tied up in his underground disco palace. I fought my way out, we have to go back for her!”

“Mama Kaze don’t leave Selkie!”

Kaze sighed. “No, I won’t leave you. But you have to behave. And stop calling me ‘mama.’”

“Mama Kaze…” Selkie fell asleep in Kaze’s arms.

“So we jumped into a nearby canyon and made our way to Kotaro’s new palace, where the bright red and blue floors affected our classes.”

“Yikes! Why aren’t we Ninja Masters anymore?” Kaze asked.

Saizo pointed to a glowing spot. “If we use the Dragon Vein over there, we can change which floors do what!”

“But we don’t have our lieges with us!”

“… ARGH! Let’s just go…”

LOOKING FOR YOOOOOOU!

Saizo and Kaze made it to Kotaro’s throne room. From the shadows, Kotaro sent out automata to attack the brothers. They both fled from the robots, until Kaze realized Selkie was not with them. He turned around, and saw the little fox bashing all the automata… after having trashed all the decorations in the throne room.

“Uh… Saizo, I think we’re good.”

“Huh?”

“My throne!” Kotaro yelled. “My throne room!”

Saizo turned to Kaze. “You didn’t tell me you were bringing a secret weapon, Kaze.”

“That’s Mama Kaze to you, Saizo,” Kaze wheezed.

Then Saizo glared at Kotaro. “All right. Tell us where Kagero is, or Selkie will take your castle apart until we find her!”

“I can find another castle, but you’ll never find your friend!” Kotaro boasted, holding a key. “Without this key, you’ll never find her!”

“Not even with Locktouch?” Kaze asked.

“…Drat.”

“And so, we made our way back to Shirasagi after saving Kagero. All thanks to you, Selkie.”

In the present, Selkie was already asleep. Kaze smiled.

“Goodnight, Selkie. Ebebebebebeb.”

“…Night, Mama Kaze…”

To that, Kaze shrugged.

We don’t normally do drabbles anymore in observation of a character’s birthday, but I thought this would be funny. It’s based off the Super Mario World cartoon, because there’ve been jokes comparing the ninja bros to Mario and Luigi. Happy birthday to Kaze and Saizo.

No one ever quite knew what became of the songstress. Everyone had agreed the lovers were at their happiest together- even Corrin and Kaze, whom had known Azura the longest. But minutes after stopping both Garon’s impersonator and the possessed husk of Prince Takumi- Azura had vanished. Xander and Corrin spent ages looking for her, yet she was nowhere to be found.

If he had his way, Xander would have stayed in Hoshido until he had found Azura. But the man was used to putting the needs of Nohr before his own. And now more than ever, he would need to finally assume his fated role, and don the crown.

It was lonely at the dinner table. Leo was busy in the library, Corrin was preparing a goodwill trip to Hoshido, and Camilla took Elise to see a show in Nestra. This left Xander alone with his two sons.

Siegbert and Shigure had grown a lot in the years since the war. Both were blessed Azura’s powder blue locks and striking amber eyes. Whenever Xander made eye contact, he felt haunted. As though they were mediums for Azura, to show her that he had abandoned her. Xander avoided making eye contact if he could.

What a pathetic king. Worse, a pathetic father. To be afraid to face his own children…

With Xander’s duties, as expected, he had little time for his boys. He made sure to be present for important dates and to encourage their endeavors. Yet he could not will away the shadow of Azura. He needed to get through this dinner without incident. “So… I hear your lessons are coming along well,” Xander opened. “What are your thoughts?”

“Um, I enjoy them, father. Sir. Your Majesty,” Siegbert mumbled. Xander smiled.

“Siegbert, I’ve told you. ‘Father’ is fine.”

The eight-year-old nodded. “Y-yes sir. Your Majesty.”

“The instructor said I was a good singer,” Shigure reported. “She was impressed!” He always was the more upbeat of the two.

“Hmm,” Xander nodded, trying not to remember Azura’s singing as he cut into his food. From there, the dinner continued in silence. It was routine at first, but eventually Xander felt a different kind of discomfort. As though he were being watched.

They must be expecting further comment.

He tried to find another subject, but the thought died in his throat when he saw the dejected look in his sons’ faces. “What’s wrong?”

Siegbert looked smaller than usual. “We’re sorry that wasn’t exciting enough, Father…”

“Huh?” Xander went from discomforted to confused. “What makes you say that? I have an honest interest in my sons’ development.”

“B-but you never sound like it…” Siegbert countered, which honestly surprised everyone. Feeling motivated, Shigure weighed in as well.

“You always seem… far away. Or something. Like… you don’t want to be here. Do you not like us?”

“What? I-”

“You don’t enjoy talking to us,” Siegbert interrupted. “Did we do something wrong?”

The king’s heart dropped right then. He could already recall a similar conversation he had held with Garon, even when his father was still a respectable man. It frightened him to the very core. When that monster had taken Garon’s identity, he grew into a distant, unloving father. And now that was how Xander’s own children were beginning to see him.

