*Spoilers Warning* Definite spoilers about the 'true' end of 'Awakening' even during the introduction. Also spoilers about other elements of the plot throughout the game.

Hello!

This is my new full-length story that I'll be working on alongside 'Reasons to Fight'. This story is based in the events post- Robin delivering the final blow to Grima. In this story, she's married to Chrom (I mean of course she is, they're my second favourite 'fictional' pairing in all of 'fiction' in general- there's no way I could ever write an 'Awakening' story where they aren't a couple or where they aren't going to become one.)

It starts about two years after the final battle and I hope you like where I'm going to take this story. Some things to note about Robin: since I'm planning on making this quite a few Chapters long, it's simpler to use the default Robin appearance and that is what I am doing. Her age is twenty-three (one year younger than Chrom), I'm not sure if she stops aging after sacrificing herself but I've decided she didn't which is why she is still a year younger than Chrom. I will also be sticking with Robin's default name.

Also, this story has a playlist however, unless a song and/or songs apply to a specific Chapter or situation, they won't be posted until then end of the story in which I will post a full list of songs. This is mainly because the list just keeps growing so I don't want to list them all right now until I reach the end and know what songs were influential on the work.

This story is a mixture of ideas and is influenced by a lot of things. The first of which is that I really want *ahem*-sorry- need a direct sequel to 'Awakening' because I still believe there's so much they could delve into and if they allow you to transfer your 'Awakening' pairings over- wouldn't that just be so cool?! Especially since the ChromxRobin pairing has so much depth to it. Another thing is that after I finished the game for the umpteenth time and delivered the final blow to Grima, when I saw the clip where Chrom and Lissa find Robin in a field again, I still cried despite seeing it a lot of times before so my brain decided to torture me during my emotional moment by making me think 'What if robin wakes up without any memories again?' ...Yep...thanks a lot brain. It turns out, I'm not the only one who has thought of this as there are many fanfictions that use this idea which I have read and that have influenced this story however, this story doesn't use that particular idea per say despite it being the idea that I started with originally. I try to make my work as unique as possible, if people have written about Robin having a second bout of amnesia whilst paired with Chrom then I'll go out of my way to think of something else that makes the story worth reading. But...yeah, those stories have still inspired this work a lot so I'm thankful to all the stories out there that gave me the courage to write my own. =) Finally, my brain just hates letting things go; I can spend months, even years expanding fictional works inside of my own head simply because I can't bear to let them go. The world of 'Awakening' its characters and the ChromxRobin pairing are a part of the 'years' category. Yes, I love the game that much!

Anyway, without further ado, lets get started.

Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with 'Fire Emblem [Awakening]', its locations, characters etc. All rights go to their respective owners.

Rated T. *WARNING* There's a minor reference to a suicide attempt during this Chapter and by minor- I mean minor- since it occurs in a nightmare and is no more than a mere suggestion but, I know that even a brief mention of it may be triggering to some people. Hopefully, it shouldn't come up again during this story and if it does, you'll be warned beforehand. I am still keeping this rated as 'T' due to how small the reference is but if enough people feel like I should change the rating or alter the wording/change the scene then I am willing to do so as long as the reasoning is justified and is shared by a fair amount of people. There's also a couple of references to concubines and the like but nothing of the 'raunchy' nature actually occurs in this Chapter.

Together Again?: A Never-ending Nightmare

To many on the outside, the city of Ylisstol would seem like any other royal capital during that time. Rows of houses lining the streets, some clearly having seen more wear and tear over time, stalls and shops that bustled with activity at nearly all hours of the day, people going about their daily lives without a care in the world now they weren't at war and- at the centre of it all- a tall castle obscured by tall walls.

Inside of that castle is where the royal family of Ylisse resided which is why it tended to be heavily guarded at all times. Whilst it could be argued that most royal families were going to be seen as 'important targets' by criminals, assassins, kidnappers and the like; the royal family of Ylisse was probably targeted more than most. This was for a variety of reasons: the newest Exalt's approval rating being almost as high as the Exalt's before him despite only being a fairly short way into his reign after seeing his Kingdom safely through a multitude of scrapes and wars over the years, the fact that he was now a father and- for a less savoury reason- because he was still the only son of one of the Exalted bloodline's most despised descendants who had been responsible for ruining many lives before his own demise.

