"Hey Robin..." Chrom said, staring with an angry look at the floor he was sitting in, his hands tied together at his back, which was also where the back of his best friend was resting.

"Say it, Chrom." The tactician didn't have the same depressing face of the blue-haired exalt, even though he was in the same uncomfortable position with his hands at his back and sitting on the floor.

"… How…?" He murmured. Robin raised up a frown that he was not sure his friend had seen. "Just HOW did we end up here?!"

"Hey! No yelling! You are disturbing the other prisoners!" a man wearing Valmese armor said, soon leaving the place where all the cells were, with one in particular holding Ylissean nobility.

"Was that a rhetorical question?" Robin answered, trying to move his hands to gesture, but with no avail, the tie was still tight. "Because, if you don't remember what happened, then you probably have a memory problem and if that's the case then we…"

"IT WAS a rhetorical question." The exalt cut him short. He knew his friend was joking, but he was in no mood for it.

And no. Chrom did not need any reminder on how they got locked up. To tell the truth, what he wanted was to forget.

A few hours earlier.

"So there's no way around." Flavia said, looking at the map in front of her, to Robin, Chrom, Basilio, Say'ri and Lucina, that stood together with her at the tent. Three seemingly looking Valmese representatives stood between the little blue pieces and the fort Steiger in the big map. "I guess we'll have to force our way through."

"What do you think, tactician?" Basilio looked to Robin. "How should we proceed?"

"Hmm…" The dark cloaked man put his hand at his chin, clearly thinking. He kept looking at the map, then turning his gaze quickly to Lucina and Chrom and back to the map. A grim formed at his face. "I have a plan."

"We have thousands of mounted knights, pegasus knights, thieves and spies, and you choose US to reconnaissance mission!?" Chrom yelled, already outside the war tent. Robin's plans, although sometimes crazy, always worked, but the lord had his doubts about this one.

"And all of them need to prepare for battle."

"Let me put it in another way…" Chrom started gesturing his hands in a way similar to how Robin used to do. "We have spies! Their job is to… SPY! Doesn't that ring a bell?!"

"Hmm…" Robin frowned and put his hand at his chin. Chrom knew he was only pretending to think about it. His decision was finale. "Nope. Not a single one. C'mon Chrom, trust me! Have I ever let you down?"

"I feel like this will be the first time…"

"Father! Robin!" A blue-haired girl interrupted their little talk, approaching them.

"Oh, Lucina, what do you want?" Chrom asked.

"I just wanted to say good luck to you, father." She then opened a big smile and looked to Robin. "And to you too, Robin."

"Thanks, Lucina." The tactician said, also showing a smile for the girl. "And don't worry, I'll take care of your father."

Chrom frowned. Lucina and Robin were a lot closer recently; they would go for walks, train and even eat together, when he actually remembered to do something other than work.

"Well, Robin must be like an uncle to her, considering the fact that she grew up with him close by." He thought, while the other two just chitchatted.

"Alright then, I'll leave you two to your preparations, and don't worry, Robin, I'll tell Morgan where you went."

With that, Lucina ran off. The tactician just observed the girl leave with a smile in his face. Chrom turned to his friend.

"Speaking of which," He started. "Did you discover who Morgan's mother is?"

Robin gulped, and a sweat ran down his face. "N-no, not yet! Well, I have to talk to Gaius, let's meet up in thirty minutes."

Chrom nodded, and with that, the tactician left.

Yes, he remembered everything. They reached the Valmese camps, but without any reconnaissance experience, they were quick captured and thrown in a cell, soon to be judged… or executed.

"Why did I trust you…?"

"Ow, come on. It's not that bad, at least we can talk!"

"Frederick was right all along, I shouldn't have trusted you…"

"Now that's just mean. Fred and I are good with each other! Just threaten him with bear meat and he becomes meek as a cat!"

"… Did you just say that you've been threatening my lieutenant?"

"Huh… er… No?"

Chrom tried to facepalm, but the tie did not let him. "Really, Robin, why do I trust you?"

"Aren't you overreacting?"

"Of course I'm not!" the exalt closed, still not believing how calm his friend was. "We are going to die because of your great plan!"

"As I said, you're overreacting." Robin took a serious tone. "Don't you think you would have already been dead if it wasn't for me?"

Chrom froze. Robin was right, that dark robbed tactician had saved not only the lord, but also every shepherd and all of Ylisse. It was hard imagining a scenario where Chrom would have won without Robin. But here he was, blaming his best friend and saying he should not have trusted him.

"I'm… I'm sorry…" Chrom said, his stare lowering slightly. "I'm just stressed, that's all."

"No worries." Robin responded, going back to his usual tone. The tactician looked quickly to the far away window, outside the cell and into the sky. "It's funny to think about it, actually."

"To think about what?"

"To think that's already been so long since you found me at the ground of some no-name plains. We've been through a lot."

"Yeah…" Chrom gaze and voice softened once again, also looking to the sky through the window. "Defeating brigands, the war with Gangrel, recruiting more Shepherds…"

"Also your marriage. Oh, and little Lucina's birth!"

"Yes… I guess there's a reason why I chose you as my best man and as Lucina's Godfather…"

"Because of my incredible ability to make speeches?" Robin chuckled, trying to make the lord laugh too. "Or because you just can't imagine Vaike or Fred making one?"

"Ha!" Chrom laughed. "Really, can you imagine Vaike trying to challenge me in my own wedding? Or Frederick staring at little Lucina like she was the child of a God?"

"I'm more worried about their clothes! Frederick making a speech and holding Lucina with full armor, and Vaike… Well, Vaike wearing nothin'."