No. That won’t happen with them. How grateful I am to have raised you to voice your concerns. I won’t repeat Father’s downfall…

“Siegbert, Shigure, I owe you both an apology.” He finally looked his sons in the eyes. “I realize I have been distancing myself from the two of you.” He sighed. “When your mother disappeared… it hurt me greatly.” The boys gulped, knowing how rarely Xander mentioned their mom. “The two of you... remind me of her so much.”

Seeing his sons’ hearts sink at the reminder of their mother, Xander cleared his throat. “However, that was selfish of me. You boys don’t deserve such treatment. We might have lost someone dear to us, but we still have each other.” Suddenly, Camilla entered his thoughts. “I remember telling your Aunt Camilla that, as ruler, I would need to maintain a certain distance from my family. But I’ve begun to see things differently.”

“What do you mean?” Shigure asked.

“One… never knows when they’ll last see their family,” the king said, his words heavy from experience. “That is why, if you’ll forgive this foolish man, I would like to be a larger part of your lives.” For once, Xander’s mouth formed into a smile, a sincere one. “Can the two of you forgive your coward of a father?”

Siegbert and Shigure beamed, and Xander could see Azura’s smile in their own. Yet, Xander already felt differently. Siegbert and Shigure, they were Azura’s legacy, a symbol of the bond she had shared with him. In a small way, she was still there with him. With all of them.

“Why don’t you demonstrate that singing ability of yours, Shigure?”

“I may? O-oh, but Siegbert’s singing is wonderful too!”

Xander turned his eyes expectantly to the other son, whom seemed nervous. “Is that allowed at the king’s dinner table?”

His father grinned. “Right now, we’re not a king and two princes. I’m your father, and I would like to hear my sons’ song.”

That was all they needed to hear.

Here you go, @indigodanceblade, sorry for the wait. I’m not sure if this is quite what you had in mind but I hope you enjoy. Uncle Dojima from Persona 4 sort of inspired this- being afraid of his child because she reminded him of his wife. I got a little sad writing this.

The red-haired girl awkwardly looked away. “Oh, well, I guess that’s true… Wait, you were an assassin, right? I’m not judging, my dad was one too. But what I wanna know is why you ride a dragon, and why you carry that big axe. How sneaky is that?!”

Beruka sighed. “When your mission is to eliminate someone, it’s best to make absolutely sure they’re dead.” She stopped polishing and inspected her axe. “It’s easy to tell whether or not someone’s dead, with an axe.”

“Wait, what about the dragon? And that reminds me, Lady Camilla said your armor used to belong to her? How does that even work? Gods, she must’ve hit the puberty jackpot!”

“I was born in February. She was born in the November afterward.”

“Huh? You look so young though…”

Beruka went back to her task. “Have you no other business? I don’t like conversations.”

This just made the twintail-haired girl scowl. “Oh, well sorry I’m such a bother! Fine, I know when I’m not wanted!”

Selena was about to storm off, but then Beruka looked up. “Wait.”

“Now what?!”

“… I apologize. I didn’t mean that you were annoying.” Beruka found her quite annoying, but that was not her reason. “There was no deeper meaning. I just sincerely dislike having conversations.”

“I-is that so?” Selena grew somewhat embarrassed. “Well… apology accepted. And… sorry about picking at you.”

“You’ve served Lady Camilla for some time. It’s natural you would be suspicious of someone you’d be expected to work with out of nowhere. Especially given my… entrance.”

“That reminds me, I’m still freaked out you managed to get in Lady Camilla’s room without me knowing! Mind sharing some of your secrets?”

“I would, actually.”

“Oh, all right! But I wanna spar against you soon! I should know how you fight!”

“… Fair enough.”

Selena finally smiled. She would not let herself be inferior to this new retainer. She would be the best retainer Lady Camilla had ever recruited, past, present, and future. And she would make sure everyone knew it.

“Ah, you must be Peri,” Laslow said as he greeted the woman with oddly-colored hair. “So Prince Xander took a liking to you as well, I see.”

“Yep! I’ve killed a lot, so it was easy to fight in that tournament!”

Laslow was taken aback by this blunt statement, but did not let it show. “Yes, well, better our new lord has guards whom know what they’re doing, right?”

“Yeah. Lord Xander’s nice, I sure hope nothing bad ever happens to him! But I guess that’s what we’re for!”

Laslow nodded. “Yes, we’ve been given a great responsibility.” He cleared his throat. “Well, what say we get to know each other better before we report in tomorrow? I’ve heard of a lovely café nearby…”

Pleased with the idea, Peri closed her eyes and smiled. “Okay! I’m thirsty anyway.”

“Marvelous! I’ve been meaning to check it out anyway.” He winked. “I hear their server doubles as a maid!”

Peri’s eyes shot back open. “Maid…”

“Er, perhaps not the best time to bring that up…” the mercenary nervously admitted.

“I can’t go after all.”

Laslow’s smile turned upside-down. “Really? Fear not, my attention will not stray from our conversation. Not with a face as wonderfully unique as yours!”

“No, it’s not you. I’m in a support group for angry people, and if I keep looking at that maid… I’m gonna stab her.”

Laslow jolted. “Wh-what? D-did I mishear you? Stab her?”

“Yuh-huh!” Peri chirped.

“Uh… Well, we could still go somewhere else…” Laslow desperately tried to salvage this conversation. “It need not be a café, just so long as we may enjoy each other’s company!”

