A/N: Hello everyone! This is a short story, planned to be about 6 chapters, that will cover Mikoto's past and how she ended up Queen of Hoshido. It will span from slightly before Corrin's birth to the kidnapping, with an epilogue that occurs after Corrin's return to Hoshido. Since we learn so little about Mikoto's personality in general, I'll be applying some alternate character interpretation to her, and in later chapters I'll do my best to apply moral greyness to the conflict between Hoshido and Nohr, but everything will be as consistent to the game as I can make it. Needless to say, there are major spoilers ahead. I'm serious. Do not read this if you haven't played Revelation, aren't aware of what it reveals, or care at all about remaining unspoilered. This chapter is mostly going to be about worldbuilding and Mikoto's past, and as such it will give away nearly everything you learn in that route.

Also, there is a mention of an underage marriage and all the implications that come with it. The game is set in the medieval times, and I will be applying the values of those times to this fic. And in those times, women were considered eligible at around fourteen. If you don't have a problem with A Song of Ice and Fire, you shouldn't have a problem with this-and I promise, this is far less graphic.

...Still here? Alright, let's go.

EDIT: Invisible Princess now has fanart! Thanks very much, Cybercluster, that made me incredibly happy! You can check it out (no spoilers) here (just remove the spaces and add the appropriate backslashes and dot com): http cybercluster deviantart /art/The-Invisible-Princess-619462036?src=MC_deviation_stack

Her month-old niece was a small thing, all soft skin and big gold eyes and wispy blue hair. The white of the bow in her hair and of her coronation dress made her look even more delicate, almost like a porcelain doll. Sunlight kissed her brow and she squirmed a little, squinting in the light, even more precious in her precariousness. Everyone in the kingdom fell in love with her the moment she was presented to them.

Thunderous applause rang from the streets below as the priest finished his annunciation of Princess Azura of Valla. The entire city of Gyges was assembled below, peasants and nobles alike brushing shoulders. In the distance one could see decorations lining the streets and town square, along with various stalls. The king and queen, Theophilus and Arete, stood at the forefront of the balcony with the priest holding their precious daughter, waving to the crowd. Hovering in the background, in the shadows cast over the balcony, Princess Mikoto couldn't suppress a smile—Valla hasn't had much cause for celebration lately. The birth and christening of their new princess was just the thing needed to lift their kingdom's spirits.

With the formalities over, the celebrations could commence, and the sounds of laughter and chatter floated up as the people began bustling to the different stalls in the town square. The priest returned Azura to her parents' arms and stepped back, bowing respectfully. The guards escorted the royal family into the castle, passing through the maze of corridors until they reached the great hall, where they, the nobles, and some lucky upper-class merchants would be dining.

Azura was passed off to her nursemaid, who left to return the baby to her chambers. The servants ushered the royal family to their table, up on the dais—Mikoto was at her sister's right hand, who herself was at the king's right hand—and scurried off. Their retainers and some of the particularly wealthy or politically powerful nobles were placed facing them, but at a slightly lower table. A sign of favor—the closer you were to the royal family, the better your position at court, and Mikoto could see some of the lesser nobles eyeing the coveted table enviously. Particularly the spot at King Theo's left hand, left carefully empty, awaiting someone who would likely never return.

The servants returned, precariously balancing platters of food. Duck seasoned with spices, thick loaves of raisin bread, roast pigs studded with chestnuts, fruit cut to resemble brilliant jewels, rabbit-and-herb stew. It was not as excessive as it would have been, had Valla not been in a state of famine, but there was certainly more food in one place than Mikoto had seen in months. Part of her was already calculating the cost of such indulgence, while another was overjoyed at all the food, and a third part reminded the rest that a bit of excess was warranted for the birth of a princess.

The raven-haired princess cut thin slices of her pig, relaxing slightly. The topics currently being discussed were of little importance, innate chatter about the weather and such, and so she allowed her mind to wander. Her mind drifted again to the christening, to the little baby and the people's joy over her, and a pang of jealousy shot through her chest.

At seventeen years of age, she was well past the age of eligibility, but no suitors had stepped forward for her. It was her sister they'd always wanted, her sister with their father's pendant and claim to the throne. When their parents passed away five years ago, Arete had ascended the throne at the age of fourteen. People immediately doubted the young queen's ability to rule, whispering that she lacked experience, that it would be better to install a regent, even though she was of age, albeit barely. Noblemen began presenting their sons to Arete in droves, calculating eyes upon the throne. Arete had refused at first, adamant that she would be no one's puppet queen. But Mikoto, even at twelve, had already had a head for politics, and advised her sister to marry to gain allies. It was her words that finally got her sister to cave.