Within one of the larger rooms of the palace, the current Exalt was still in a deep slumber in one of the largest rooms within its confines. The man in his early twenties was lying on his side facing away from the other side of the bed, his blue hair splayed across the pillow and his chest bare, the blankets hung loose around his hips. On the outside he seemed peaceful enough; his face was untroubled by the world around him and his posture was rather relaxed.

But he wasn't at peace, he could never be at peace.

This became evident when he jerked awake, turning around and sitting up with a start. He was breathing hard and his hands that were supposed to be supporting him were shaking underneath him. The Exalt closed his eyes and tried to calm his breathing. Once he'd recovered enough, he brought his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them before looking at the side of the bed that had been empty for nearly two whole years.

That side of the bed used to be occupied by his wife and the mother of his only child.

Used to be but no longer. Because...

She'd sacrificed her life to save the world.

He held back a chocked sob at that thought.

That moment he lost her still hit him hard every single second of every single day despite how much time had passed by. He knew her choice was the right one after all, if she'd allowed him to deliver the final blow to Grima then their descendants in around a thousand years time would have to deal with the hardships and torments that they had faced; her death really had put an end to everything. He also knew that if she hadn't delivered the final blow herself then she'd have felt crushing guilt for the rest of her life as that choice would not only have been a huge tactical misjudgement but it'd mean all of the fighting, blood and loss that the Shepherds had faced would've been for naught. She was always selfless, dedicated and rational no matter the consequences and her passing had saved everyone.

But that didn't mean he accepted her decision. Sure it was selfish of him and for an Exalt who was entrusted with the lives of his entire kingdom, if Robin had allowed him to end Grima considering what that entailed, no doubt his Queen would have been the subject of criticism, hatred and dismay from the people and he would've been loathed due to putting the life of one person (and his wife no less) before all of the lives that would be affected in the future. However, Chrom was a man of emotion; he was the one who wanted to give up the Fire Emblem to Gangrel so they could save Emmeryn and he'd also been the one to make Robin promise not to sacrifice herself. But he was also the one who allowed her to join the Shepherds and had trusted her until the bitter end: sometimes allowing emotion to guide decisions was a great thing however, Robin's way of being led by reason was also just as effective as much as it pained him to admit it.

All these rational thoughts that went through his mind over and over again and yet it still didn't make the loss of his over half sting any less. Most people would argue that he should have 'got over it' by now or at least began to move on from it but he just couldn't. She was his everything and not having her was killing him on the inside.

There were only three things that allowed him to continue living on: the first was his beautiful baby girl. He'd had her during the brief time of peace after the war with Plegia ended. She was his light during times of darkness, seeing her made him incredibly happy. He lived for her smile and he saw so much of both himself and Robin in her already despite only being on the verge of turning three. The second was that if he gave up on his family, the Shepherds and Ylisse then Robin would never forgive him especially since both of them had given up so much just so the future could be preserved but Robin had made the ultimate sacrifice which meant that it fell to Chrom to not allow her death to be in vain. Finally, there was still the promise he made to find Robin again even if it took him the rest of his days and even if he had to search every field in the world a hundred times over, Naga had stated if Robin's bonds with her friends and family were strong enough then she may be able to come back one day and going by just his bond with her alone, there was no way that she wouldn't come back. He'd never give up on her, their bond or their future.

He wouldn't have been able to go on without those reasons, he had nothing else to live for, his most important reason to stay alive had left him and he would've followed her if those things didn't give him a reason to keep going.

However, just because he had chosen to live, it didn't lessen his grief or stop the nightmares. It was always the same one...

...Chrom was just about to deliver the final blow to Grima when suddenly, the evil dragon still taking on Robin's image was knocked back by a powerful burst of magic. Dread went through Chrom's system, he knew what had happened before he even tried to confirm it: he knew who had killed Grima. When Chrom turned back to look, there was Robin, electric still crackling around her fingertips.

"No!" He gasped before rage- blinding, red hot rage- went through him. He knew what this meant. "No, Robin! Why?!"

"Mother!" His children from alternate futures cried out in horror- he wasn't sure about Morgan but he new Lucina had already lost one version of her Mother and now she was expected to watch as another one died because of that vile creature.