The newly appointed cavalier considered this for a moment. “Hmm… Okay! But you have to stop trying to flirt with me! I don’t like it.”

“O-oh, is that… you thought…” He sighed. “I confess. That was my intention. But even so, I do wish to get to know my new colleague.”

Peri nodded. “Okay. Let’s go then, buddy!”

It was time for Odin to introduce himself to his new coworker. As luck would have it, he was sitting in the halls, eating a sandwich. Time for his glorious first impression. “Greetings, fellow servant! I am the chosen hero from the darkest depths! The moon itself was severed to proclaim my fell birth! I… am Odin Dark!”

Niles merely blinked (winked, technically) as his new coworker struck a pose. “Cowed by my malefic aura? Fear not, friend. I shall restrain my spell hand. You need not- Hey, come back!” Odin dropped his pose, as Niles simply walked away. “I wasn’t done reassuring you!”

“This is a waste of time. Didn’t Lord Leo give you some… errand or something?”

“Ah, yes! He has tasked me with seeking the fabled Stone of Agony! Said to be found deep within a forgotten house, controlled by men cursed to bear the form of spiders!” Odin explained. “I just thought I’d say hi first!”

Niles narrowed his eye, unsure of what to make of Odin’s going in and out of theatrics whenever the sorcerer had finished his sentences.

“Uh, would you like to join me in this quest? You shall be my fateful ally: Zero, Devourer of Delectable Foods!”

“What are you talking about?”

“I mean, Niles is a nice name, but it just doesn’t have any… oomph!”

What Odin did not know was that Niles was privy to Leo’s distaste for the bombastic mage. This ‘Stone of Agony’ was made up on the spot, in an attempt to get Odin to leave and never come back, and he fell for it. As such, Niles could only say one thing to Odin.

“I think I’ll pass,” Niles said. “But tell you what: look real hard for the Stone of… whatever. Because if you don’t find it, well… I’m sure Lord Leo wouldn’t like that.”

Odin grimaced. “Er, no, I suppose he wouldn’t…”

“So you should get cracking on that ‘quest’ of yours. It’d be a shame if you couldn’t finish it…” Niles warned implicitly. Odin gulped.

“Well… it appears Odin Dark’s reputation precedes him, and has raised the bar for his lord’s expectations. But just as well, I shall not let him down!” Odin struck another pose. “And upon the completion of this quest, perhaps maybe then you’d see fit to join me on my next one? Turns out Lord Leo has a bunch of these lined up!”

Niles began to crack up, but restrained himself for Odin’s sake. “Sure… Odin. Heh! If you find that- snrk!- magical rock, I’ll help you find the next thing…!”

The dark mage nodded. “Very well. Wish me success! I look forward to getting the chance to work with you, o Zero, Devourer of Delectable Foods!”

“Niles.”

“I look forward to getting the chance to work with you, o Niles, Devourer of Delectable Foods!”

The outlaw shook his head. “… Close enough.”

I wondered about the Awakening trio realizing their new coworkers are all psychotic. The timeline for this is that Niles joined first, the trio and Peri, and lastly Beruka. I worked out reasoning for it. If that’s inaccurate, consider thsi AU.

Corrin’s senses returned to her, as she found herself back in bed.

“Wha… Where… Huh?”

Niles was sitting nearby, watching her. “Oh you’re awake. About time.”

“Did I… fall asleep?”

Niles shrugged. “Kids said they found you lying in the grass. Lady Elise and that other princess took a look at you, they said you were just exhausted, but otherwise you’re fine.”

Corrin’s face turned red. “Oh dear. I must’ve just collapsed from exhaustion or something.”

“You have been busy lately…”

“Well, I just had a lot I needed to take care of around the fort. Assigning shifts, refereeing the arena, monitoring prisoners, supervising the mines…”

“You always were a goody two-shoes,” Niles teased. “Or a goody no-shoes in this case. Running around, doing errands and hovering over everyone…”

The half-dragon laughed to herself. “What, too altruistic for you, Niles?”

“Ha! If it were anyone else, I’d think this was all some plan to get into everyone’s good graces. But since it’s you, I can actually believe you’d tire yourself doing favors for people. You’re almost as bad as that Kitsune.”

“I can’t help it,” Corrin admitted. “I’ve brought us all together, so this army is pretty much my responsibility.”

“You have, like, four personal servants at all times. And all your siblings love you to death,” said Niles. He then winked with his one eye. “And you have me. So I really don’t think you’ll have a problem finding someone to fill in for you when you get tired. Most of us work as retainers, it’s pretty much all we know anyway.”

“Oh, it’s not like I’m too embarrassed to ask for help. Maybe Takumi, but not me.” Niles chuckled, his impression of the prince based purely on Lord Leo’s first interactions with him. “It’s just… I want to show everyone that I can do it, so they won’t worry. That’s the kind of thing Xander, or even Ryoma, would do.” She gripped the edge of her blanket. “But even if my reasons are different, it’s still the same problem, isn’t it?”

“You really don’t need to worry what everyone thinks. I told you, everyone loves you.” The outlaw put a finger to his chin. “I’d actually despise that about you if I didn’t feel the same way.”