Theo was the eldest son of a priest, well-educated, popular at court. Eighteen years old—close enough to Arete's age that Mikoto didn't feel bad about pressuring her sister to marry him, far enough that he had more worldly wisdom at his disposal. His lineage was good enough that the other noble families wouldn't feel shunted, and he was said to be a good, just person, if somewhat weak-willed. He was perfect. Through some clever maneuvering on Mikoto's part, she was able to get them introduced, courted, and wedded within a year.

Arete was the queen the people loved, and Mikoto the princess the court ignored. But that was for the best—they had no idea how skilled she was at manipulation and subterfuge, no idea that it was her hand steady at her sister's back. She was the one who dispelled the unpleasant rumors that circulated as the years trickled by and Arete and Theo failed to conceive an heir, the one who eliminated threats to her sister before they could manifest, the one they trusted and relied on the most.

No, she didn't regret being in the shadows; that was where she could best serve and protect her sister. Still, though, she sometimes couldn't help but wish for some fame, so that perhaps she'd catch a man's eye and start a family of her own. Children were the one thing she longed for more than anything.

She was shaken out of her melancholy by the sound of a name—not hers, but one widely known and dreaded throughout the kingdom. "A pity Anankos couldn't make it," Theo remarked through mouthfuls of duck, a little wistfully.

Mikoto bit her lip. To her left, Arete let out a resigned sigh. With his father one of Anankos's priests, it was natural that Theo had grown up spending a lot of time with the dragon. It was natural that he had befriended the dragon, even if he'd decided the path of the clergy wasn't for him. The problem was, Theo's friendship made him somewhat…blind.

The nobles and dignitaries traded a few looks at Theo's remark. "Perhaps it's for the best," one of them, a man by the name of Daisuke, dared to say. "After his destruction of the Brightwood…well, I don't know if I would be willing to trust him near the new princess."

Theo shook his head, firm and determined. "I'm telling you, I know Anankos. There's nothing to fear from him. He just made a mistake, that's all."

"Aye, a mistake that razed an entire forest to the ground." Remembering who he was speaking to, Daisuke hastily adjusted his tone to be more reverent. "Your Majesty, if it were just a mistake, he wouldn't have run, surely."

"Why wouldn't he, after the way we treated him?" Theo's voice was as sharp and cold as an icicle. "We ostracized him and cowered from him. He has done so much for us—so much—and the moment he slipped, we turned on him. That's the exact attitude that would have only strengthened his already low opinion of us. We need to stand by our friends in times of trouble, not abandon them."

"With all due respect, Your Majesty," another noble interjected, "Anankos was your friend. Not ours."

"I think that's enough out of all of you," Arete interrupted as her husband opened his mouth again, eyes flashing. "Today is a joyous day, one of celebration. Not division."

The nobles backed down, murmuring half-hearted apologies, and switched topics to safer things. Tight-lipped, Theo let them, instead turning to whisper angrily with his wife. Mikoto looked down at her pig, stabbing it with perhaps more violence than necessary.

Centuries ago, there had been a devastating war between Hoshido and Nohr. Refugees from both sides had fled, and by a stroke of fate came under the protection of a deity. That deity had brought them through the Bottomless Canyon to a previously-unknown land, where they quickly founded their own kingdom, one that had a mixture of both cultures. In exchange for the deity's protection, they'd sworn to venerate him forever. That kingdom was Valla, and that deity Anankos. And for a while, things had been well.

But as the decades passed, the people lost faith in Anankos. He had an incredible amount of power at his disposal, power no human could dare to match. While he had never shown any interest in the throne, he had always been a welcome addition at court and trusted advisor to the royal family—but gradually, bit by bit, that changed. People were afraid of him, and he knew it. His appearances at court dwindled down to nothingness sometime during Mikoto's grandparent's reign, and he retreated to dwell with his clergy. But he did not forget the slight against him, and to the people's terror, it seemed to be driving him mad.

Shortly after Arete and Theo's wedding, Anankos had appeared in court for the first time in five decades, but not as a human—he had shed that form long ago. No, as a dragon, he landed outside the palace and commanded the new king and queen to let him put isolationist policies in place, and it was here that Theo's friendship with the dragon worked against them. He had been very reluctant to obey, but he had obeyed nonetheless. And so Anankos had cast his spells: the first to wipe themselves and their kingdom from all living memories and written records; the second to raise a barrier between their worlds; a third to curse their kingdom's name, so that it might never be uttered Outside. They truly were an invisible kingdom, and public opinion slowly turned against Anankos.