Chrom turned to face Grima as the dragon snarled at the person who was supposed to become a host for him. Eventually he faded from view.

"Heh, good riddance." Robin muttered, smiling slightly.

Chrom turned back to his wife. Behind her stood all of their allies throughout this war, all of them looked positively horrified as the realisation hit them that Grima wouldn't be the only one to disappear from their view that day.

"Robin...no! Gods no, this can't be happening." He stumbled towards her; his legs felt numb and he couldn't comprehend what had just happened. When he was in front of her, his voice cracked when he spoke up again, "You...you didn't have to do this."

Robin shook her head, "I did, Chrom and as much as you don't want to admit it, you knew I had to do this as well. There's a little baby back at the castle whose descendants in the future would've been affected if I didn't do this, a kingdom which would have despised us both if word had gotten out and so much that would've been in vain if I hadn't delivered the final blow. Emmeryn, Yen'fay, they all would've died for nothing."

There was so much truth to her words that it just made it all the more painful that he was going to lose her; she'd gotten all of the Shepherds through three wars in one piece and yet...

"You can't leave us Robin, you can't leave Lucina but most of all, you can't leave me. Remember? We're two halves of the same whole. I can't go on without you, I don't want to." He was biting back tears, but his control over his grief was beginning to slip.

She looked away from him for a moment before moving to place her hands which- like the rest of her- were already beginning to fade from his view on his cheeks, "I...I'm sorry, Chrom, my love. I'm sorry I couldn't stay with you in order to see what a great Exalt and Father you'll become in future; I was looking forward to that. I'm sorry that I broke my promise to let you end Grima so that I wouldn't have to leave your side. But most of all, I'm sorry that I couldn't find another way, if I'd never have joined you on your journey then maybe none of this would ever have happened. I don't regret meeting you or any of the Shepherds one bit nor could I imagine my life without Lucina, Morgan and our baby back at the castle however, my ties to Grima ended up causing so much pain and so it's only right that I should leave this world along with him. It's the only way."

He was about to dispute that claim by reminding her that she wasn't him, she wasn't Grima when she pressed her mouth against his. His eyes closed instinctively which caused him to panic- No, I won't be able to see her face!- But he couldn't stop kissing her back.

Eventually, she pulled away. "Goodbye." She murmured, her voice breaking with emotion.

Now, in the real version of events, she faded from view at that moment before Chrom even had the chance to open his eyes to see her one last time, leaving her husband and his army to crumble with the weight of their grief but in his nightmares, things happened a little differently;

As she whispered 'goodbye' to him, he finally opened his eyes only for them to widen in horror as she screamed in pain before being consumed by fire. The horrified prince turned back to his army, shaking. He was expecting to lead them back to their camp where they could grieve properly but instead, a bitter-looking Tharja turned to him and sneered "You're such a weak man, in the end you couldn't defeat Grima yourself and now Robin has had to pay the price!"

The version of him in his dreams was shocked and looked around the Shepherds, hoping that at least one of them would argue back against her but instead all of them shared her look of dismay: Miriel, Henry, Vaike, Brady, Libra and even Frederick, Lissa and the alternate Lucina and Morgan were looking at him like he was nothing more than a failure to them.

As he pleaded with them to understand that she'd delivered the final blow before he got the chance to, his friends, family and comrades in arms all turned their backs on him simultaneously and left him.

Crumpling to his knees, tears streaming down his cheeks unchecked, the soon-to-be Exalt of Ylisse gripped the Falchion which was on the ground next to him. He held it up to his chest, ready to press the tip in-

...And at that moment, the nightmare always ended for which he was grateful.

He sighed and rose from his bed. Things were improving somewhat; he used to have that nightmare every night, now it was approximately three or four times a week but each time it never failed to leave him a quivering, nervous wreck.

He had just managed to get dressed for the day when he heard a knock on the door.

"Enter." He said as he grabbed Falchion so he could carry it at his side.

A nurse maid stood in the doorway. She bowed slightly before stating her business, Lucina wanted him. He bolted from his room when he heard that and entered the room that his little two-year-old occupied. He knew that he had to attend a meeting shortly however, he wouldn't just turn his back on his babe when she needed him.

"Lu-Lu?" He muttered as he picked the girl up from her bed, clutching her tightly to his chest. "What's wrong?" He cooed.