“Was that a compliment?”

“Eh, I’m not the best at making things sound good.”

Corrin smirked. “That’s because you try to make them sound as bad as possible.”

“Hey now, you agreed to marry me, so it must not be that bad,” Niles teased. “But really though, don’t overwork yourself. You keep saying we’re all in this together, right?”

“You’re right. I’m sorry for worrying you all.”

“Ooh, and poor Kana…” Niles was not above using his wife’s doting nature to get quick amusement. “He was just bawling his eyes out!”

“Nooo…”

“Oh, the look on his poor face…”

“My poor son!”

Niles shook his head, grinning. “I swear, it’s like you’ve become a second Camilla.”

“Oh, suddenly I’m too doting?” Corrin began, feeling confident. “I seem to recall somebody sneaking Kana an extra cookie before bed every night last week.”

Corrin’s husband immediately blanched. “… I can neither confirm nor deny.”

With that, both spouses broke out into laughter, and then Nina poked her head in the door. “Uh, Mom? Dad? Is everything okay now?”

“Huh? Oh, yes Nina, I’m fine. I just forgot to take a rest, and my body did it for me!” Corrin explained, now beginning to feel a bit embarrassed. “Thank you for worrying for me. And Kana too! I should probably-”

“Stay there, while the rest of us take care of matters? Good idea.”

“Dear…” Corrin tried not to use first names in front of the children.

“Corrin, it’s fine.” Niles had no such reservation. “I think the three of us can do whatever it was you were doing just fine. So take a rest. Doctor’s orders.”

“Yeah,” Nina walked in, “don’t worry about it, Mom!”

Corrin sighed, but did not appear bothered. “All right. You win, I’ll stay put.”

“Good.” Niles leaned in and shared a kiss with his wife, before leaving. “Nina, you know where we keep the tomato juice in the mess hall? Let’s go give Lilith some of that.”

Corrin watched her family leave, and chuckled. Lilith hates tomatoes. Buuut I’m sure she’ll deal with it.

Thanks for the request, @illustriya. Sorry it took so long.

“Well, we can look for Kana’s dress now, if you want to get it over with.” Selena huffed and crossed her arms.”

“It’s not ‘getting it over with’, it’s making sure that we have a good selection!” Corrin waved his hands in nervousness. “What if the dress we’re looking for is taken before we can get there?”

“We’re not looking for any specific dress.”

“Yea, but we’ll know it when we see it, right?”

Selena shrugged, but she silently agreed with the comment. It wasn’t like Kana needed another dress; Forrest was always happy to create yet another clothing article for someone, but Selena felt that she and Corrin should be the origin of her newest birthday gift.

It didn’t take them long to finish the shopping list, but as soon as they tried a few clothing vendors, Selena was feeling a bit angry.

“Maybe we should try an actual clothing store.”

Corrin laughed, scratching his head. “I thought that maybe a clothing vendor would have something unique and interesting… I suppose that’s not what we should go for huh…”

“Hm? What’s my darling little brother and retainer doing out on the streets in the middle of the day?”

Selena turned her head and noticed that Camilla and Hinoka had been sipping tea in one of the parlors to the side of where they were standing. “Oh, Lady Camilla… Princess Hinoka... I apologize for not noticing you sooner…”

Camilla waved her hand with a chuckle and Hinoka let loose a small smile. “There’s no need, darling. We were simply having a conversation over some nice tea. You too seem like you’re in a bit of trouble. Let your big sister help~”

“Sisters.”

“Ah right, yes.” Camilla stood up and brushed off her dress. “Surely we should be able to do something to alleviate your sadness.”

“We’re not doing anything much, just looking for a dress for our Kana.” Corrin straightened his back, stretching. “We haven’t had luck outside, but we were just about to try a store.”

“Oh, well if it’s clothes shopping, then I’d love to help out!” Camilla turned to Hinoka, who gave a confident smile. “It’s the least we can do, after all you two have done.”

“Thanks sis, we really appreciate the help!” Corrin smiled, but Selena was more apprehensious. Sure, Camilla’s sense was unrivaled, but it wasn’t really her job to serve her retainer.

“I saw an adorable shop a ways back. We can check that out first.”

“I looked through the window and it seemed like the prices were fairly affordable, but you never know…” Hinoka trailed off.

“Oh, it’s fine Hinoka. We can afford to splurge on our adorable niece.” Camilla patted the princess on the shoulder, and they were off.

The door was fairly ornate, giving Selena a hint of what they were getting themselves into, and sure enough, it took the four of them an hour to find a suitable dress for Kana. Sure, Hinoka ended up throwing in a kimono as well, but Selena was disappointed that all of her skills still took them an hour.

“Well, the look on our Kana’s face will certainly be worth the effort.” Corrin shifted the bag on his arm, and Selena sighed in agreement.

“I certainly hope so. It took me forever to get a decent deal on that dress!” She crossed her arms, but there was no real venom behind her voice.

“Ah, mama, papa, you got back in time!” Kana and Kiragi jumped out from behind a tree. “We were making dinner, but then uncle Leo got annoyed with how we were cooking, so he sent us out to do border patrol!”

