#lightofcrimea

It grated at Sanaki a little that she was the one travelling to different countries these days. When she was a child, it was always the Daein or Crimean politicians having to travel back and forth between Begnion and their home, partially because of her young age but mostly due to the vast power imbalances.

To say that Begnion's military and political position was far worse these days was an understatement. The second damned war had almost destroyed it entirely. At least she'd managed to put off the official state visit for a few years, the last thing she needed was to be halfway through puberty while thinking her way through foreign ground. The shock on Queen Elincia's face when she saw what Sanaki had grown into would just be a bonus.

Things in Izumo had been interesting since Queen Elincia arrived. Food and medicine were coming out of Crimea from the Dragon’s Gate and into the hands of starving Nohrians. It was a good start. Certainly a better one than Adelaide could have managed on her own. All the young ambassador had were her words and the promise of her country’s full support in negotiating peace. But the peace talks weren’t coming any time soon. Even with Elincia’s aid, the Nohrians continued to send Faceless across the border, and people continued to suffer.

Lucina smiled- briefly returning her attention to...whatever it was.  It seemed to be a denim one-piece bodysuit, with...overalls sewn on top, and a denim hood.

“Isn’t it, though?”  She smiled, looking over it.  “All this denim would surely keep a person warm.  And would last for years, as well!  With something under it, it would be a fantastic work uniform...”  She gushed, humming as she twisted it around, looking it over.  “It even sparkles a bit!”

“Hey, hey! It was Elincia, right?”

“No! Cease movement!”

Tanith’s words were sharp, cutting through the joust she had set up between her two students. Marcia had thought she’d known what she would be getting into with the Princess, but it turned out that her training regime wasn’t lightened because of being active in the field- it was accelerated. Secretly, the two Begnion knights were impressed with exactly how well Elincia had held up with it so far. 

Tanith motioned for the two of them to land, the two women coming to a halt in front of her. Immediately, the criticisms and corrections flew from her lips, Marcia letting out a small groan even as she listened. 

“Elincia, you were sloppy and far too slow. Your mount may be well trained, but you rely far too much on its own instincts. You have to take control in the air, pegasi may be intelligent creatures, but they will never have the strategic mind of a skilled Knight. Marcia? Would you care to tell me why you didn’t take any of the four separate chances you had to defeat her?”

“...I didn’t want to hurt the Princess.” Marcia mumbled. Tanith’s eyes narrowed, and she knew she’d said the wrong thing. “U-uh, but, I won’t hold back anymore! I promise!”

“Better not.” She growled, turning to Elincia again. “Get your armor off. We’ll go over the theory again - perhaps once it’s sunk in a little more you two maggots might be able to fight properly!”

“So then I punched ‘im, pow! And he went flyin’ ‘cross th’ room! And then I told ‘im, I walked over to where he was and helped ‘im up, and I told ‘im...”