Whenever he was with her, he entered 'Daddy mode', she made him smile even now when practically nothing else could and she was the only thing that helped him get over that nightmare.

The thought of her growing up either without her mother entirely, without knowing anything about her or even despising her mother for leaving her when she was so young was yet another burden that weighed heavily upon the young Exalt's heart.

The little girl made silly noises as she reached up to grip at Chrom's hair which matched the colour of her own. He grinned at her in understanding; she just wanted to spend some time with him. It made him wonder if she'd had a nightmare of her own after all, it would make sense since...

In three days times, it would be exactly two years since she'd lost her mummy and Chrom had lost his wife.

Maybe Lucina knew that something very important was missing despite her young age? If Lucina from the alternate future was anything to go by then this Lucina would inherit her mother's sharp intellect and bubbling curiosity. It would explain why she seemed to become more clingy and grumpy around this time every year and around August- the month of her mother's birth- as well.

Chrom smiled sadly as he thought about that however, he quickly snapped out of it and went on to spend an hour or so playing games with his daughter until a slight knock on the door drew his attention. Frederick was there smiling apologetically at him.

"Milord, pardon the intrusion but the meeting is due to start in ten minutes."

He looked down at the little girl who was happily clapping her hands and singing along to some sort of tune that she was concocting in that head of hers. Grinning to himself he looked back to Frederick again, "I'll be right there."

Ten minutes later, he was sat in his chair at the head of a large table that was surrounded by advisors, a few of the Shepherds- namely Lissa, Maribelle, Ricken, Libra and Tharja and scribes. Tradition generally dictated that meetings with the Exalt should take place in the throne room but the mere thought of that made Chrom uncomfortable. He'd never been one for formalities; he despised it when people referred to him as 'Milord' or by any other royal title instead of Chrom even though he'd pretty much accepted that'd always be the case. He also disliked it when people tried to treat him as if he was a naïve little boy who needed protecting instead of a fully grown man who had survived three wars and had a child!

His rebellious nature against his royal upbringing just became more prominent shortly before marrying Robin. As she hadn't grown up with the sort of lifestyle that Emmeryn, Chrom and Lissa had (or if she had she couldn't remember it), she found it difficult to adapt. She'd started to live in the castle as soon as the war with Plegia ended since she had nowhere else to live before they were married- of course they'd had separate rooms until their union had taken place- and the royal tutors had taken it upon themselves to try and teach her a lifetime's worth of lessons about life as an 'Exalt's wife' in the space of a few short weeks. Seeing her struggle to adapt and seeing how her inability to cope with it was affecting her and making her feel down had made Chrom realise just how horrible certain aspects of his life could be. Of course, he'd always been aware that some elements of his life were horrible but he was also aware of how compared to life for the majority, he really had no right to complain but he still tried to bring a new outlook and twist to his reign as a result of seeing her hardships.

No one spoke for a moment; the majority of the advisors looked nervous and the atmosphere was almost as intense as a battlefield; whatever they'd summoned Chrom for, he was bound not to like. "Well..." He started awkwardly, holding his chin with his hand. "...I'm not the one who called this meeting, what business do you have with me?"

Silence: either no one was willing to speak up or they were afraid to.

Eventually, an advisor two seats down the table on his left-hand side coughed slightly and stood up, drawing everyone's attention.

"Milord, as you are very much aware, the Halidom of Ylisse has been without a Queen for nearly two years now-"

Chrom's hand froze under his chin and he felt himself tense up all over, his free hand tensing on top of the table. He wasn't the only one who stiffened at this line of conversation, the other Shepherds who had been there on that dreadful day Robin had disappeared from view also reacted badly to the advisor's statement. Even Frederick who was standing behind Chrom to act as a guard- the only one Chrom would ever allow unless either he or his family were being specifically targeted of threatened- sucked in an audible breath which was unusual since nothing seemed to phase him. Well...apart from bear meat.

Chrom only offered a curt nod in the man's direction.

In response, he shifted uncomfortably, clearly regretting volunteering to be the spokesperson. "Well...it is about time for you to consider taking on another wife or at the very least contemplate the possibility of a concubine. You only have one daughter and if anything should happen to her then there would be no one to take her place especially if tragedy struck Princess Lissa as well."

