#also that's a completely made up tome whoops sorry

[kastillia]

Hel’s Tactician

birthday prank on @shinyv >:)

[yukiwrites]

Morgan, Blending In

Thank you so much for commissioning me again, @xpegasusuniverse! I’m really glad with this one came out, so I hope you like it! :D

Summary: Morgan managed to follow her brother Owain to Valla and, under the alias of Linfan, now tries to blend in with the people of that strange and new world on her own Morgan-like way!

Commission info HERE and HERE!

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4  - Part 5

After Morgan, now Linfan, was accepted in Corrin's army, not much apart from fighting happened -- or rather, could happen. That place called Valla was crawling with enemies, to the point that even the people keeping watch at night had to be armed to the teeth since they would most certainly fight a battle or two before the sun came up.

That upside-down world was vast and hard to travel -- they had to make sure they stepped on the right bridges after the area had been scouted by flying units. It seemed like their guide, some Anthony fellow, wasn't very well liked amongst the entirety of the army, so Morgan's arriving right after Anthony’s made things a bit complicated to her side, or at least they should be.

"COMBINED..." She took a deep breath, holding her Thoron tome with one hand, the other one pointing to the sky.

"SIBLING ATTACK!" Odin yelled at the same time Linfan did, they tomes' magical powers swirling around them before exploding at the group of enemies right ahead. "YEAH! That was soo cool, Linfan!"

"Heehee, that was actually fun, Brother!" The siblings shared a high-five. "And since this place is crawling with those things, we can try out a lot of different magic!"

Odin had to hold his cursed hand in an extravagant gesture. "Yess! That's what I'm talking about! This is the place where we can truly use our full powers!"

"With my trusty Thoron, no enemy shall be left standing!" Linfan winked, doing a side peace sign over one eye. Odin almost shed a tear of pride. Finally... finally someone who understood and enjoyed his antics!

"... Don't you guys feel any shame?" Selena approached, her battle stance completely drained up due to second-hand embarrassment. "This isn't a joke, you know! They're here to kill us!"

"You wound me, silver-tongued maiden! This is serious business, I'll have you know! Isn't that right, Lin-"

Linfan giggled, "why don't you try it too, Selena? It's so silly, it's fun!"

"LINFAN!" Odin fell on his knees. "Betrayed... by my own blood..."

"Hah! I knew Linfan wouldn't let me down like that." Selena nodded, putting one hand by her hip.

From their posts, Corrin and Leo observed the interchange, both of them smiling at differing scales. "It's really lively out there, isn't it?" Corrin commented after felling the last enemy at their premises.

Leo sneered. "Humph. It's like we got another Odin; I got my work cut out for me."

The dragon prince scratched the back of his head. "Haha, I'm sorry for dumping her on you, Leo. But I thought that since she's Odin's sister, making both of them be deployed side by side would be better for her to fit in faster..."

"Please, don't apologize for that, Brother." Leo dismissed Corrin's worry with an uninterested wave of hand. "She is... a bit too eager for my tastes, but I AM used to having the most eager one, after all." He bobbed his head. "Besides, her talent for magic is real. So much that even by looking at her from this far I can still feel her inane power, waiting to explode. Very intriguing."

Corrin smiled. He knew how much his little brother loved to talk about magic, AND how competitive he was. He would probably push himself harder so as not to 'lose' to Linfan. "Just don't overdo it, okay?" He let out part of his thoughts, making Leo raise one eyebrow.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Oh, um, why don't you go talk to her, then? This can be a great opportunity to make new friends!"

"Hah, hear yourself, Brother." Leo scoffed, urging his horse to move. "I'm simply interested in her potential for combat, not in to suddenly invite her to our inner circle. Come, let's rendezvous with Camilla." He extended his hand to Corrin, who promptly took it so as to mount on the horse.

"Alright, but I still think that you two would get along if you wanted!"

"Yeah, yeah."

At the same time, Linfan, Odin and Selena arrived at the camp after clearing out their position. For the past few days, Laslow has been deployed far from Linfan, surely Xander's way of saying he didn't trust her yet.

At the entrance, Linfan unconspiscously looked at all sides, squinting as though she wanted to see something invisible. "Do you think he's here now?"

"Yikes," Selena shivered, "are you looking for ghosts or something? Aren't the invisible enemies we fight everyday enough?"

Without missing a beat, Linfan looked at the other side. "No, I mean the guy who likes masks Lord Corrin told us about."

"Oh." Both Selena and Odin cleared their throats, ever aware that the ninja could be anywhere around them at any moment. "If you keep being indiscreet like that, he'll stick around even longer!" The mercenary said, slapping her friend's back.

Linfan's eyes sparkled. "Will he?! Maybe this time he'll actually fall into one of my traps!"

Odin snorted. "You never even got Father to fall for them, Linfan!"

The apprentice tactician puffed her cheeks. "Well, YOU did."

Selena pointed and laughed as Odin retorted. "I was indulging my own blood, a-alright? The sacred vow of heroes always tells us to be kind to our kin!"

Morgan put one hand over her chin, her eyes wide in thought. "Will I have to marry him, then...?"