Certainly, they weren’t doing real border patrol.

“Did you get the bad guys, Kana?”

Kiragi stumbled slightly before righting himself. “Of course we did! I protected Kana from the wolf and she took it out afterwards.”

“Aw, did the wolf give you guys trouble?”

“Not really, dad and uncle Leo are cooking it right now.”

Selena froze. That was a true statement?

“At any rate, we got you something Kana!” Corrin handed her the bag as Selena waved her hands, wanting an explanation.

“Aw, thank you papa.”

“HOLD!”

“Ohhhh, this dress is lovely! The flower patterns are so pretty!”

Kiragi laughed. “Aunt Hinoka must have picked out the kimono, it has stars on it.”

“Like I said, hold!!!”

I done it.

"N-no you look...you look adorable." Corrin wheezed out in between his own laughter. Wearing the dress wouldn't have been so bad if Felicia hadn't invited Corrin along to help Takumi put it on.

"Felicia, is this damned thing really necessary?" The Hoshidan prince asked, turning to the maid.

"I-It sets the atmosphere!" The maid insisted as she got out the last wrinkle in Takumi's dress. "You're the one who said you wanted to try and be a maid."

He said no such thing. Takumi remembered saying, word for word, that Felicia's job was easy. That there was nothing to it. The archer immediately regretted his decision not too long after. He had to give Felicia credit, when she got mad...she got mad.

The maid had bet Takumi he couldn't last a full day as a maid. Takumi, not being one to back down from a challenge, promptly accepted. He really wished he'd swallowed his pride and apologized.

"Y-you'll...you'll do great." Corrin was still laughing, now trying to cover his mouth to try and muffle his giggles. The dragon prince was looking to get an arrow in the butt at the rate he was going.

"Okay! Shoo! Shoo!" Felicia pushed Corrin toward the door "Prince Takumi and I have lots of work to do!"

"I think he's more of a maid than a prince today!" Corrin sniggered, only to be promptly shoved out of the room and the door slammed in his face.

Takumi let out a loud sigh and just barely managed to cross his arms. Maid uniforms were a tighter fit than they looked. "That was just cruel, you know?"

"What was?" She asked, looking back at the prince with the sweetest smile she could muster. Takumi didn't buy it for a second.

"Making me wear this damned thing." He said, gesturing to his clothes. The stupid stockings were already riding up and making him even more uncomfortable.

"I think it looks nice on you. Besides, l-like I said before, it sets the atmosphere. Now you'll really understand what its like to be a maid."

Takumi was certainly understanding what it was like to have stockings ride up his rear, that was for sure. The outfit definitely looked better on Felicia than it did on him.

"N-now! Lets get started!" The maid tossed a rag over to the flustered prince before gesturing to the left side of Corrin's room "Y-you dust that side. I'll get this side."

Takumi groaned but did as instructed, slowly making his way over to the tall bookshelf in his brothers room. He felt like his entire bum was out on display as he sauntered over. It became even more embarrassing as he reached up and the dress rode up with his movements.

"Felicia, I can't work in this thing!" He complained, swiftly trying to pull the ends of the outfit down.

"S-stop complaining and yes you can." The woman called over, not even bothering to glance at the maid-in-training. Takumi huffed, even if his girlfriend was a clumsy maid she always remained focused while doing her work. As focused as someone like her could get that is.

Takumi let out another groan before trying to keep himself distracted by dusting the different knick knacks and shelves in Corrin's room. They were doing well at least, working fast with minimal destruction by Felicia. The prince even believed they'd be done sooner than planned with the days chores and he'd be out of the awkward dress in no time.

Then...then they came by.

"Lord Takumi!" Hinata called out, swinging the door open and causing both maids to jump a few feet in the air.

"Lord Takumi! Lord Corrin said you'd be here and-" Both retainers stopped dead in their tracks as they caught sight of their prince. Their prince who was currently dressed in a Nohrian maid's uniform.

"A-ah..." Takumi was at a loss for words. First thing his brain came up with was different ways to kill Corrin. The second thing was to revoke Felicia's kissing privileges once the whole bet was over. The third and must important one was for him to yell.

"Get out!"

The wail caused all three retainers to wince. Takumi's voice could become incredibly shrill if he put enough force behind it.

"L-Lord Takumi! Calm down! I-I think you look great in those clothes! It shows off your legs!" Hinata quickly said, thinking that would make his lord feel better. It sure as hell didn't.

"You should have gone up a size. Its a little...erm...tight around his torso." Oboro said as a small blush spread across her face. She couldn't even make eye contact with the prince.

"I-it was all that was left." Felicia spoke up, though it didn't seem to bother her that the outfit was just a bit too snug on her boyfriend.

"Will you all leave!" Takumi yelled again, the second round of shrieks finally causing his retainers to jump and run out of the room. "Not you!" He called out, pointing right at Felicia who looked as if she was trying to make her own great escape.

The young maid froze in her tracks and slowly turned toward the prince with a sheepish look to her face "A-ah...please don't be mad." The poor woman was practically shaking in her heels by that point.

Takumi couldn't help but sigh, his anger slowly evaporating as he gestured for her to come closer. Felicia hesitated but soon made her way over to stand in front of the prince who immediately pulled her into an embrace.

