Title: "Why did you get angry?"

Summary: She got too friendly and thought him an ally. Despite her decision to hold him at arm's length, her friendly nature decided to be all buddy-buddy with him. Her mind thought him as another Gerome or Laurent, prim and proper on the outside but cuddly and warm somewhere deep deep inside him. Damn her and her stupid naivete that unfortunately still lived inside her.

Notes: Mao is a weirdo who is as much of a sensitive soul as her brother despite trying to be as prickly as a porcupine. I try to ask her the question, 'why did you get angry?' considering she just passive aggressive her way last chapter.

The story starts with Kaze and Rinka's return after their stint with Avatar. I have no idea where to go after this.

Why did you get angry? Morgan - no, she corrected her mind by calling her by her alias - Mao chided herself.

She sat in the bed of the quarters she was given. It was a quaint and homely despite obviously for servants. It wasn't bad per se, considering she was used to the way that the Shepherds lived during the duration of the Valm campaign.

But the difference was that she knew there were other members of the army and servants surrounding her. She was in hostile environment and she shouldn't have aggravated their leader and her only ally in this place. Him calling her uncultured or without manners, she could tolerate. She got used to their rather callous banters during the road and her mind thought it was friendly banters. Him being blatantly suspicious of her and calling out that she was a guest and a hired mercenary who he didn't trust despite her previous thought reminded her that he was not her friend.

She got too friendly and thought him an ally. Despite her decision to hold him at arm's length, her friendly nature decided to be all buddy-buddy with him. Her mind thought him as another Gerome or Laurent, prim and proper on the outside but cuddly and warm somewhere deep deep inside him. Damn her and her stupid naivete that unfortunately still lived inside her.

Stupid Morgan , she could hear Severa's voice berating her, not everyone wants you and your clingy friendship. Ugh, learn some space.

She sighed again, wondering if she needed to apologize to the princesses too. It was really her fault she forgot that royalty meant respect.

To her, royalty meant family. Royalty meant Lucina's determined outlook to the future and suspicious nature, Cynthia's wild laughter and friendship, and Owain's boisterous declarations and warmth. Royalty meant Lord Chrom's trust, Missus Sumia's kindness and Lissa's compassion.

Royalty here meant none of those.

She is not in Ylisse anymore and it seemed this cemented it even further. She has no status here. No one knows her name here. Here, she is not the High Deliverer's daughter. She is not Khan Basilio's pseudo-granddaughter. She is nothing but an uncultured mercenary dragged to the steps of Hoshido's royalty.

Ryoma - the prince of a kingdom and vastly different from Lord Chrom the Exalt or Owain the Prince. She didn't know how to interact with him. Not even Maribelle, who was as snotty as they come and had tried to 'fix' her manners before, gave out the same feeling of offense as he seemed to so.

Mao groaned. "Why did I agree to take this job again?" She asked outloud. "Shit, maybe I ought to terminate the contract now before things get out of hand."

Like actually fighting for them, she finished in her mind. And getting attached.

Because she remembered how Sakura was smaller than her and how she worried about the war and her siblings. She remembered Noire and Nah in this girl - so soft that it was almost as if she could topple the girl with one poke. She was innocent, similar to their babyselves back in Ylisse.

She wanted to protect her before she became a Gerome or a Laurent.

She needed to break away before she felt more empathy to these people because she wasn't supposed to. She was supposed to find her brother and her friends and leave.

That was all she wanted, really.

She's lying.

She knows deep down the only person that matters is her brother because she is a selfish, selfish girl. And though Mother and Father would frown at her, she was willing to leave Owain and Severa if it meant her brother was safe in her arms again.

She slapped her face again, trying to listen to her conscience that sounded like Inigo berate her thoughts. Owain was her best friend and Severa was a friend. She shouldn't leave them behind in this world because they were also someone's Inigo and their own Morgan's couldn't come to this world to drag them back. It was up to her to do so. Really, she was selfish but conscience Inigo wasn't.

Damn him.

Damn, she hoped Lady Tiki's stone portal whatever can bring all of them home.

"Well, no use crying over spilled vulnerary," she spoke out loud, pushing herself up. "I know one of you ninjas are out there. I'm going out and you can tell the high prince that according to our contract, unless I was given direct order by him, I'm free to traipse around town."

"Hi, have you seen anyone who matches this description?" Mao was surprised that her pink hair did not stand out much in this city. There were people with red hair similar to Dame Cordelia's though she had not seen one with similar shade of pink as her and her mother's. Her colors were not such an oddity, even her brown plegian skin wasn't odd.

What an odd but cheerful place.

Part of her adored the peaceful air in this city. Amongst the darkness she had seen in this kingdom, Hoshido's sky is a bright blue in comparison. It reminded her of the blue she saw as soon as she left the Ruins of Time. The warm blue of the first sky she could ever remember.

She didn't bother to think about the flashes of the darkness and the smokes that enveloped
the sky in her nightmares.

Mao shook herself out of that darkness. No time for those thoughts, anyway.

She waved her (admittedly) barely passable sketch of her brother in front of a random passerby, "Have you seen anyone looking like this person?"

"What – what is this supposed to be?" She sighed, getting used to the response to her art.

"It's my brother," she explained. "He's about yay high, looks kinda like me except with higher cheekbones and according to others, prettier than me but that's load of Pegasus dung if you ask me. He has a scar on his lower lip. Have you seen anyone like that?"

"No," she was also getting used to hearing that reply.

"Welps. Thanks anyway." She gave a shadow of a bow and moved to find another person to ask.

She barely had the time to stop another passerby when the sound of a huge commotion reached her ears. She felt rather than saw the heavy weight of her guard's stare leave her and she decided to follow the noise's source.

A part of her was pissed that, for some unfathomable reason, despite the fact that the people of Hoshidan bore similar height to an average Ylissean, they were still taller than her. This was some discrimination against her Plegian origins.

"Is it true?" whispers came from the crowd. "Is it truly them?"

"I think it is," someone replies. "However did they get away from Nohr?"

"I heard they were brought in front of Garon himself."

"And they still managed to flee! How amazing."

Mao pushed herself forward to see a green haired young man being helped up by a ninja with a mask covering his face. There was also a young woman with Plegian colouring - the dark skin and the light hair.

"Make way!" A shout came and the crowd parted to let Lobster Lord - er, his royal highness pass. His retinue follows him.

"Well," she thought to herself, "war prisoners returning would probably ensue some battle. Guess, that means I have to actually do the job they're paying me, huh?"

Notes: Aaaah. Avatar is probs gonna show up next chapter or something. If I get the muse lol. Find me on tumblr as eulphy and pester me there too. Byeeeee.

Edit: sorry, I was on mobile and mobile fucked the line breaks and italics etc.