The Exalt couldn't believe that he'd even bothered to come here! He felt disgusted and sickened, bile rising in his throat as his stomach knotted and twisted up. How dare they! He thought to himself, bitterly. It was bad enough that they wanted him to replace Robin as his Queen, wife and as the mother of his child but to then suggest that if he couldn't bear to do that then he should use some woman who would no doubt be very open to the idea of pleasuring him and maybe receiving his child in the process horrified him. He'd learned first hand during his time with the Shepherds and during Emm's reign that not all women were like the ones who grew up in the royal courts or like the ones who spent their lives offering their 'services' to rich and/or powerful men in the hopes of being able to tie themselves to them somehow. the idea that his advisors were so desperate for him to give the Halidom another potential heir to the throne angered him and made him pity their close-minded views.

"M-Milord?" A female advisor spoke up hesitantly.

He met her gaze, you're okay with this?! He wanted to shout at her exasperatedly. Instead he just breathed deeply for a few more moments and closed his eyes before speaking whilst trying to contain his rage. "As Ylisse's Exalt, there is a lot I am willing to do and sacrifice for the sake of my kingdom." The advisors all straightened, looking rather hopefully; They were expecting him to agree with them on this? He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Meanwhile, the Shepherds who were clearly aware that Chrom was barely containing his anger just sunk lower into their seats almost like they were trying to disappear entirely.

Chrom's eyes narrowed into thin slits as he addressed them again. "However, I'm not sure if you recall but Robin was-" -'Is' he mentally corrected himself.- "My wife and Lucina's Mother. My relationship with her was a part of my private life and as such I will not remarry or take on a...a mistress just to appease you or to ease your worries where an heir is concerned."

Another advisor stood up, slamming both of his palms onto the table as frustration began to replace the nerves he was feeling. "With all due respect, Milord, Robin is dead and has been for a long time now; I don't understand why your good self and your 'Shepherds' can't accept a truth that everyone else came to terms with long ago but you have no choice but to move on and as for your 'private life', you don't have one! As our Exalt, your duties are to us and not to yourself in all aspects of your life."

Lissa slammed her own palms against the table now as she rose from her chair, anger written plainly on her face. "Hey, you have no right to say that! Both Chrom and myself are entitled to a private life as long as we don't bring shame upon the Halidom! My brother has made it perfectly clear that he has no interest in remarrying nor does he want the services of a concubine so let the matter drop."

"No! One potential heir isn't enough, it's unfortunate that the situation had to come to this but he can't mourn forever. The Halidom deserves to have a Queen or at the very least they deserve to see the royal family grow."

Chrom waved his hands up into the air exasperated. "Well...this has been a riveting discussion but unless there are other matters to attend to then you'll have to excuse me. We shall have another meeting when there's actually something that needs to be discussed. I refuse point-blank when it comes to this and I don't want to hear another word about it for the rest of my days. Do I make myself clear?!" He snarled through gritted teeth at his advisors around the table, making eye contact with each of them in order to make sure the warning got through to them. Chrom was normally a patient, understanding man but when it came to his wife and family, he wouldn't- couldn't- just stand back and accept things. The wedding band he still wore on his finger seemed to be burning into his skin at that moment as if to say 'Don't forget Robin." As if he ever could!

Normally if Chrom ever became this emotional during a meeting, Frederick would attempt to calm him down but the fact he hadn't this time was a sign that even he believed that Chrom was justified when it came to feeling like this.

When nobody spoke up to object or to bring up anything else, Chrom stormed out of the room with Frederick and the other Shepherds close behind him.

He paid them no mind as he walked though the halls, lost in his own thoughts. Thoughts of a women who came up to just below his chin, allowing him to rest his head upon her own, her beautiful, bright, brown eyes that held so much intelligence and curiosity within them and her ash-blonde hair that she kept in two pony-tails apart from on a few occasions (or whenever they made love because he simply couldn't resist letting her hair spill over her shoulders so he could run his hands through it time and time again). Thoughts of her by his side as they fought in battle after battle. Thoughts of her as they were wrapped in each other's arm, breaths synching with the other's.

He would give up the throne, give up his life before even contemplating the possibility of giving up on her. He would bring her home and he would prove them all wrong.

Well, this is just the beginning. I hope you enjoyed reading this Chapter and are excited for what's to come. I know I am. Until next time. xXx