"I swear, you didn't do any of this to prove a point and just wanted to embarrass me." He huffed, burying his face in the maid's shoulder.

"I-I would n-never do s-such a thing!" Felicia responded though the extra stuttering in her voice alerted Takumi that that was exactly what the woman had been trying to do. His suspicions were only confirmed when she sighed and said "O-okay...maybe I w-was just trying t-to get back at you."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said your job was easy. It isn't." He pulled away and held the maid at arms length "Especially while trying to wear this thing." He gestured to the maid's uniform both of them were wearing.

Felicia let out a shaky laugh "Y-you get used to it." Takumi most certainly would not get used to it, since today was the only day he planned to wear the damned thing. But for now, he'd indulge his girlfriend and continue with their little bet.

"Alright, alright. If there are no more interruptions, lets get the rest of this cleaning done." He took a step back and retrieved the rag from earlier, prepared to go back to dusting off the book shelf once more.

"R-right! Great!" Felicia said with a smile before turning to return to her own work "W-we are making great time! A-after this we just have to go and deliver some tea to the library a-and the rest of the day will be smooth sailing."

Takumi froze in place when the maid mentioned the library. He glanced over his shoulder oh so slowly with a perturbed look on his face "F-Felicia? Who...who exactly are we delivering tea to?"

"Prince Leo of course!"

Felicia didn't think she'd ever heard Takumi scream as loud as he did in that very moment.

Drabble for @thetakubooty which was heck of a lot of fun to write! Takumi as a maid? 50/10 would write again.

They were soon going to have their second child. Kana, they were going to call it, whether it was a boy or girl. Even if it was their second time going through all the fun of pregnancy, they couldn't help but be excited.

Takumi, the big family loving man that he was, had been overjoyed to hear the news. He couldn't wait to hold another baby in his arms. He couldn't wait to rock them to sleep at night or read them stories, things Kiragi declared he was too old for.

Corrin on the other hand, she had been rather worried at first. They were still fighting a war after all and she felt bad enough for having brought their son into the middle of it all. Now they were bringing another child into a world full of war. Over the months though, she found herself getting more and more excited. She started to buy new clothes and supplies needed for when the baby would be born. She was ready to spoil the baby rotten.

Takumi reached over and placed a hand on Corrin's belly, smiling when he felt a hard kick against his hand "Their very active this morning. Sakura said that more activity could mean they'll be born soon."

"I can only hope." The dragon princess responded with a snort. She was ready for the child to be born so she wouldn't have to deal with a lower fatigue and swollen ankles anymore. Or the hormones. Damn those hormones. "Lets just say in bed today." She suggested.

Her archer husband raised a brow before letting out a soft chuckle "All day? I don't think its good when the commander of the army lazes around for a full day." Regardless, Takumi sunk back down into the bed and smiled at his wife.

"I'm pregnant, they'll understand. And if they don't, I'll make them." She said with a huff, causing Takumi to chuckle again.

"If you want to be lazy today, I won't stop you. Just know that I'll be staying with you."

Corrin smiled at her husband and inched her way closer. He made it sound as if he'd be a bother if he stayed by her side. "I'd very much enjoy that."

Takumi used one hand to run his fingers through his wife's hair while using the other hand to rub her bulging stomach "You got so big this time around."

The princess huffed and gently hit Takumi's chest "Thats not something you should ever say to your wife. You jerk."

Takumi let out a laugh but didn't stop in his rubbing "Sorry, sorry. I should have known better." His hand lingered over her stomach for a moment longer. His wife was just so beautiful in the morning. Even when Corrin didn't believe she was, Takumi still found her to be the most radiant woman in the world.

They should have known their peaceful morning wouldn't last for long. Not when a certain rambunctious child was up and ready to play.

The door to their room swung open and in ran Kiragi, jumping on his parents bed with a loud shout. He bounced around, giggling like his antics were the funniest thing in the world.

"Good morning, sweetie." Corrin said with a soft smile as Takumi grumbled about their child disturbing their alone time. At least he hadn't walked in on them...wrestling. As they told him it was after being caught.

"Mommy! Daddy!" The child cheered, plopping himself down in between them. Corrin couldn't help but giggle as she saw her husbands face scrunch up. Even if it was their son vying for her attention, Takumi still didn't want to share. At least not that early in the morning.

"Time to go play!" Kiragi announced, looking in between both his parents. Takumi glanced over at the one window in their room and sighed. The sun had barely even risen yet and their son was already bouncing around like he'd eaten ten pieces of cake.

"Its too early right now. Get back to bed, you goober." The older Hoshidan prince chuckled, gently pushing on his sons face. His smirk contorted into a look of disgust as he pulled his hand back "Kiragi! Don't lick me!"

The little outburst caused both Corrin and their son to laugh. At least it was never a dull moment in their household. Not with Kiragi there to keep them on their toes.

"Now, now. We don't lick people. Do you remember why?" She asked the little boy that was still nestled in between them.

"Because they taste icky?"

"That and what else?" The princess responded with a soft giggle.

A frown came to Kiragi's face "Because its ruuuude. Sorry daddy." He looked to Takumi who returned his frown with a smirk.