"WHAT? NO!" Both mage and mercenary yelled, slapping her shoulders. "Mor-Linfan, we need to play nice here, you understand? Stop digging these stupid pitfalls!"

"B-b-b-b-but," her voice trembled as Selena aggressively shook her, "but what if I dig deep enough that I can see the sky from below? I need to find out!"

"Linfan!" Odin exclaimed, making both women shut up in shock, the random passerby also staring unbelieving. "Don't do anything reckless, please..." He held her hand. "I won't bear if anything happens to you."

Feeling a bit guilty but also nostalgic, Linfan smiled. "That brings back memories, heehee." She brought Odin's hand to her face. "Sorry for worrying you, Brother; but it's going to be okay! This time, I won't bang a tome on my head or walk around looking up instead of down. I just want to catch him!"

"Aaand we're back at where we started." Selena groaned. "Listen here, Linfan..." She pulled her friend as they walked, leaving Odin behind.

He didn't follow out of pure shock, since Morgan had spoke not only of a new memory they made, but of an older memory of when they were children: She had the habit of looking up to the birds and clouds when she was very small, to she always hit her nose on trees, posts and walls, to the point of Owain needing to hold her hand at all times whenever they walked.

The feeling from way back then flourished inside his heart, making a relaxed smile sprout on his lips. She remembered more each day, and also learned more and more about their lives in this new world.

She would be fine. Sure, not without supervision, but would be fine nonetheless.

The sun took a lot longer than usual to set in that strange world since the sky was upward and downward as well, which only made it even more interesting! What would happen if Morgan started digging a pitfall during the sunset over her head while it was still bright under her feet? Would she be able to catch a glimpse of the blue sky all the while having the stars shining on her head? She simply had to find out!

And no, watching the sunset at the edge of an island did not cross Morgan's mind, nor would it: She was so focused on digging during dusk that she lost track of time. Although it was still clear out, she had dug so deep she leaned on the wall to catch a breather.

It was then that she looked up. "Oh, wow, that's my new record! Someone's REALLY gonna hurt themselves if they fall. Look at the sky wayyy up there, just a tiny round bit." A few moments of rest later, she placed one closed hand over her open palm. "Oh! I'm stuck!"

Laughing, Morgan slid down the wall to sit on the wet earth. "Heeheehaha! That's a first! I didn't know this island was so deep, whoops!" After calming down her giggles, she took a deep breath. "Welp, let's come up with a plan to get out of here! I won't disappoint you, Father!"

Morgan looked on her person for something that could help her up: her levin sword, her Thoron tome, a carving knife, a few samples of masks she always kept on a pouch and the shovel she was using to dig. "Aw, if I had brought a wind tome instead, I could fly myself out of this hole." She crossed her legs, looking at the items in front of her, trying to come up with a connection. "Father, I barely started and I already failed you... how can an aspiring tactician NOT walk around with a rope? This will haunt me to the grave!"

More worried about her lack of preparation than her own situation, Morgan kept thinking by herself, as the sky darkened and the temperature dropped. She didn't notice the time pass by, mind, since she was too busy thinking of what her father would do if he were in her shoes. Faraway whispers could be heard from above a long time later, breaking her concentration.

"Look, Sakura! The sky is soooo bright because of all the stars!" Princess Elise twirled around herself, pulling the shy hoshidan princess with her so they could watch the stars under that big tree over the hill.

"N-not even in Hoshido did they shine so brightly," Sakura commented, huffing to accompany the eager princess. By her own nature, Sakura always walked looking down -- in contrast with Elise, who always looked up -- so she noticed a big enough hole to swallow them both approaching at a fast pace as Elise happily dragged her. "P-Princess Elise, watch out!" She pulled her friend back with all she had, making both of them roll away from the hole.

"Wah- Oof!" Elise fell on the grass right beside the enormous hole that was simply there in front of the tree they were going to watch the stars under. "Whoaa! We could've really hurt ourselves there! Thank you so much, Sakura!"

The hoshidan princess sat up, patting the dirt out of her white clothes. "O-of course... I'm glad you're alright, Elise."

"Weh? Is someone up there? Heeey!" Both princesses heard a voice from below.

"KYAA!" Sakura shrieked, hugging Elise with everything she had. "G-g-g-ghosts?!"

"Whoa!" Elise laughed, bending towards the hole. "Ghosts? From this hole? Helloooo?"

"Oh, there really was someone!" Morgan got up, fastening her sword and tome back at her belt. "You're Lady Elise, right? I can barely make out your face since it's so dark, haha!" She opened her hand, channeling the thunder from her tome to her fingers, lighting the hole she was in. "Do you happen to have a wind tome with you? I'm a bit stuck in here!"

"O-oh, so it was a real person..." Sakura breathed out in relief. "A-are you okay? You fell down from such height..."

"Oh, no, I dug this! Impressive, isn't it?"

"Oh, wow!" Elise put one hand over her mouth, her hair dangling beside her face as she popped her head into the hole. "You did all this? Amazing! But what's this 'wind' tome you speak of? I never heard of it!"

