A Night With Corrin

Chapter XXVIII (Realization)

Walking with Charlotte for a long while brings you to a crossroads. The road's left fork leads to a gnarled forest pathway, while the right will take you back toward the Ice Tribe Village. Your escort nudges you in the direction of those wonderfully inviting Nohrian oaks.

The deeper you travel, the more astounded you are by Charlotte's sense of direction. How in the Light Dragon's name she knows her way around is beyond you. Everything looks the same. Trees here. Pits there. Dead wolves hang from bloody branches and bleached bones litter the dirt.

"Nohr certainly hosts some inviting scenery," you remark sarcastically, arms folded behind your back as you walk.

"Having second thoughts?" Charlotte asks, glancing back from a short ways ahead of you.

"None," you reply flatly. "I did what I did for Corrin and Flora's sakes. I stand by it."

"Being honest, you putting your life on the line like you did kinda shocked me," Charlotte admits, stopping and turning around. "Putting yourself at risk without knowing the outcome was kinda reckless, way I see it. I mean, you had no idea how Lady Camilla might've reacted."

"You're right. I didn't have a clue." You lean up against a tree and fold your arms.

"And yet you did it anyway." Charlotte joins you. Together, the two of you perch for a quick break.

"I did. And I would do so again," you add with surety.

The lady fighter snorts, then frowns with her usual bitterness. "Then you really are an idiot," she jabs. "Because there's no way out for you now, I hope you realize that. Anything I say is unlikely to change Camilla's mind should she decide she doesn't want you."

"I'm aware."

"And that doesn't scare you?"

"Of course it does," you answer with a nod. "But the needs of others come before my own."

The rebellious spark within you flares again. Fleeting but no less alive, it signals your dissatisfaction with the very Hoshidan ideal you just championed at the expense of your own wellbeing. "And besides," you continue. "Your words this morning weren't lost to me - regarding everything. A part of my wonders if maybe, just maybe..." You glance downward to your open palms and squeeze them into closed fists.

"That there might be a place for you in Nohr?" Charlotte poses.

You look to the girl. She smiles smugly, as though congratulating herself. "Something of that ilk, yes," you answer with a slight frown.

Though traitorous, you wonder if there might be a better way to bring peace than merely following Hoshido's teachings to the letter. The last few days have revealed a world far grayer in nature than you believed. One where not all Nohrians are cruel - one where Camilla pines to rebuild her fractured family, also.

"Then maybe you're not so short-sighted after all," Charlotte praises. Taking your hand into hers, she pulls away from the tree. "And if pleading your case to Camilla again helps keep you alive, I guess I'll do it one more time." The blonde leads you by the hand further down the forest's dirt track. "But you'll owe me big time, and I mean big."

You smile. There's warmth behind Charlotte's mercenary nature, you can tell. "And what, my good lady, might you seek in return?" Her price, you can only wonder.

"A sparring partner, for one. And a bedmate wouldn't go amiss, either," the lassie adds with a wink.

There are worse prices to pay. "Enjoyed our time together last night, did you?"

Her cheeks reddening a touch, Charlotte frowns. "A girl gets lonely, alright?" she counters with a defensive undertone, Her grip on your hand tightening. "And contrary to the reputation I've built for myself... I care about things other than money."