Things only worsened when Anankos devastated the Brightwood last year in a fit of draconic fury. The effects had been catastrophic—Brightwood had been a sprawling forest nearly 500 acres in size, one of the chief sources of Valla's lumber, meat, herbs, leather, and furs. The loss of such a bountiful habitat had done a terrible thing to their economy. Construction and reconstruction efforts ground to a half, textile production was down, medicine was down, almost everything was affected. Theo had even been forced to impose rations on meat.

The people had always been afraid of Anankos giving in to his base nature, and his policies had not been well-received, but in light of this event, their imaginations had run away with them. Now they whispered rumors that he had ordained the isolation of Valla to have an easier time destroying it. Mikoto and Arete did their best to quash such rumors, of course, but it wasn't easy to stand up for the deity when part of you wondered it was true.

It wasn't easy to stand up for someone you resented, and maybe even hated a little.

Mikoto's grip on her fork tightened as she remembered their father, gasping for life as his body scattered into water. That was something else Anankos had done—at the dawn of Valla's civilization, he'd written a song and ordered the royal family to learn it. He'd granted them a pendant, and in combination with the song it was supposed to soothe his mind, keep him from going insane.

Except the cost came at the singer's life. Not immediately—but the drain on him or her built up over time, hurting and weakening them until they eventually died, dissolving into water. That was the fate that had befallen their father, and would someday befall Arete, and Azura, and Azura's eldest child. That was how it had always been in their family, and how it always would be, because the alternative was letting their god slide into madness.

And in the end it was all for naught. Anankos's mind had fractured anyway, and now he was a half-mad recluse living on the outskirts of civilization. The members of the royal family had been giving their lives for nothing. Her father had given his life for nothing.

Bitterness at the unfairness of it all welled in her throat. Mikoto turned away from Theo and Arete—whose arguing was starting to get louder now—and instead focused on her pig. Ignoring the problems of the world wouldn't make them go away, she knew, but for once she'd rather escape them than face them.

The situation worsened as the weeks went by. The food in their reserves dwindled down, as a drought killed the crops and the hunters refused to go into the forests. Fires became more common thanks to the lack of rain, and there wasn't enough wood to rebuild what was destroyed. Trade between cities slowed to almost non-existence as people refused to take to the roads. Mikoto was a ghost at court, always watching, always silent, always ignored. She almost never saw Arete or Theo anymore, busy as they were trying to keep Valla from crumbling apart. When she did, they were usually huddled together, whispering angrily—she caught Anankos's name more than once, and knew they were arguing over whether to seek him out or not. She'd already been pondering the issue herself for weeks, turning it over and over in her mind, and reached her conclusion.

If Anankos truly desires to destroy us, Mikoto had thought late one evening, picking at a pathetic little quail, he doesn't even have to do anything. He can just sit back and let us hang ourselves with a noose of fear.

That was the thought that made up her mind. When Arete and Theo finally came to her for her input, it was desperation that had her siding with Theo. With Valla cut off from the other kingdoms, they simply had no way to procure the resources the people needed. They needed to find Anankos—either to beg for his aid, or to show the people there was nothing to fear from him and hopefully motivate them into working again. With her sister and her husband siding against her, Arete had no choice but to acquiesce to their wishes.

"I still don't like this," Arete warned as Theo saddled up his horse, his retainers already at waiting at the gates. It had been two months since Azura's christening, and even though it was morning, the air was already heavy with the beginnings of summer heat. There was an assembly gathered in the courtyard of the palace, there to see their king off, buzzing with uncertainty. Mikoto bounced her niece in her arms, watching her sister and her husband say their farewells.

Theo smiled at his wife fondly. His marriage to Arete had not been born of love, and they still weren't in love—but they were friends, and that was more than what some could claim. "You never like my crazy plans."

"Well I like this one even less! Showing up begging for his help after driving him away? That's going to put him in a bad mood from the start."

"It would, if it were why I was going. But it's not. I'm not just going as a king seeking aid, but as his oldest friend trying to help him regain the prestige he lost. Surely he'll understand."

Arete sighed and shook her head. "I wish I had your faith."

"It's for the best you don't. After all, who would keep me grounded in realism?" That got a chuckle out of her somber sister.

Theo hugged first Arete, then Mikoto. He made a few last funny faces at Azura, who burbled happily, and then swung onto his horse. As he and his retainers departed, the crowd applauded wildly, Theo's bravery and optimism infecting them. Mikoto watched all this, marveling at her brother-in-law's ability to remain positive. Perhaps, she dared to hope, he was right. Perhaps Anankos just needed a friend to help him. Perhaps they didn't have to fear their god going insane and destroying them all.

Two weeks later, one of Theo's retainers returned, bloodied and swaying in his saddle, and told them shakily of how Anankos had attacked and killed the king.

And the people of Valla rioted.