"That would be priceless." He laughed once more, soon becoming serious again." But no. I chose you because you have been by my side through it all. You are my best friend."

"You don't need to say th—"

"Wait! I am not done. I am glad for all the times we have been together. Together with my wife, my daughters and my sisters, you are the most important person in my life."

"Haha!" Robin could not contain his own laugh, which echoed at the cell. "I wonder what Sumia would say after hearing that."

"Don't worry. I'll never say it again." He smiled. "But I love you, man. And if I have to spend my last moments with someone, I'm glad it is with you."

"Yeah, Chrom, I love you too. After all, I would not be here if not for you. You gave me a life. I'm glad you found me that day."

They spent the next minute in silence, remembering the last years of their friendship. Robin then grinned slightly and spoke.

"Well, since we have been confessing things left and right, I have one more thing to say."

"What is it?" Chrom frowned, waiting for the tactician's answer.

"I'm engaged."

"Really?! That's great!" The exalt broke up in a giant smile. "So, who is the lucky girl? Cordelia? Oh, I knew you had something for her!"

"No."

"Huh? Is it Tharja then? I wouldn't say it's the healthiest relationship, but if you love her…?"

"No…"

"Say'ri? You look like someone who would like foreign girls."

"Also no… And really?"

"Then who is it?"

"Well…" Robin broke in a cold sweat, but quickly murmured "Lucina…"

"Huh?" Chrom smile slowly subsided. "What does my daughter has to do with it?"

"… Lucina… Is the girl…"

"I don't get it."

"… "Robin hesitated again, but decided to end this fast. "I'm engaged to Lucina."

"Oh, I see." Chrom took a few seconds to process what his future ex-best friend had just said. "YOU ARE WHAT?!"

"I said no yelling!" The valmese guard once again appeared, leaving soon after making a scary stare to the two.

"Oh. I want to punch you so hard right now! I want to kill you and give your corpse to Minerva to eat!"

"You know Cherche would never let you. Minerva only eats the best of the best."

"Why did you think it was a good idea to get engaged to my daughter from the future?!" Chrom was almost bursting, to the point that Robin could almost feel his friend strangling him.

"I did not believe it was a good idea." The tactician spoke in the softest tone he could have. "I tried to deny my feelings, but I love her, Chrom, and she loves me back."

Chrom's rage slowly went away, but his tone was still harsh. "Since when have you been… a couple?"

"Almost a month, I believe."

"And who else knows about this?"

"Lissa and Gaius."

"Of course…" He sighed. "My sister and her husband had to be involved…"

"They helped me confess… I guess without them, this wouldn't have happened."

"I see. Also, I did not notice any ring on Lucina. Have you guys been hiding it or…?"

Robin sighed, this was starting to feel like an interrogation to him. "With all these battles, I still haven't bought one… I thought about buying it when we go back to Ylisse."

"That won't do." Chrom said in monotone.

"Huh?" The tactician gasped. Maybe the fears of his best friend not accepting their relationship were real after all.

"When we get out of here." He paused, changing the strictly tone to a more friendly one. "We'll go buy a ring for you to give to Lucina."

Robin's face lit up in a giant smile. "Does that mean…?"

"That IF we get out of here, I'll give you my blessing."

"That's amazing! Thanks Chrom!"

"As I said, IF we get out of here. We need to fix that first."

"Oh, that's not a problem."

As easily as he said it, he got up and his feet and showed Chrom his free arms, no rope tying them together.

"Tadaaah!"

"How… When… Why…" Chrom was dumbstruck. Robin got free of those ropes like it was nothing. "Since when have you been free?!"

"Since the first time those damned things didn't let me scratch my hair or put my hand in my chin. I can't think without it." He then noticed the still surprised looks on his friend's face. He lift up his finger to show a bit of fire magic at it. "Mages can still use magic without their books, just to a lesser extent. I may not be the best with magic as I am with a sword, but I can do this, at least."

"All right, all right. Now set me free."

Just as Chrom finished, Robin kneeled to burn the rope. The exalt got up, stretching his arms open with relief.

"Okay, now we need to get out of this cell and take our things back."

"Don't worry, it's solved." Robin put his hands into his mouth and whistle, making the sound echo through the cells.

Just a few seconds later, an orange-haired man appeared at the cell, licking a lollipop and with a great sack at his back.

"Called Bubbles?"

"Gaius!" Chrom exclaimed. "Since when you've been here?"

"Since always." He picked a key from his pocket and inserted it in the cell's door, opening it. "Touching story, by the way."

"But… If you have been here the whole time… And Robin could've just burned the ropes…"

"Oooooh Bubbles, I guess he got your plan!"

"Erm… Well, you know, Chrom…"

"So that means… That since the beginning this was just a plan so you could've…" Realization hit him, and he turned to Robin the fastest he could. "ROBIN, YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

"Chrom, think about what you're about to do!" Robin slowly walked backwards. "I'm your daughter's fiancée! That means I'm family too!"

"You can't be family if you die before the wedding." A dark aura surrounded Chrom, to the point that they could feel the exalt's rage.

"He got you again, Bubbles."

"Gaius, PLEASE STOP!" Robin said, before running away the fastest he can, with Chrom following shortly after.

"No, Blue, wait!" Chrom quickly turned to Gaius, who was reaching something in the big sack he had. "Here, I got Falchion back, it'll be easier with it."

Chrom got Falchion that Gaius had threw, and went back to chase Robin.

Alone back in the cells, Gaius sighed to himself, then giving another lick on the lollipop.

"If he is like that now, imagine when he remembers about Morgan."