"Oh, so they don't have wind tomes in this world? Whoops..." Linfan bit her tongue with a smile, thanking the heavens that her brother wasn't there to scold her.

"What was that? I didn't catch it!" Elise yelled, lying down at the edge.

"Um, if you don't have it, then it's okay! Do you happen to have a rope or something? I think I can work with that!"

"D-don't you think we should get help, Elise? We shouldn't be having such a leisure talk while she's in such predicament!" Sakura gripped at her friend's sleeve, worried about the new girl.

"Oh, yeah! Wait here, Linfan! We'll call for help!" Elise sat up.

"Oh, no, no, no! Please, no!" Linfan laughed nervously. "If my brother and friends find out, I'll be in deep trouble! I need to get out of this on my own."

"B-but what can we do? I don't think both of us can pull you out by ourselves..."

"Oof, yeah, I can barely flex without getting tired." Elise concurred, feeling sympathetic to Linfan since she, too, didn't like getting in trouble with her siblings. "Maybe if I call my brother? Leo's super good with magic; he can think of a way to get you out of there!"

"L-Lord Leo? Oh no, if he finds out, so will my brother!"

Elise deflated. "Oh, yeah..."

"U-um, maybe my sister Hinoka can help? She's strong, so she'll be able to pull you out in no time!"

Linfan put her free hand on her chin in thought. "Hmm... And she's hoshidan, right? There's no need for her to be a snitch to the nohrians..."

"I-I don't know about 'being a snitch', but Big Sister Hinoka is responsible and strong! I'll bring her here!" Sakura got up too fast for her own legs to follow, her feet wobbling as they tried to get a proper foothold.

They found none, as she was too close to the hole. Elise widened her eyes and yelled a "watch out!!" as Sakura felt the ground slip away from her.

Morgan closed her eyes, scooting to the side to give Sakura room to fall, but she never did. When she looked up, the princess was safe on a ninja's arms.

"Hah... For how long will you two keep this up?" Saizo groaned, putting his princess on the ground. "I won't stand idly if you endanger Lady Sakura any more than this."

"S-Saizo!" Sakura managed to let out her voice. "T-thank you, thank you, thank you so much..." She trembled as Elise breathed out in relief.

"Pheew! That was a close one! Thanks a bunch, Saizo!"

The ninja glared at the nohrian princess, then downwards to the foreigner. "How long do you plan on staying there, woman?"

"Oh no! MASK! IT'S THE WRONG TYPE!!" Linfan yelled, the sparkle on her hand getting out of control and spiraling upwards before flashing out. "I thought it'd be covering the eyes, not the mouth!"

The ninja sighed deeply, getting tired of watching that girl run around in her own little world and staying stuck inside a pitfall for hours.

"P-please, help her out of there, Saizo..." Sakura grasped at his scarf.

Once again did the ninja sigh and, faster than the eye could see, he jumped into the hole, surprising all three princesses. He landed soundlessly besides Linfan, grabbed her by her waist and jumped out.

"Oh, wow, that was easy." Morgan blurted out, grabbing Saizo's scarf as he pulled away from her. "Wait! You're him, right? The Saizo fellow? Lemme take a look at your mask!"

"Unhand me, woman!" Saizo pulled his own scarf back as Linfan studied his face with scrutiny.

"Oh, that sounded familiar, heehee," she giggled, remembering Lon'qu from her world. "But that's not it! Lemme just do this..." with her free hand, she grabbed one of the masks she had made previously and stuck it on Saizo's face. "Aw, I got the size wrong!"

Saizo flicked the mask away, managing to whisk himself out of Linfan's hold. "Do not do this again, girl, lest my blade finds itself in your gut by accident." He said and disappeared into a curtain of smoke.

"So he really was watching..." Linfan crouched to get her mask back, deep in thought. "Guess I'll have to relearn how to make them, huh? Now, to cover the mouth instead!"

"Wow, did you make this yourself, Linfan?" Elise picked one mask up -- since Linfan's pouch wasn't properly tied due to the surprise, it fell down when Saizo pulled away from her. "This is so pretty! What kind of paint is that?"

"Oh, there's one here, too..." Sakura picked one that looked like a fox. "So cute!"

"Do you like it? You can have it! I need to make bigger ones to fit Saizo..." She smiled, gathering the remaining dozen so as to tie them back on her pouch. "I can teach you to make it, if you want? With three heads, we can come up with more designs than me alone!"

"Really? You'll teach me?!" Elise trotted to Linfan's side, the foreign girl only one head taller than the nohrian princess. "I'm very good with my hands if I may say so myself! I love to make flower necklaces and crowns!"

"I-I don't like handling knives, but if it's only to carve, then..." Sakura shyly wore the fox mask, her cheeks flushed under it.

Elise and Linfan laughed. "It really does suit you! You really should keep it, after all." The apprentice tactician said. "C'mon, I'll teach you two right away! Let's get back to my tent for some light!"

Both princesses giggled, taking Linfan's extended hands. Their older brothers had advised them to steer clear of that girl, but she looked like such a fun person to be around! They surely would get along well from then on!