ᶜʰᵉᶜᵏᵐᵃᵗᵉ .

             ❝ you can quit them and come back to anya with me. ❞

“Everyday I try to erase you from my mind.”

♕ » — @grimtact.

            there was a rather happy smile on the prince’s face, one that hummed a tune as he strolled through askr castle. of course of all times, he should be preparing himself in case the summoner needed him for battle; but couldn’t he have time for himself ?? after all he is a human being of emotion and feelings. he should be allowed to do something of what he’s about to do, yes ??

 once he had reached the askran library, leon peered in before noticing the ylissian tactician at one of the bookshelves; most likely engrossed in the tome in his hands. the anyan prince walked over to robin’s side before blowing air into the tactician’s ear. as he watched robin yelp from the sudden breeze, leon chuckled to himself before giving the other a smirk. ❝ i see that you’re paying more attention to that book rather than me, bin-bin. ❞

HE’S SO ENTHRALLED  by the authors of the askr kingdom. it feels as if he has the knowledge of every world; every kingdom at his very fingertips. how could robin do anything else, besides find his way back to the library to swap what book he had his nose buried in. surely one would think time between battles is better spent keeping oneself in order, but for those who knew robin knew precisely what he was up to. robin is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to that exact thing─he is a tactician, and a damn clever one at that.

STILL, does that curious brain of his & his keen attention to detail leave him wide open whilst he turn the pages of a tome. he is captured by his studies. his eyes are glued to old parchment & he is oblivious to his surroundings. an easy target he makes himself, and leon makes that known with a puff of air against his ear. hands would fumble with the tome, surprise risen high in his voice as he pulls it against his chest. a relieved breath, a pause─robin turns his head to catch the perpetrator & is met instead with the cheeky cheshire curve writ upon leon’s face. and robin, likewise, couldn’t keep his own expression anything but a smile as he responds:

          ❝ ─I’M SORRY. i couldn’t find you earlier, leon. and i got a little... carried away, in the meantime. ❞

AN UNDERSTATEMENT, if the stack of books at his feet were any sign of how long robin has paced this exact spot. a brilliant man, really. a prodigy. hands close his latest read; fingers wrap ‘round the leather spine. robin turns to face leon head-on & that smile never wavers.

IT HELPS PASS TIME, playing chess. breaks his mind away from his maps and wooden sculptures and plans. eases his nerves, but keeps his mind busy so that he does not overthink & does not lose sleep. a healthy distraction, robin would call it, and he is thankful chrom has sat down to join him. what tension wore itself in his shoulders had soon melted minutes into their game, and he was─if only for this moment in time─at peace with himself. he doesn’t want to think about how much longer this feeling will remain. he doesn’t want to remind himself of what keeps him awake at night. robin simply wants to live in the moment. he wants to enjoy his time with someone he trusts with his life; with his friends.

AND CHROM IS  better than he makes himself out to be in this game. nothing which comes as a surprise─robin is certain chrom was just as fine a leader before he was found as he is today. and with formal education no doubt at his fingertips, it would come more a shock if he were an easy opponent. chrom is clever in his own way. there are some unorthodox plays he makes & it certainly garners a raised brow at times from the tactician. he’s clever in his own right, it’s almost disarming.

BY THE END OF IT, robin comes out victorious through his own devices & plays. perhaps only narrowly, this time─it is far from the only match they have played together. chrom is likely learning all the little ticks of the tactician’s strategy if he’s picking apart the board like this.

          ❝ ─I JUST  know you so well. ❞

A JEST; there is a smile writ ‘cross his features that marks it as such. 

i’m diagnosing myself with yes

SHE MAKES  a good point, this he knows. he should look at it in a better light and take it in stride─learn from the beatings he would get from those he’s unfamiliar with.  ( ... like pikachu and pichu. for example. )  he is not the most adept swordsman nor is he the highest caliber mage, but he should keep in mind where his true strengths lie. he is a tactician. robin should know better than anyone else that a well timed move can turn the tides of battle.

HER QUESTION, in turn, gets a brighter response than it could have garnered should she had said something else. a smile springs to robin’s lips & any remnants of his sulking seems to have left.

          ❝  well, winning isn’t everything... but, thanks to you, i feel better than ever. so, thank you for reminding me what makes me just as good as everyone else here.  ❞

... HE ALSO  doesn’t want to admit that he absolutely lost that last match.

✥ | The princess is happy that Robin accepted her snack offering! She will protect him in return in team battles! “It’s quite good, isn’t it?” She says, taking a strip of dried bear meat to eat herself. “It may be a bit foreign to some people, but I enjoy it!”

THEY HAVE  bonded now. they’re friends. all it took was an offer dried bear, and he’s just as content as could be. or, maybe that’s because he actually is hungry and was susceptible to friendly bribery. well, either way─robin will just as happily be her partner for their next team battle, whenever that will be.

“You learn … Ancient Tongue?” 

Leanne was fairly certain that’s what Tibarn and Reyson had called her mother tongue. It was forgotten by the beorc of Tellius, save for a few mages who could distinguish the language in their tomes. That was part of her motive to speak in the common language. She yearned to be understood by not only her immediate family and trusted laguz allies, but by the beorc, too. And the heroes of this world. 

“It … it not spoken anymore. Not useful! Better to know common tongue! Like … you!”

IT’S  not spoken anymore? how disappointing, but he supposes that if it were to be called an  ‘ ancient tongue ‘  of tellius, then it shouldn’t come as a surprise. robin remains undeterred, however & instead turns to another way he may lend a hand. after all, he’s far from a terrible teacher.