"I guess I'll let it slide. But not before I...punish you!" Takumi acted fast and immediately started to tickle their sons stomach. Kiragi burst out into another fit of laugher, his face already reddening from the assault.

"N-no! Daddy no!" He squealed, becoming even louder as Corrin joined in. "Noooo mommy!"

They tickled their little goober of a son until tears welled up in the sides of his eyes. Even when they stopped the child continued to laugh while trying to catch his breath. "Silly mommy and daddy!" He exclaimed once he was calmed down enough to speak.

Both Takumi and Corrin couldn't help but laugh as they snuggled back down into bed. Kiragi let out a soft yawn, the tickle attack having worn him out just enough to hopefully put him back to sleep.

"When will baby...baby be born?" The little boy asked, a yawn interrupting him halfway through his sentence.

"Soon. Very soon. At least I hope so." Corrin responded, taking her sons hand and running a thumb over the knuckles. Takumi did the same to the child's opposite hand. Laying down like that, with their son tucked in between them, it made them happy and excited to know that they'd be doing it all again soon with another addition to their small family.

"Baby...born...born now." Another few yawns and soon enough heavy eyelids closed shut. Soft snoring filled the room and both parents couldn't help but chuckle.

"So energetic. No idea where he gets it from." Takumi whispered, running a hand through their sons soft, white hair.

"From his daddy, of course. He gets his stubborn side from his dad too." The princess teased, earning her an annoyed looking from her husband.

"I am not stubborn."

"You really aren't disproving my point right now."

Takumi shook his head and released his sons hand, only so he could wrap his arms around both his wife and child. He wanted to hold his growing family close. To show them how much he loved and appreciated having them in his life.

"I love you, Corrin."

"Not as much as I love you."

Long overdo drabble that was requested after a giveaway on one of my blogs. Have some tiny pregnancy and family shenanigans while you wait for our lazy bums to get to work.

Certainly Nohr and Hoshido need more of that than anything she has to offer. Despite her insecurities, Sakura accepted Ryoma’s proposal, as she wants to do right by him and all of her countrymen. And although she misses home dearly, these past few months in Nohr haven’t been so bad.

She and Princess Elise have become even closer after the war. The two of them even write music together, and sometimes stay up way later than they should. Princess Camilla treats her like her own mother would, and sometimes spends time knitting sweaters with her. King Xander is much too busy to spend time with her like his sisters, but their conversations are always pleasant.

As for Prince Leo…

Tonight is the first night the two have been together in a while, and at a party no less.

They never spoke much during the war, as they both had their parts to play. Although, when there was time to spare, each conversation was deep and meaningful, as was each of their interactions. There was a moment in time where she thought he looked quite gallant as he shielded her from any oncoming attacks. There was also a moment in time where she could feel his eyes linger on her just a little longer after she healed a nasty gash on his arm. She’s since shaken away those silly thoughts since the war ended.

Since then, he’s warmed up to her considerably. It’s a shame that the two of them still don’t spend much time together, since Leo works hard to spread the king’s new policies. Even so, Sakura is always willing to lend an ear when he chooses to talk to her about his day. He’s always so hardworking that Sakura has to wonder if he ever takes a moment to relax. When the words leave her lips, she wants so badly to retract them, as Leo’s dark brown eyes are fixated solely on her.

He fixes his mouth to say something, but settles on a smile so faint, she needs to squint to see it. “I appreciate your concern, Princess Sakura, but I can assure you that I’m not running myself ragged.” Time spent hunched over the chessboard pondering moves is Leo’s idea of relaxation.

All of a sudden, Sakura can’t even remember what she likes to do for fun when he asks. Instead her eyes drift off to the lights that decorate the rose garden so prettily. They’re more impactful under Nohr’s blanket of darkness.

“I… um, n-not much really,” she finally speaks.

“Well, what did you do back in Hoshido?” he asks her, and he has to smirk when he catches her soft pink eyes widen in surprise. “Didn’t think anyone would notice, did you?”

No, she didn’t. “I-it’s not that I think being here is terrible, b-because it’s not!” Sakura says. “Nohr is r-really interesting, unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, and–”

“There’s no need to explain,” says Leo. “It’s perfectly normal to be a little homesick. I was only curious to know what hobbies you had back at home. Maybe we could do them here and help you to feel a bit more comforted.”

She takes note of his wording: “we” instead of “you.” How thoughtful of him to think of her feelings.

“A-as much as I appreciate it, I’d feel t-terrible if I didn’t learn and e-experience everything Nohr has to offer.”

“In that case, why don’t you try experiencing ballroom dancing?”

Right, this is a Nohrian custom where two people hold each other while they move in interesting patterns across the dance floor. It is much different from Hoshidan line dancing, since it is done in groups, and not with partners. Honestly, the thought of dancing so close to someone else makes her cheeks redden just slightly.

“I don’t k-know…” Sakura starts. “I don’t have a p-partner or anything, s-so…”

He startles her when he stretches his hand out towards her, a smile gracing his lips. “Then I would be delighted to be your partner, Princess.”

For some unearthly reason, Sakura’s lips have the nerve to ask, “Y-you can dance?” before she quickly covers her mouth in embarrassment. “I’m so s-sorry! I didn’t m-mean to offend, I just–”

Leo’s look of confidence is unwavering. “Please,” he speaks. “What kind of prince would I be if I didn’t know how to lead a lady in dance? Now, shall we?”

Sakura can feel her heart skip a beat as she places her hand in his own. Her left hand rests on his shoulder while his rests gently on her waist. She’s never been so close to any other man before this, and it’s completely nerve-wracking. “I… I don’t know how to dance…” she squeaks.

“I know,” says Leo.

“W-wouldn’t you rather d-dance with someone else? S-someone better at this th-than I am?”

“I wouldn’t have offered to dance with you if I felt that way.”

All Sakura manages to say is “Oh,” as they fall into silence. Other people watch the two of them with curious eyes. One of the spectators even wears some sort of wicked smirk on his lips as his eye never loses sight of them. She’s self-conscious all of a sudden, and just like that, she makes the terrible mistake of stepping on Leo’s foot.

Mortified, Sakura wrenches herself away from him and bows continuously. “I’m sorry! I’m s-so sorry!” she cries. “It t-truly was an accident. I d-didn’t mean to step on you!”

They all must think of her as some uncultured fool. Look at this clumsy Hoshidan, they’ll say. Are they always this barbaric and uncivilized?

She moves to leave the party, but not before Leo’s hand grasps her own. His thumb brushes over the top of her hand comfortingly. “Let’s try again,” he says. “But this time, don’t worry about anyone else but us.”

Her bottom lip quivers slightly, but the reassuring squeeze Leo gives her hand allows her to place her trust in him. They’re back into hold once more, and Sakura focuses on not making the same mistake twice. With great concentration, she eyes the way her feet move – careful not to let them step on her dance partner again.

But everything feels…off. Her posture is much too stiff, and she feels like she isn’t having as much fun as she should. This is supposed to be fun, isn’t it? When Leo stops, Sakura keeps her gaze on the ground. She knows she’s messing up somewhere, but she can’t bear to look him in the eye.

“I… I d-don’t think I’m cut out for this dancing stuff…” she mumbles. Can he even hear her? She doubts it. “It was n-nice of you to t-teach me, b-but I think I’ll just s-sit this out.”

Slowly, Leo’s hand leaves her waist to gently tilt her chin upwards. She can see his hardened gaze and is sure that he’ll berate her for her awkwardness on the dance floor. She can just feel it. But it never comes. Leo never yells at her. When their eyes are locked for some time now, Leo places his hand back on Sakura’s waist.

“Princess Sakura,” he speaks. “When you dance with another person, nothing else matters besides your partner and the rhythm of the music. Keep your eyes on me, not on your feet, and follow my lead.”

A slow, almost breathless “Okay,” is what leaves Sakura’s lips as they continue their dance. Holding eye contact with Leo is strange at first, but the more she gazes into his eyes, the more she seems to become lost in them. The steps she counts out in her head are long forgotten as she replaces them with thoughts of him while Nohrian instruments play a strangely sweet melody she’s never heard before.

Her fingers fill the spaces in between his own, and for a moment, she thinks they fit so seamlessly, as if they’ve always belonged there. For the first time this entire night, Sakura is smiling, and in turn, Leo smiles as well. “See? You’re doing well,” Leo says. Sakura can’t find any words to express herself in this moment, so she settles on a slight nod.

If she’s going to be honest with herself, she’s completely forgotten about trying to do the dance correctly. Instead, Sakura focuses on how magical this all is, as if she’s in some sort of whimsical fairytale. Her smile is broader, and a light giggle bubbles from the pit of her stomach.

Her chest feels as if it’s about to burst with joy, and she feels as radiant at the lights that decorate the garden. More giggles escape her, and she can’t help herself. A wave of elation had crept up on her all of a sudden.

And it doesn’t leave. In fact, when she slips up in her footing and forces Leo to hunch over her to keep her from falling, she only laughs. “I’m sorry,” she giggles. “I really messed up this time.”

But Leo is silent. He does nothing but stare at her with his arms around her waist. The giggling stops, and a warmth rises to her cheeks. “U-um, Prince Leo?”

“Yes?” he answers automatically. It’s as if he isn’t listening to a word she’s saying, but his attention is completely on her.

“I um… I’m sorry I messed up, but…”

And just like that, the realization hits him like a stampede of horses. “No, no!” he says as he helps Sakura to stand up straight. She takes comfort in the fact that his cheeks are red as well. “I was the one who messed up… I lost control, er…of my footing. Forgive me.”

“Oh! I-it’s okay,” Sakura smiles. “S-sometimes mistakes happen, right?”

“Right,” says Leo in a voice so quiet that she can hardly hear him.

This time, Sakura extends her hand out to him. “Um, w-would you like to try again?” she asks. “I really had fun.”

Leo slowly accepts it as the corners of his mouth twitch upwards. “You’re rather cheeky,” says Leo. “I’m supposed to lead. Are you trying to steal my role?”

Sakura lets out a small laugh. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”

I found the cutest LeoSaku prompt courtesy of @nneefa and I couldn’t not write it (even though I took some liberties.)